QUESTION:
My business is very small, just me and two employees, and our product
really can't be sold online. Do I really need a website? -- Robin C.
ANSWER:
Congratulations, Robin, you are the one millionth person to ask me that
question. Smile for the cameras, brush the streamers and confetti from
your hair and listen closely, because I'm about to answer for the
millionth time what has become one of the most important and often-asked
questions of the digital business age.
Before I answer, however, let's flash back to the very first time I was
asked this question. It was circa 1998, during the toddler years of the
Internet, just after Al Gore laid claim to having given birth to the
concept a few short years before.
I was giving a speech on the impact of the Internet on small business at
an association luncheon in Montgomery, Alabama. My motto then was: Feed me
and I will speak. I have the same motto today, but I now expect dessert to
be included in exchange for the sharing of my vast wisdom.
In 1998, which was decades ago in Internet years, the future of electronic
commerce or "ecommerce" as it's come to be known, was anybody's guess, but
even the most negative futurists agreed that all the signs indicated that
a large portion of future business revenues would be derived from online
transactions, or from offline transactions that were the result of online
marketing efforts.
So, Robin, should your business have a website, even if your business is
small and sells products or services that you don't think can be sold
online? My answer in 1998 is the same as my answer today: Yes, if you have
a business, you should have a website. Period. No question. Without a
doubt. Thank you, drive through. Now serving customer number one million
and one?
Also, don't be so quick to dismiss your product as one that can't be sold
online. Nowadays there is very little that cannot be sold over the
Internet. More than 20 million shoppers are now online, purchasing
everything from books to computers to cars to real estate to jet airplanes
to natural gas to you name it. If you can imagine it, someone will figure
out how to sell it online.
Internet marketing research firms predict that online revenues will range
between $180 and $200 billion dollars in 2004. They also predict that the
number of online consumers will grow at a rate of 30-50% over the next few
years. These numbers alone should be enough to convince you that your
business should have a website.
Let me clarify one point: I am not saying that you should put all your
efforts into selling your wares over the Internet, though if your product
lends itself to easy online sales, you certainly should be considering it.
The point to be made here is that you should at the very least have a
presence on the World Wide Web so that customers, potential employees,
business partners, and perhaps even investors can quickly and easily find
out more about your business and the products or services you have to
offer.
That said, it's not enough that you just have a website. You must have a
professional looking website if you want to be taken seriously. Since many
consumers now search for information online prior to making a purchase at
a brick and mortar store, your website may be the first chance you have at
making a good impression on a potential buyer. If your website looks like
it was designed by a barrel of colorblind monkeys, your chance at making a
good first impression will be lost.
One of the great things about the Internet is that it has leveled the
playing field when it comes to competing with the big boys. As mentioned,
you have one shot at making a good first impression and with a
well-designed website; your little operation can project the image and
professionalism of a much larger company.
The inverse is also true. I've seen many big company websites that were so
badly designed and hard to navigate that they completely lacked
professionalism and credibility. Good for you, too bad for them. You also
mention that yours is a small operation, but when it comes to benefiting
from a website, size does not matter. I don't care if you are a one-man
show or a ten thousand employee corporate giant; if you do not have a
website you are losing business to other companies that do.
Here's the exception to my rule: It's actually better to have no website
at all than to have one that makes your business look bad.
Your website speaks volumes about your business. It either says, "Hey,
look, we take our business so seriously that we have created this
wonderful website for our customers!" or it says, "Hey, look, I let my
ten-year old nephew design my site! Good luck finding anything!"
Small Business Q&A is written by veteran entrepreneur and syndicated
columnist, Tim Knox. Tim's latest books include "Small Business Success
Secrets" and "The 30 Day Blueprint For Success!" Related Links:
http://www.smallbusinessqa.com http://www.dropshipwholesale.net
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