By Steve Strauss for USA TODAY
Q: Steve, I appreciate all of the low-cost marketing methods you have been sharing lately. For my business, we have found that doing a lot of online social networking makes a big difference. But most of my friends who are self-employed are not doing this. I think it's a mistake. — Mike
A: I couldn't agree with you more. Did you know that more than half of all small businesses in this country do not even have a website? (Maybe the only thing worse than no website is having a bad one, since instead of leaving no impression, you leave a bad one instead.)
Not having a great website, not having a robust Internet presence, and not marketing and selling online constitutes business malpractice in the 21st Century.
Beefing up your online presence is like getting in shape. What you must do today is flex your digital muscles.
Here's how:
1. Build website muscles. As I said, the only thing worse than no website is having a bad one.
We all know what those look like, don't we? It's the site where the homepage scrolls on for about five minutes, where the graphics are jarring and ugly, it has too much copy and slow loading graphics, and it says "© 2004" at the bottom. In short, the site looks like, not only did your teenage daughter build it for you, but no one has attended to it in several years.
What a mistake.
To me, there are two exceptionally great things about the Internet, from a small business perspective:
• It allows you access to markets you otherwise could never reach
• It allows you to look every bit as big and professional as the Big Boys.
So where do you get that great website? There are no shortage of online options.
Example: Last week, my brother (who is no Webhead) had to build a site for one of his marketing clients. So he surfed over to Microsoft Office Live (Microsoft is a company I do some work with, btw), and built his client an elegant, great looking site – for free. With a simple point and click graphic interface, and pre-loaded templates, here is but one way that anyone can get and grow online easily and affordably.
The important thing is that you take advantage of such tools. Beefing up your Web muscles will make your business less wimpy.
2. Find some "workout" partners. Going to the gym is a social activity, and in that vein, the more friends who support your efforts to get in digital shape, the better you will do.
The Web is a social medium, so it behooves you to take advantage of everything that it offers. Doing so will help you create advocates, find new customers, locate strategic partners, and drive increased sales.
There are several ways to do this:
• Get social: It's not called "social media" for no reason. Sites like Facebook and Twitter enable you to connect with other small business owners and potential customers.
I have a pal in San Francisco who created many significant and lucrative business deals via LinkedIn. He will have some project he is working on and will need to tap some business for sales or partnering or whatever. He has found that he almost always is able to get to the right person in those companies through his LinkedIn connections.
• Be Web 2.0 friendly: This era of the Internet, the Web 2.0 era, is distinguished by interactivity; people want to do more than just read about your business on your site. They expect some level of interaction. So that is what you must give them.
That means different things, from forums and videos to blogs, comments, and podcasts. Making and posting a video, for example, explaining who you are and what you do is not difficult.
• Help people find you: Your site also needs to be search engine optimized (SEO). SEO will allow your site to be found by people who share your interests, who are looking for what it is you sell. Having keywords sprinkled throughout your site will, like Jerry Maguire, help them help you.
The point is, the more professional, social, and interactive your site, the more you will be able to grow your business, easily and affordably, and allow you to get in Webtastic shape.
