Today Business is not what it used to be..Literally, Everything you thought you knew about Business has changed….Overnight
Technology has increased at an incredible rate. The internet is probably the most powerful business tool in the history of mankind. The internet can be used to save money, to make money, and to change the way business is done. Love it or hate it – it is here to stay, my advice is to embrace it and use it to your advantage regardless of how you feel about it. Businesses that could only afford local reach have suddenly jumped to national and even international coverage, businesses that dominated markets are now fighting with the rest of the pack and businesses that had never been heard of can now be found at the touch of a few buttons.
If you do not keep up, you fall behind
Today standing still is not an option. Why give your competitors an unfair advantage? Accept these changes, move with the times and reap the rewards! There is no excuse for mediocrity now, advertising is low cost and highly effective, you can have a multi page, optimised website up and running, selling your services for about £100 (or $160) at the time of writing, add to this 12 months hosting fee say £60 and the annual total is £160 ($250) for a whole years advertising that can be found with a simple online search, twenty four hours a day. If you compare this to the local advertising packages in a local paper there is a gaping chasm between them. A typical small newspaper advert would cost about £60 per week, that is over £3000 ($ 5000) per year and it has nowhere near the reach of the internet.
Increased profits at the speed of light…..
The amazing thing about the internet today is that it is actually reducing the cost of advertising and reaching clients. You see a website is a virtual shop window for your customers, it is open 24/7/365, It can take a contact, a message or request. It can inform customers of your services, products and offers. It can handle enquiries, take bookings, receive orders whilst you are tucked up in bed, even at 4am and have everything logged, recorded and awaiting your return to the office. There are all kinds of business consultants out there, many of them promise the earth (and charge it too). If you own a large cash rich company this is all well and good, but if you are a start up business, or a small operation wanting to grow, this can prove to be out of reach. I believe that you business owners have what it takes to harness the power of the internet (after all you are clever enough to run a business!) and with a bit of smart thinking and a small amount of cash can give your business a massive boost, consistently increase the bottom line and quickly see massive benefits and increased profits from some small changes.
Checklist for marketing your small business online.
1. Get online – now
2. Keep your site simple, no silly intro or flash presentations to start with, just go for a functional fresh design and ensure that your content is relevant, concise and interesting
3. Go for 5 pages to start with, home page, offers page, about us page, contact page and privacy policy page.
4. Ensure that the content of your pages include keywords and phrases that relate to your business
5. Build a marketing campaign around your website and your business, capture client details so you can then contact them again in the future free of charge to tell them about offers, business details, sales etc.
6. Use this low cost tool as much as you can to keep everything current and accessible for your customers.
7. Record, measure and compare everything you do to be able to see what works best, what is not so good and what is most cost effective for your business.
If you grab this technology boom and make it work for you, there will be no looking back – I promise.