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March 2006

Cambridge-Isanti - This month had cool temperatures and hot events for the Cambridge-Isanti Broadband Initiative. Cambridge-Isanti partnered with the Cambridge Area Chamber of Commerce to sponsor a breakfast seminar for area retailers entitled “Shop Minnesota Seminar” with speakers from the Minnesota Retail Association, Anoka Ramsey Community College, and the Star Tribune newspaper.     

The two-hour seminar focused on website design and the benefits of registering for a new state-wide website, shopminnesota.com, which is designed to bring together shoppers with Minnesota sellers in an online marketplace.  Retailers that attended the seminar were offered the chance to list their business and products on the website for FREE!  This is a $400 web value; 37 retailers took advantage of this opportunity.  .  (Seminar flyer is available online).      

Coordinator Tom Willett and Jackie Moen, consultant for the Broadband Initiative attended “Net Returns: Measuring Web ROI “, a Minnesota Technology Inc. seminar in Elk River. The course identified what’s important for your website, how to measure net returns and what actions to take as a result of measurements. Cambridge-Isanti is exploring options to offer this type of seminar for areas businesses. 

“What’s the Big Deal About Broadband” by Jay Mankie, co-owner of a local telecommunications supplier, Genesis Wireless Was offered the Cambridge Public Library for free.

More educational opportunities are being scheduled including,  “E-Bay Selling Basics”, which provides information about best methods for writing item descriptions, writing effective titles, shooting and editing product photos, safety, security, payment methods, and developing selling and shipping policies.  The instructor, Joel Karsten, has listed more than 25,000 items on e-Bay and taught more than 500 people how to get started.

Cambridge-Isanti is offering a $10 discount on the $55 class fee to the first 50 people that register on condition that attendees provide contact information to participate in a follow-up survey, which will assess the different ways people apply class information on managing an e-Bay selling business.

Cohasset - Cohasset has completed the final report for the first year, observing on how much they have accomplished and how much they plan to do in year two. Their application has been submitted for second year funding.  Their plan for the future is to meet with the businesses face to face and work more with the local elementary school.

Edge of the Wilderness recently completed their first community computer class at the Marcell Family Center. The first class was designed to teach Internet and email applications. A follow-up class and a class on web page design and e-commerce is planned for April.

Edge of Wilderness has upgraded their server and network at the Marcell Family Center to provide higher quality broadband connections in the public computer room. They will be implementing their "Get Broadband" marketing campaign for the Edge of the Wilderness Community soon.

Hibbing - Hibbing has been surveying public Internet access sites in the City. This is the first step in their plan to broaden access.  They also plan to get companies and organizations with computers to donate, to work with organizations that might be receptive to donations to get more working computers into the community. 

Hibbing has learned that a few churches in the area are sitting on donated computers and want to start a center, but are intimidated by the details of running a community technology center.  So this has raised a new opportunity for the Hibbing Get Broadband Initiative.

International Falls - International Falls is looking into the possibility of creating hot spots around town. Their first area is going to be the International Falls Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Building. In the summer, many tourists line up in their cars on their way to Canada and International Falls thought this would be a great way to allow them access to the Internet as they wait to cross the border. Hopefully, they will look at the International Falls and Rainy Lake websites and decide to visit the area again.

They are hosting computer workshops in conjunction with the Tech North Prep Center at Rainy River Community College.