smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

An online presence is as important for small business as it is for large companies. In recognition of this, Microsoft is launching Office Live in the UK on 15 November. It gives businesses the chance to design a website for free.

The product, designed for businesses with one to 10 employees, was released earlier this year in the US. Baris Cetinok, global head of Microsoft Office Live, describes this demographic as ‘the backbone of the US economy,’ adding that they ‘represent close to 90 per cent of employment in the country. They are the entrepreneurs who keep the economy alive…Entrepreneurs around the world are entrepreneurs, it doesn’t matter where they are,’ he says.

Office Live aims to address the web-based needs of these businesses by providing them with their own domain name, a Microsoft hosted website, design tools and company branded email addresses.

It offers tools to assist business productivity, such as managing time, projects and company information that integrate with existing Microsoft programmes. ‘There is no software,’ says Cetinok, ‘users can design their website on the web, right in the browser.’

He also confirms that Office Live will remain free to use: ‘It is actually an advertising supported product. You will see ads from companies which are also targeting small businesses with their products and services.’ Although Office Live is free, users can, if they want, pay for additional elements or tools, allowing them to tailor a site to specific business requirements.

You can register for Office Live in the UK by clicking here.

Click here to read our top 'ecommerce' tips.

There are currently no comments on this article