Small businesses in the UK are being offered a free domain name and free web hosting to help them create their first website. As many as 1.5 million small and microbusinesses in Britain are believed to operate without any internet presence and the UK government believes this is making them less competitive.
Getting British Business Online was launched in February 2010 with the express intention of persuading 100,000 small commercial enterprise to set up their very first website. This includes giving them a free domain name of their choice, two years of free web hosting and access to a simple website design tool.
Free Web Hosting from Google
The UK Government has formed a partnership with Google and BT, Britain's leading telecoms provider. Google are providing the free website hosting and access to their Google Sites website design service, while BT supply the free domain name and free telephone support.
Google Sites allows novice users the capability to set up an entire website very quickly. They can chose from a range of templates and they have a considerable amount of control over the look and feel of the site. It is relatively easy to track the number of people visiting the site and there are plans for PayPal to add an e-commerce tool by mid-2010. This should allow businesses to sell products online.
For businesses who decide that they really don't want a website there is encouragement to highlight their business on Google Maps, giving them a free marketing opportunity focused on their locality.
Advantages of Free Web Hosting Initiative
The organizations behind Getting British Business Online are keen to promote the value of a website to businesses who feel they don't need one or can't afford the time and money to create one.
People are increasingly using the internet as a primary resource for information, even for very simple services such as window cleaning or ironing clothes. Until now many of those offering these services have not bothered with a website but have relied on using small advertisements or word-of-mouth promotion.
The advantage to these microbusinesses of having their website is a hugely increased visibility.
Another reason when people have been reluctant to set up a website is a lack of knowledge about how to do it. Typically those running these businesses do not have strong IT skills. They may be familiar with day-to-day usage of computer for tasks such as email or browsing the internet but the complexities of setting up a site require an investment of time that they can't afford.
Getting British Business Online makes it very easy for them to create a web presence in just a few minutes. It also addresses another major concern - cost. While a .co.uk domain is not very expensive to buy and a hosting solution is also quite cheap, the costs of designing and maintaining a website can quickly mount up. By using Google Sites it is possible to have a site up and running very quickly.
The Getting British Business Online programme is a proactive and forward-thinking attempt to encourage small UK enterprises to establish a web presence. It has its critics, who believe the tools are still not easy enough to use and that it will lead to thousands of identical sites that are quickly abandoned by their creators. However, only time will tell whether it will be an effective way to persuade more firms to go online.
Andrew Knowles - Experience is the author of authoritative writing. That's why I focus on subjects where I can say "been there, done that". As a ...
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