MEDIA RELEASE

High Technology Development Corporation is partnering with Big Island groups to conduct two workshops about the world of new media and e-commerce as it relates to growing business.

Small businesses with limited resources can benefit from simple online strategies such as building a blog, or participating in social networking sites, such as Twitter, Facebook and Linked In. These and other new media tools will be the focus of two-hour sessions zeroing in on the how-to behind the tactics for building online presence to help expand markets and increase Internet sales.

The workshop, “Use New Media Communication: Boost Your Business,” is scheduled to be presented in Hilo and in Kona.

Hilo: 2-4 p.m., Friday, Jan. 23, 2009 at Hawaii Community College, Building 382, Cafeteria. This session is free. To register, call Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce at 935-7178.

Kona: 9:30-11:30 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 28, at King Kamehameha Kona Beach Hotel. This session is free for members of HTDC, Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce and National Federation of Independent Business. For non-members, the cost is $30. Coffee and pastries will be served. To register, call the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce at 329-1758.

Hastings & Pleadwell communication company and Gum Design, a Web development company, are co-presenting the workshop. Both firms have offices on the Big Island.

“Ten years ago, having a Web site was the equivalent of posting a flier at your neighborhood café,” said Barbra Pleadwell, partner of Hastings & Pleadwell. “Now, we are using the Web to do much more than post information and conduct e-commerce.”

High Technology Development Corporation is a state agency established by the state Legislature in 1983 to facilitate the development and growth of Hawaii’s commercial high technology industry. The state views high technology as an important driver in the diversification of Hawaii’s economy and one that provides quality, high-paying jobs for residents.