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What’s Next For Your Micro-Business
Small Businesses Must Overcome Web Site Barriers
In a 2007 national survey of 765 small-business owners commissioned by 1&1 Internet, Inc., a Web-hosting company, 100 percent of respondents agreed that the absence of a company Web site would lead a potential customer to seek a competitor. Those same respondents stated that using a poorly performing Web site could also lead to lost sales opportunities.
Even though most small-business owners recognize the power and importance of online marketing for their businesses, they also see barriers to getting their Web sites up and running.
In a poll last year, counselors for the National Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC) cited three major Web site concerns for small-business owners:
- High cost of hiring Web designers
- Lack of technical skill
- The inability to maintain and edit their own Web sites
“ASBDC counsels over a million small-business owners every year, and as business is conducted to a greater extent online, it’s important that we continue to educate and counsel them on how to utilize the Internet and their Web sites in order to grow their businesses,” says Don Wilson, president of the ASBDC. “Local businesses no longer have to sell their products and services locally, and the ability to expand into other markets will help ensure a greater opportunity for success for many small business owners.”
What You Can Do
One of the first decisions small-business owners must make about their Web sites is whether to do it themselves or hire it out.
In the national survey by 1&1 Internet, Inc., more than 30 percent of small-business owners said they have opted to use a do-it-yourself package to create their organization’s Web site.
Mark Landsbaum, author of “Streetwise Low-Cost Marketing: Savvy Strategies for Maximizing Your Marketing Dollars” (Adams Media, 2004), suggests you ask these three questions before deciding to handle Web site duties yourself:
- Do I have the ability to create a professional looking and adequately functioning Web site? If not, can I reasonably acquire the skills required?
- Do I have the time and manpower to spare for such tasks?
- Would my time be more profitably spent on core competencies rather than taking on such an unrelated task?
Of course, you may decide to hand the Web site task to a professional.
In either case, you’ll face many issues in getting your small-business site on the Web. For step-by-step instructions, check out Landsbaum’s online Success Skills Seminar "How To Build A Web Site For Your Business." It’s available for free from the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE).
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(Posted June 2007) |
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