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Getting British Business Online (GBBO) will target the 1.5 million UK businesses that do not currently have a website, giving them the opportunity to create a free professional website and access to training and support. The British Library Business & IP Centre is supporting the initiative by promoting it to the entrepreneurs who use the Business & IP Centre. Since launching in 2006 the Centre has attracted over 150,000 entrepreneurs and small businesses through the doors. The Library offers an extensive & varied events programme which will be used to signpost delegates to the initiative and the Centre's successful partner programme will ensure that the wider business support community can help to promote it further.
Commenting on their involvement with Getting British Business Online, Gaby Rose, The British Library Business & IP Centre, Business Engagement Manager said:
"We are really excited about this fantastic opportunity being offered to British Businesses. Already there is a lot of interest from entrepreneurs and SMEs in getting a free web address when ordinarily this can be a barrier for them due to costs. We hope that by partnering on this project we can help to attract a wide audience to it and enable it to be a great success"
Businesses that sign up to Getting British Business Online will be given a free .co.uk web address that will be automatically registered in Google's search engine, a new ‘wizard' tool that will help them create a website in 20 minutes businesses and ways to attract new customers online. BT will offer free phone support to participants and PayPal will soon enable businesses with a GBBO-powered website to turn their site into an ecommerce platform in just a few clicks. This means they can begin selling to customers and accepting payments quickly and securely via the web.
Commenting on the launch of Getting British Business Online, Matt Brittin, UK Managing Director, said: "Consumer behaviour is changing rapidly as people increasingly turn to the web to find information about local businesses and services. With over 40 million people in the UK now online there has never been a better time for small businesses to use the Internet, enabling them to reach new customers in new markets. We hope a free, easy-to create website will give small businesses the boost they need to get up and running."
Business organisations including the IoD and Business Links will run activities throughout the UK, and there will be a week long series of events 12th - 16th April around the theme of Getting British Business Online.
Businesses can sign up for a free website now at www.gbbo.co.uk
For press enquiries about British Library involvement please contact Jacob Lant, Business, Science, and Technology Press Officer, British Library – +44[0]20 7412 7105 / +44[0]7972 148 245 jacob.lant@bl.uk
Notes to editor
About GBBO
GBBO is a joint initiative by Google, BIS, Enterprise UK, e-skills UK, BT and other business organisations to help SMEs create their first websites and help them understand the opportunities offered by the Internet. The campaign has set a target of helping 100,000 UK SMEs get their first websites easily and for free by the end of 2010. See gbbo.co.uk for further information.
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. It provides world-class information services to the academic, business, research and scientific communities and offers unparalleled access to the world's largest and most comprehensive research collection. Further information is available on the Library's website at www.bl.uk, which currently receives almost 2 million 'hits' or visits per month.
The British Library Business & IP Centre is supported by the London Development Agency (LDA) to provide a single access point to support entrepreneurs and SMEs in London to gain access to and exploit existing and new business and IP information, and other relevant content and data, guided by impartial Library information experts and associated partners. The Business & IP Centre has been used by over 150,000 people since it opened in March 2006. Access to the Centre is free, but users need a Reader Pass. For more information visit: www.bl.uk/bipc
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