Rutland companies who want to grow their business online but are struggling to keep up to date with the latest developments in technology are being invited to a free masterclass.

Organised by Digital Rutland and onlincolnshire, the Selling over the Internet training course on Thursday 2^nd October at Greetham Valley Hotel will provide an introduction to e-commerce for beginners as well as how to improve sales for more advanced users.

Delegates will also learn about simple e-commerce systems like Amazon and eBay in addition to template shopping malls and stand-alone shops. There will also be a talk on using shopping carts/baskets and secure online payment systems.

Councillor Terry King, Deputy Leader of Rutland County Council, said: “It’s easy for businesses to be caught up in their day-to-day activities and not have time to focus on new opportunities which could help them to reach a wider target market and improve their bottom line.

“The internet offers a host of benefits but many companies in Rutland still aren’t making the most of it and risk falling behind their competitors in the rest of the UK. This event is fully funded so it’s free to attend and we don’t use any techy jargon, so you don’t need to be an expert in IT. This is how to turn your 38,000 Rutland customer base into millions and we’d like to see as many businesses as possible take up this opportunity.”

As well as finding out about e-commerce, delegates will also have to the chance to sign up to receive free one-to-one business advice and consultancy.

The masterclass is open to all businesses across Lincolnshire and Rutland and is part of a wider programme of support across the two counties. It is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

To book your free place please call 0300 80 80 120 or email onlincolnshire@lincs-chamber.co.uk. Follow @digitalrutland and @onlincolnshire on Twitter and www.facebook.com/onlincolnshire to stay up to date with developments.

Notes to Editors:

About Digital Rutland
• The majority of premises in Rutland are now able to connect to superfast broadband, thanks to the Digital Rutland project. This means most of the area covered by Digital Rutland has access to high-speed fibre.

About onlincolnshire
• onlincolnshire is a Lincolnshire County Council-run project which is part-funded by the East Midlands European Regional Development Fund Programme 2007 to 2013.
• In March 2013, the council signed a £48 million contract with BT to provide superfast broadband to at least 88% of county properties by 2016, with the remaining properties having access to at least of 2Mbps broadband. A further investment of £2.8 million was announced in February 2014 which has increased the number of properties to 89%.
• The contract with BT concentrates on an intervention area of over 150,000 premises where existing or planned commercial roll outs would not deliver superfast speeds.
• The Department for Communities and Local Government is the managing authority for the European Regional Development Fund Programme, which is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support local businesses and create jobs. For more information visit www.communities.gov.uk/erdf
• Some internet users in rural Lincolnshire experience speeds of less than 1 Mbps. The UK’s average broadband speed is 12 Mbps, according to Ofcom.