Business Link

by Hamish McDermid

The question isn’t “Should my business be online or not?”, but rather “Can my business afford not to be online?”

South Africans have started becoming active members of the global community thanks to cheap high speed internet access, helping to drive online retail sales up 35% in 2007.

More people are researching their purchases online first, and many rely on the internet to find suppliers. If you don’t have a web presence, you are excluding a large part of your potential market.

So, what does your business need?
If you have no online presence at the moment, and aren’t too sure about what is required, start off with something basic. Put together a good looking site with 3 or 4 pages of information about you, and your contact details.

Make sure that the platform (or Content Management System) your Web Developer uses to put the site together allows you to maintain your content easily, allows for future expansion. Also, make sure that the system is Search Engine friendly.

What kind of information should be on my site and how often should it be updated?

The majority of your traffic is going to come from search engine results and from people who have seen your web address in your marketing literature. These people want to know 3 things: Who you are, what you do or sell, and how to get hold of you.

This core information should be updated whenever it needs to be. It’s also a good idea to post news items from time to time. This could range from new products you are offering, to new developments within your business. This gives people a feeling that the site is up to date.

How do I get people to visit my site?

So, you’ve paid for your website, and it’s out there somewhere. How do you get people to actually find it amongst the billions o other websites on the internet?

It’s a good idea to start with putting the web address on your corporate stationery, existing marketing materials and add it to your signature on outgoing emails. Once the basics have been seen to, you can look at other ways of getting new visitors.

It’s always a good idea to chat to a professional before making any decisions, but do try to get listed on a few local web portals (www.portelizabeth.co.za and www.mype.co.za) and on sites that allow your customers to rate your service (www.findinggold.co.za).

Also, don’t discount the power of social networking applications like Facebook. While these services are often vilified in the press, there are some exciting marketing opportunities available to creative entrepreneurs.

Do look into hiring someone that specializes in search engine optimization as well.

How much will this all cost?

This obviously depends on what your goals are, and what functionality you require.
Speak to a professional about your needs, and they will be able to give you a good idea.
Remember that putting together a web presence can be done in small steps, so you don’t need to spend a large amount of money up front.
Do something basic first, and expand it as your business grows and your budget allows.
Also don’t forget that there are other costs involved like monthly hosting fees and annual domain registration fees.
A reputable service provider will inform you of all of these so you can make an informed decision.

Hamish McDermid is the Technical Director at Bennetts Technologies. For enquiries contact Hamish on (041) 392 1611 or Hamish@bennettstechnologies.com