The latest tenant in Midland's Mid-Michigan Innovation Center is Bravo:Smart, a Web site services and training provider.

Included among the company's services are:

* Bravo:Smart Web Site Services can help you increase traffic, customer retention and usability; create customer-driven marketing and graphics; and ensure design-architecture flexibility and innovation for your future needs.

* WebSmart Training is three one-day classes and 90 days of hosting and technology support to empower businesses to create a Web 2.0 presence. Up to three employees from each business that registers will gain the tools, templates, resources and technologies to create and maintain a successful Web 2.0 presence. Within 90 days, each business will have a new website that is customer-focused, interactive and maintained/updated internally.

Most small businesses spend over $10,000 for a Web site, with additional $1,000 yearly maintenance costs, and yet they tend to fall short of their Web site goals. And, Bravo:Smart cites a Gartner Group study showing that 50 percent of Web sales are lost because visitors cannot easily find the content, products or services they're looking for on Web sites. A study published in the International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction found that $25 billion in potential online sales are lost due to Web performance issues.

So, what's the solution? Consumers are increasingly savvy about how they research products and services. They want their searches to be simple, with easy navigation and retrieval mechanisms. However, Web sites can no longer be only a brochure with stagnant pages. Consumers want real-time information, product/service reviews, easy-to-use features (shopping carts, message boards, customer reviews, blogs) and an overall memorable experience. They want Web 2.0.

“Today's online presence needs to do more for the customer," said Ken Kousky, Dow entrepreneur-in-residence at Saginaw Valley State University. "Businesses are seeing an ever increasing bottom-line need to provide online services and an environment that supports an online community."

Bravo:Smart president Luis Maury said his company is about "empowering employees to make content updates and changes to their Web site in a controlled environment. This allows companies to have immediacy in response to both their customers and changes in the marketplace.”

Training WebSmart Training by Bravo:Smart is a workforce training initiative to help businesses create and maintain a successful Web 2.0 presence through internal resources. For only $3,500, Bravo:Smart will provide up to three employees per business with the training, workbooks, resources, templates and tools to create and update the content on a Web site. These tools are managed with a straightforward interface that is easy to use. No programming is involved. Bravo:Smart will also give its customers an environment to create a new Web site, with 90 days of hosting and technology support.

The classes for Session 1 will be held on May 6, May 20 and June 3 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Saginaw Valley State University, Curtiss Hall, Room C141. The registration deadline is April 29. If you are unable to attend Session 1, there will be two more training sessions this fall.

To register for Session 1 or for more information, go to www.bravosmart.com. You can also call Rebecca Kotz at (989) 839-7060 or send an email to training@bravosmart.com.