Need online help for your group or company?

As part of the County of Northumberland "Connecting Northumberland" Broadband Project, the county has organized a series of workshops for small businesses and home-based businesses to help make more effective use of the Internet to attract or communicate with their customers.

These workshops are also applicable to community organizations such as sports groups or churches who need to communicate more effectively with their membership. With rapidly changing Internet opportunities, these workshops will give attendees practical advice on Internet usage, and help them choose the tools that make sense for their small businesses.

There are three topics: OnlineBusiness Practices (website best practices, online social networking and e-commerce); Online Marketing (search engines, target ads on Google and Facebook), found on blogs and You Tube, measuring success); and Building Websites (a hands-on workshop, build your website using free tools, add text, images, video and shopping carts).

Upcoming dates and locations for the 6 to 8:30 p.m. seminars are:

Jan. 11, Online Marketing, Canton Municipal Office, Port Hope;

Jan. 25, Building Websites, Canton Municipal Office, Port Hope;

Jan. 26, Online Business Practices, Codrington Community Center;

Feb 8, Building Websites, Alderville Learning Centre;

Feb 9, Online Marketing, Castleton Town Hall;

March 4, Online Marketing, Hastings Civic Centre;

March 9, Building Websites, Campbellford Resource Centre.

Cost is $10 per session, with a light meal included.

To register, contact the Business Advisory Centre at 905-372-9279, website www.bizdevelopment.ca .