By FELICIA RAMPERSAD Thursday, October 2 2008

For years, people utilized television, billboards and posters to advertise their product or service and now they can add the internet as an option.

Launched in February by HT Internet Solutions Ltd, a south based company, the website - www.ttclassifieds.com - offers an alternative medium to the public.

Designed for the sole purpose of advertising, webmaster Haro Ramlal boasts that it takes into consideration the growing number of businesses in the country, who all try to share a market while competing with high advertising costs.

The holder of a Bachelor of Applied Information Systems Technology (BAIST), Ramlal said that an ad could cost a minimum of $850 per year, depending on the nature of the ad.

“The minimum someone can place an ad for is six months,” he said.

To lure customers, the company currently has a promotional discount where there would be no design fees until the end of October.

“Designing of ads are really expensive and people should take advantage of our promotions,” he noted.

With two, or three clicks for the most, someone would be able to find what they are looking for on this website. Simply designed and with readily accessible information, the most appealing aspect of the website was the fact that there was no members’ log in. The sections were alphabetized, and some advertisements colourful. For instance, the ads under the ‘Land for Sale - USA’ section, were eye-catching. Others, in black and white, resembled a news page. In terms of the ad’s design, the client has the option of designing their own or trusting it to one of the website’s agents. Ramlal added that if a customer needed help in designing their own site, there are agents on hand to give guidelines.

“And it really is simple to place an ad once you choose to advertise with us. You would have to liaise with an agent, where you would have the option of designing it yourself. “

If not, you can send the company the necessary logos or graphics and the ad can be uploaded, Ramlal said.

Perhaps the most luring aspect of this website is the fact that certain advertisements are free of charge. For instance, Ramlal said a person can advertise a vehicle free of charge for as long as it takes for the vehicle to be sold.

More important, people would be able to access information — also free of charge, in particular subject areas. Education, career choices, culture and events are just some of the areas anyone can get information on.

Ramlal said : “We want to stress on the importance of information and this would give our customers and anyone else in the world, the opportunity to access data, not just ads.”Two sections that the company is presently working on are database similar to TSTT’s white pages and a cultural section.

This, Ramlal said, gives customers another avenue to get whatever information they need. “There would be information on Carnival, calypso, pan, anything with a cultural tone is acceptable,” he said.

The events column, Ramlal stressed, would be a step above the rest and would feature not only “jump and wine” fetes, but items with cultural significance.

Ramlal said that the education and careers sections are just as important.

As far as the field of Information Technology (IT) goes, Ramlal believes the field is under- explored.

“It would be a good forum for exposure and the field is not fully exposed,” he said of e-commerce in Trinidad.

With a broad smile, Ramlal reiterated that while information is free, anything else you would have to pay for.

Noting that the venture is, after all, a business, Ramlal said that a website like this one is really expensive if you have to outsource it.

“ We run a secure and reliable database,” he said. Ramlal also assured that all information and data are censored. “We are providing access free HT Internet Solutions Ltd has been in operation since June 2003, and their main focus is web design, hosting, consultancy, IT training, computer sales, repairs and upgrades.