Alachua Together

I have been self-employed in this community for over 25 years, and I have long wanted to figure out how to create a networking medium that made it easier for independent service providers to do business with each other.  Expanding on that idea, I thought it would also be good if people who want to shop locally could find us easily in one convenient place. I think this is it.

For the past few years I have been doing this service for local political candidates, and it has gotten pretty good traffic. However, political candidates have proven to be a bit backward when it comes to the Internet. I offer them a free service, and they largely ignore it, even  though the site has a good sized audience. I am betting that small business people have more sense than that.

So, how does it work? Start by using the sign-up link in the right sidebar. It costs nothing to do this. After you have filled out a brief profile, telling what it is that you offer, I will review it and give you Author privaleges. That means you can post articles just like this one any time you want. It also means you can create a permanent page for the right sidebar if you like. That way, people can still find you even if you have not posted an article in a long time.

Why would you post an article from time to time? To let people know when a new product has come in, or a new service is available, or when something is on sale, or just to brag about what a great job you did for someone. You would do the stuff you’d like to do to keep your business before the public anyway. And the more information there is about you on the Internet, the easier it is for search engines like Google to find you!

At this time I am still working some of the bugs out with my service provider. If anyone would like to test drive this with me while it is in its obvious beta stage, go right ahead and register. I will grant you author permissions after you fill out the profile entry at your control panel. And please do not supply fake email addresses.

Thanks,
Don Marsh