Marketing to women: small businesses

Small businesses need to be online... but in what form?

The need to be online is compelling. A full 63% of consumers turn to the internet first for information about local companies, for instance, according to a survey conducted in November 2008 and February 2009 by Webvisible and Nielsen.

And among affluent customers, a business website is key: in July 2008, the Luxury Institute announced the results of a poll of affluent Americans with annual incomes of $150,000 or more. A full 64% of these well-to-do consumers said they go to company websites for information on luxury goods and services—a higher ranking than the recommendations of friends and family.

Yet only 44% of small businesses have a website and half of these spend less than 10% of their marketing budget online, according to the Webvisible/Nielsen survey. Those respondents who do have a website are generally not happy with it: 51% say the quality and ability of their website to acquire new customers is "fair" or "poor," and only 9% are satisfied with their online marketing efforts.

Is your company already online... but you didn't know it?

Online forums like Yahoo! Local and Angie's List and social media like Facebook and Twitter have made it possible for every firm to have a web presence... but it's not necessarily the one they want. Consider: companies without websites—especially websites optimized for the search engines—are essentially leaving it up to people outside their organization (reviewers, competitors, and others) to create the information potential customers will find. Small businesses items to consider Consider: the top companies usually didn't get to where they are by stinting on marketing!

Unfortunately, in the case of negative comments, once a review is online, it's there to stay; a search engine won't take down a web page simply because it contains negative or incorrect information about your firm. You can respond to it (or better yet, ask one of your satisfied customers to respond to it), but your best bet is to populate the search results with accurate information on a website you control.

What might be worse than negative comments? Obscurity. If people search for you online and you simply can't be found, the hard truth is that in today's online world, it's as if your company simply doesn't exist. This was once the case mostly with younger generations, but other generations, including baby boomers, are increasingly online.

Should you invest in a custom web design?

Considering an inexpensive or free web template? We've all seen the commercials about how easy it is to do it yourself* or how easy it can be to sign up a web hosting company to place your logo and colors in a web design template used by many companies.

Actually, it could be the right decision for your business... or you could be shooting yourself in the foot. A free website put up by well-meaning people who aren't experienced in marketing or design (and that consequently doesn't bring in much revenue) isn't much of a bargain.

We recommend that small businesses consider three questions when deciding whether to go with a custom website design or not:

1. What is your industry?

If you compete in a highly localized marketplace in a field that isn't competitive in the usual sense of the term—prospects find out about you and compare you to your competitors—you may be able to get by with a template website. For instance, these days a home inspector is likely to get much of her business from referrals; your real estate agent or bank merely recommends that you use her services, and you do. In many cities, a website doesn't come into play in this transaction. (That said, keep tabs on your industry; you might be surprised when customers begin shifting over to finding their own professionals in your industry.) If, however, you do business in a customer-focused industry that's highly competitive, sells upscale products or services, or competes regionally or globally, a free or inexpensive web template isn't much of a choice if you want to grow your business.

2. What are your competitors doing?

Do they have a website? How impressive is it? If the answers are "yes" and "very", it may be time to bite the bullet solely from a defensive standpoint. With so many people searching online before doing business locally, your lack of a web presence or a poor one can make your business look like a handmade lemonade stand next to all the flash and glory of Starbucks. From an offensive standpoint, even if your competitors don't have much of a web presence, you can mop up sales just by being the first—or one of the first—to offer one. Be sure to offer your best, most compelling buying arguments on your new website!

3. Do you have the budget for design and marketing experts?

Very good custom web design doesn't come cheap. (Click here for an idea of current market pricing.) If you're a startup or a tiny business and don't yet have the funds for highly respected marketing and design experts, though, think twice before you spend good money on something that will get you only halfway where you want to go. Start saving... and in the meantime, go for the template. At least you'll have an online presence conveying information that you, rather than people you don't know, control.. and you'll stand at least a chance of being found by customers in the market for your products or services.

If you're serious about growing your business, as soon as you can, trade up to a custom site done by the best professionals you can afford. Check out their portfolio and call their clients first. (See our other tips for finding the right web designer here.)

Once you've made a careful decision about which web design expert will design your business website, don't be afraid to give input... but on the flip side, do let them use their expertise on your behalf. A truly professional web designer will welcome your feedback—you know things about your individual business that we don't—but there's a point when you can begin subtracting value from the equation. If you dictate design and content choices, you'll be cheating yourself out of much of the value even the best web designer can bring to your business.

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* We're a nation of do-it-yourselfers... but in the case of the best website design, as with many things, looks can be deceiving. What appears so simple looks that way because the web designers behind it are experts in a variety of fields, from consumer psychology to visual design to technology. "Unless you're already a professional web designer, don't do it yourself; this is the biggest mistake you can make," writes Jan Zimmerman, author of Web Marketing for Dummies. "Deciding who will design your site is a strategic marketing decision. How will your site measure up if it's obviously homemade, with links that don't work, but your competitors' sites look professional and run smoothly? If your competition's sites are equally poor, this is not as much of a factor, but you're wasting an obvious opportunity to get an edge."

What else would you like to know?