Founded by Donato Pompo of Ceramic Tile and Stone Consultants, the university utilizes state-of-the-art e-learning technology, the latest in online education. It is designed to make the learning process easier and enjoyable and contains many interactive features, according to the company. Available 24 hours a day and seven days a week, students are able to pace themselves and study at convenient times.

Understanding the Basics of Ceramic Tile is the first in what will be a series of informative courses intended to train newcomers as well as veterans in the industry. Students will learn terminology of the ceramic tile and stone industry, which is essential for understanding the products and their applications. Installation techniques are also explained and illustrated in step-by-step photographs and descriptions. Sales techniques and tactics are covered. At the conclusion of each lesson, a summary quiz is used to reinforce key points and concepts to ensure that students retain what they have studied.

The U of CTS puts an emphasis on how the information can be used by salespeople in order to gain credibility with customers and to be more effective at selling; whether in the showroom, providing customer service or making sales calls.

"Online training is a new and easy way to equip your employees with the knowledge they need to be successful in their jobs," said Pompo. "Ultimately it benefits the company by helping your staff to sell more without taking time away from seasoned salespeople to train others. The amount of time required to complete a course depends on the individual, but on average, one can expect to spend between four or five hours online. Once a passing grade is achieved, students can print out their own diploma."

Employers can be provided with reports or have access to their class data online, through the U of CTS campus, to track their employees progress and to see test results. A student has a total of 14 days within which a course must be completed.

An added feature of the U of CTS is the ability to customize the course to promote a specific company using logos and plugging in actual product names to the text. In this way, the course can be used as a marketing tool to educate not only employees, but distributors and their customers as well.

"I want to help companies increase their sales and profitability, and the easiest and most effective way of doing that is through educating their employees and customers," said Pompo. "The courses offered through my online training program are affordable and will bring high returns for a relatively modest investment; particularly when you consider the convenience and savings of not having to travel or having to take the student away from their normal work."

For more information, visit www.CTaSC.com.