PRESIDENT of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Mr. Komal Ramnauth said that any initiative which increases access to information and enhances the exposure of the local business community is welcome.

He offered the invited comment just after the inauguration of Guyana Business Online,  www.gybizonline.com, which is being touted as the local business community’s yellow pages in the online world.

The new site, manned by two young entrepreneurs, Mr. Sean Rajkumar and Mr. Mohamed Faizoul, is a web directory (yellow page service) with 24 hours support, which will offer businesses a unique advertising medium.

It will handle all the costs and factors needed to market efficiently and ensure wider visibility online.
Asked about the competition factor, as GCCI provides a similar service, Ramnauth said his organisation is not in the competitive business.
He explained that its website, www.gccigy.org focuses expressly on creating awareness of the services that GCCI offers and does not have a commercial focus.
“The GCCI website is primarily about the Chamber. With the online advertising service, we facilitate advertising. The advertising service we offer is more or less done to maintain the website and cover operational costs,” Ramnauth said.
He added that GCCI is still seeking advertisements and has received response since the website was made public.
More particularly, Ramnauth said the website has recorded approximately 40,000 hits in one month, with the majority being local.
He said other visitors to it include from Canada, the United States and Russia.
“The response is good and what that means is that the Chamber is being more and more recognised,” Ramnauth said.
Another observation he made is that Guyana Business Online features a more targeted approach and will serve the local community well.
Ramnauth said this is another step in advancing Guyanese businesses into a modern, technological era and a partnership is possible, if GCCI is approached, as the growth and development of the business community is its primary focus.
Webmaster of Guyana Business Online, Mr. Sean Rajkumar said it is good to know that new initiatives are welcomed and expressed his intention to become a partner with GCCI.
“It is all about networking. The right partnerships will mean that businesses will be more comfortable and confident to advertise with us,” he posited.
Rajkumar said networking will lend itself to expansion of the website’s reach and, by extension, visibility, a plus for advertisers with Guyana Business Online.