New e-business Portal Invites User Input

Over the past three years, local newmedia agency Indigo, has built up a strong working relationship with online development agency, the North East Regional Portal. They recently called upon the expertise of Indigo again to design and develop a new business social networking portal www.webetopia.com. The new interactive website has just undergone a soft launch and aims to help businesses across the North East access topical and wide ranging e-business advice and information.

The project, backed by the regional development agency One NorthEast, hopes to encourage greater participation and skills enhancement in both e-business and the use of ICT, ensuring the region’s businesses maximise their opportunities for future growth and success.  Stephen Carey, eBusiness advisor at the Agency, which champions eBusiness and online development, said:  “eBusiness is so important for the future success of businesses in the region. Webetopia will help raise awareness and understanding of the opportunities offered by e-business to boost efficiency and competitiveness, ultimately encouraging more firms to take up those solutions.”

Webetopia is squarely aimed at the business community; they will provide much of its content.  A sentiment echoed by Pascal Fintoni, head of e-business at the Regional Portal; “Webetopia will ultimately belong to its audience; whilst the site offers comprehensive advice, it is very much about encouraging members to post comments and ask questions, ultimately generating business within the local economy.  The more people who register onto this social networking website; the more useful the site will become to the registrants.”

A host of topical and useful information is available, everything from tips on search engine optimisation and online trading, to advice on creating a podcast.  The site provides various ways for users to interact, such as, video and audio, blogging, discussion groups, and importantly the ability offer advice and pose questions to peers.

The design and function of the site take into account the need for ease of use and access to timely information. Indigo have incorporated a number of features to help users access information easily, personalised space provides a place where saved articles and comments can be linked to individual learning objects. The system also generates suggestions and links to related information on similar topics to those which have been saved, cutting out time searching through unrelated information. Content can also be received via email and web alerts will notify users when a particular article or comment of interest to them has been added to or updated.

The site is still currently undergoing user feedback and the development of further features, which will go live in coming weeks. This development has proved a welcome technical challenge for the Indigo team.  “The site requires a great deal of functionality and it was very important that we built the stages at the right time, commented Senior Programmer, Dan Shephard,” This portal is actually one of a number of sites currently under development that will run from the same application, so the build has been more complicated”.

A white label version of the site, “Passionate about eBusiness” is currently under construction and will bring a whole range of related service providers together offering a one-stop shop approach. Both sites will signpost users to each other and provide practical and useful information.

Visit the site at http://www.webetopia.com/ and register with the online e-business resource.

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