Business Tip: Techucation
Lyle Foxman, Net Lab NYC - August 31, 2012
New York City Launches Free Digital Toolkit for Small Business
Mayor Bloomberg has noticed more than your soda intake! He has also noticed that New York City Small Businesses lag behind in having technology as a part of their business plan. According to a report released by the Center for an Urban Future (CUF), two-thirds of New York City small businesses have not integrated technology into their daily operations, created a website or use social media.
Last Thursday Mayor Bloomberg announced the startup of the city’s first “Digital Toolkit” for small businesses. This is a big part of Bloomberg’s technology initiative in helping job growth by providing small businesses the digital tools they need to move forward into the 21st century. This program is part of New York City’s larger effort to bring a digital focus to all New Yorkers through The Digital Roadmap.
The program was created in partnership with Mashable, Google, Tumblr and Weeblyand will offer courses in the following:
-
Fundamentals of creating a presence online
-
Digital and mobile payment systems
-
E-commerce and search engine optimization
-
How to market a business through digital advertising and social media.
In addition to the curriculum, NYC Digital and SBS, in partnership with Mashable, have introduced a series of online How-To guides that focus on launching a website, advertising online, and using Facebook, Foursquare, Google+, Tumblr, Twitter.
The inaugural course Social Media Fundamentals will be on Thursday, September 20 from 2:00-5:00 PM at the NYC Business Solutions Center, at 168-25 Jamaica Avenue, 2nd floor, in Jamaica, Queens. Subsequent courses will be taught by NYC Business Solutions instructors at additional center locations. All courses will be available for free at the City’s Small Business Solutions Centers. Small businesses interested in signing up should visit NYC.govor call 311. Registration is available here.
“Information technology and business are becoming inextricably interwoven. I don't think anybody can talk meaningfully about one without the talking about the other.”
Bill Gates
Lyle Foxman, has over 15 years experience in the arts, technology and education. He is the owner of netlabnyc.com. Lyle is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts and has a Master's Degree from Touro College in Instructional Technology.
Categories: Chamber Blog
