We Are What We Do launches new tool to tackle digital exclusion – transforming internet newbies into digital natives.
We Are What We Do, the not-for-profit social organisation behind Historypin and the Tweet Towel, is back with a new creation set to make a major contribution to digital inclusion: Internet Buttons.
Currently, 9.2 million people are digitally excluded in the UK, of which 6.4 million are over the age of 65. Yet 75% of those excluded know someone who could help get them online, with a further 20% having to rely on someone they know to use the internet on their behalf. Designed to get this audience onto and into the Internet in the simplest way possible, Internet Buttons aims to contribute to getting 1 million people online by 2012.
At http://www.internetbuttons.org/, anyone can set up a personalised page for friends and family members. From the page created, users simply click through to their favourite sites or to the services they need via large, iconic buttons.
Nick Stanhope, CEO of We Are What We Do commented:
"Internet Buttons is the simplest way to help someone you know have a much easier, less stressful experience online. For new users, and for lots of people that have been struggling for years, the Internet can be full of pot-holes that make it less useful and enjoyable. Internet Buttons is a way of filling in those pot-holes!
“By setting someone up with some Internet Buttons, they can get to what they like straight-away whenever they go online and get heaps of help and support."
Helen Schofield, 50, Internet Buttons user from Tywyn, said:
“I love using Internet Buttons for shopping and keeping in touch with people! I find it easy to keep in contact with friends and relatives through email, Skype and I’ve set up a Google calendar that is shared by the whole family. And Christmas shopping for friends and family was easier too – I was able to browse, have a think and then return to shops without crowds or a husband who doesn't like shopping! Some of my favourite buttons right now are BBC recipes, thetrainline.com, and shopping sites such as Marks and Spencers and Sainsbury's.”
Supported by the Nominet Trust and UK Online Centres, who are already promoting the site to centres and Digital Champions through www.helppassiton.co.uk, Internet Buttons has been created by We Are What We Do as part of their current campaign to get people from different generations to come together more often, in this case facilitating new channels of communication between them.
Annika Small, Director of the Nominet Trust, said:
“Internet Buttons is an imaginative and practical tool that enables people to get their family and friends online, which will hopefully help a raft of new, previously excluded users to see the potential of the internet to enrich their lives.”
UK Digital Champion Martha Lane Fox, who founded the Race Online 2012 ambition said:
“Internet Buttons are an excellent way of making the web more fun and accessible for new users. They are simple, intuitive and a fantastic tool for onliners who want to pass on their skills and show their offline family members and friends specific benefits of the web that appeal to each individual.”
Helen Milner, Managing Director of UK online centres said:
“Internet Buttons is a fantastic tool for UK online centres because it gives our staff another way of engaging people and instantly making the internet both easy and relevant.”
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