A series of online courses on marketing, branding, business management, and personal investing will be offered this summer at KSURF's virtual university. Classes are taught by experts and designed to help small business owners, entrepreneurs, management level employees and small investors survive and prosper in today's challenging economy.

KSURF is a leading provider of affordably priced online courses and offers a wide selection of classes on in-demand subjects. Courses are taught online and classrooms are open 24/7, allowing individuals to learn at their own pace from the convenience of their home or office. A complete list of KSURF's July 2010 courses can be found at http://ksurf.net/vu/calendar.html

Business, marketing, and personal finance courses now offered at KSURF include:

How to Brand Your Product or Company - Why do consumers pay more for Apple’s iPhone™ when they could buy a generic phone with similar features for a lower price? The answer to this intriguing question lies in the power of branding. In this new course, marketing expert Barry Silverstein reveals how a small business or entrepreneur can create, improve, and market their brand. Whether your business is large or small, global or local, you'll discover a wealth of new insights that you can use to create a winning image for your company and products. Enrollment fee: $30 - read more at http://ksurf.net/vu/catalog/4643.html

How to Save and Invest Wisely - Over the past several years, the stock market has become risky and unpredictable. In this fact-filled course, financial planning expert Chuck Weinstein examines high and low-risk alternatives for saving and investing wisely. Lessons delve into the pros and cons of conventional savings accounts, CDs, money market accounts, bonds, mutual funds, and other popular investment strategies. Take the first step to achieving financial security and independence in this summer workshop. Enrollment fee: $18 - read more abou this course at http://ksurf.net/vu/catalog/450.html

How to be Organized (In Spite of Yourself!) - This course not only addresses time management and clutter control but focuses on helping you prioritize what is important in your life and liberate yourself from what is not. With Sara Salas as your guide, learn how to break out of a lifetime of bad habits and time-wasting behavior. The course will reward you many times over as you find yourself once again able to experience life's simple pleasures: family, friends, and more time to do the things you most enjoy. Enrollment fee: $15 - read more at http://ksurf.net/vu/catalog/5908.html

Writing A Press Release - This short course explores the basics of how to write a press release. Join published nonfiction author Gloria Oren in learning what a press release is, the role it can play for a business or a client, and important points to consider before sitting down to write a press release. The course examines when and why to write a press release (and when not to bother), the nuts and bolts of structure and style, how to format a press release, and who to send the finished press release to so your story will be told. Enrollment fee: $15 - learn more about this class at http://ksurf.net/vu/catalog/308.html

Principles of Strategic Management - How do we grow our business and please customers? What's the best way to increase gross income and sales? Who are our competitors and what moves are business rivals likely to make next? This course, taught by financial guru Jason Willoughby, is for those who are seeking answers to these questions, those wanting to develop a winning strategy, and those who want to stay ahead of the competition. The course will provide an introduction to the evolution of strategic management, how to develop strategies, and the process of developing a strategic plan using the SWOT Analysis method. The course will also discuss strategy analysis tools, and the process of crafting and executing company strategies. Enrollment fee: $20 - learn more at http://ksurf.net/vu/catalog/4637.html

For information about other online classes offered at KSURF, browse http://ksurf.net/calendar.html

About KSURF Knowledge Web™

KSURF is a unique online community that combines a modern virtual university learning platform with popular social networking features such as user blogs, profiles, and photo sharing. KSURF offers more than 100 low-cost courses for continuing education and leisure enjoyment. Instructor-led and self-paced classes are available on many in- demand subjects including writing, HTML & Web design, Internet technology, software products, self-help/inspirational themes, and academic subjects. KSURF's Webversity campus can be reached at http://ksurf.net/vu/

KSURF also publishes a collection of streaming news and educational widgets. A widget is a small chunk of code that can be conveniently placed in any web page or blog to give readers a continuously updated source of real-time news or other content. KSURF’s widgets are available free to bloggers and website owners. Popular widgets include myPlanet News, which displays up- to-the-minute news from a dozen top news sites, and Knowledge Surfer, which allows visitors to participate in online classes from third-party websites. Further information can be found at http://ksurf.net/widgets/

Inquiries and other correspondence should be directed to http://ksurf.net/webmail