Web Strategies for Small Businesses

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Web Strategies for Small Businesses
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Part One Building an Effective Web Site
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E-What? New Economy Definitions
What does this mean? Lets understand a few
definitions. E-Commerce Any technology-based a
ctivity resulting in a positive financial result
for an organization Examples Selling goods onlin
e. Answering pre-sales questions online. Shopping
for a car online. Trading stocks online.
E-Business Any technology-based process which a
ugments or replaces a non-technology based
process Examples Online employee manuals. Online
customer satisfaction surveys.
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Can a Small Business have a successful website?
Yes, and heres how 1. Document your E-Busines
s strategy. Even if its simple. Start w
ith the Content and let it steer the presentation
and organization. 2. Build your website.
Hire a professional! 3. Promote your website.
You must tell people about the site.
4. Upgrade Evolve your website.
Learn your audiences and fine-tune your
website for maximum efficiency.
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Create your E-Business Strategy
Usually, an organizations E-Business Strategy
discusses the following items
1. Do I need a website? If so, what type of site
matches my business? Examples Brochureware, ecom
merce, promotional, customer support.
2. How will I market and promote the website?
Examples Ads in newspapers, company printed
materials, all sales materials.
3. Who will I hire to build my site?
Examples Web Design agency, internal staff,
freelancer, free/low cost provider
4. How will I maintain the site?
Examples Monthly maintenance contract with an
agency, internal staff.
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Evolution of Web Site Types
Type 1
Type 2
Type 3
Type 4
Identity
Interactive
Personalized
Enterprise

• Extensive Personalization
• Extensive E-commerce
• Extensive
• Self-Help Tools
• Mature Extranet

• Limited Personalization
• Limited Point-of-Sale
• Advanced Tools
• Extranet

• Brochureware
• Contact Info
• Company Info
• Basic Product Info

• Searchable
• Online Catalog
• Requests for Information

Not Promoted
Highly Promoted
Low Cost to Build
High Cost to Build
ROI Can be high or low. Based on Strategy, site
Size.
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E-Commerce Workflow
Credit Card Processing Network
Authorization Gateway
Browser
Web Server
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How do I build a website?
1. Choose a Web Design Professional.
2. Trust their advice. 3. Be prepared to spend mo
ney. 4. Be responsive to the web design agency.
5. Be open to suggestions. 6. Be ready to upgrade
and evolve your website over time.
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E Business Vendor Partners
Front End / Interface
Marketing and Sales
Web Design Professional
Online Marketing
Designer/Interface Specialist
Offline Marketing
Application Designer
Internet Sales Manager
Content Creator
Logistics
Back End
Internet Connectivity
Application Hosting
Web Site Hosting
Order Fulfillment
Database Hosting
Online Customer Service
E-Commerce Services Hosting
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Types of Web Design Professionals
1. Individuals Freelancers, Old Friends, Family
Members 2. Internal Staff Admin assistant, Sales
Manager, The Owner 3. Online Services Yahoo, N
etwork Solutions Image Café, Geocities
4. Web Design Agencies Stream Studio Web
Architects 5. Ad Agencies, Design Agencies Frog
Design, GSDM 6. Large Consulting Firms KPMG, ED
S, Andersen, Ernst and Young The Sweet Spot for
small businesses? Start with Online Services
or DIY (Do it yourself!) Evolve toward Web Desig
n Agencies
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The Web Design Process
1. DISCOVERY Strategy Planning Define goals,
objectives, audiences, page list, etc.
2. DESIGN Create a graphical visual representat
ion 3. DEVELOPMENT Build the structure, progra
m code, integrate data applications
4. DEPLOYMENT Test Q/A, Performance Functiona
lity Launch It!
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Build an Object Oriented Site

• Four Element of All Web Sites
• Content
• Content is information presented as words,
  images, movies, sound, etc.
  
• Presentation
• Presentation is the site style, page layout and
  graphical look and feel defined with Cascading
  Style Sheets (CSS).
  
• Structure
• Structure is the organization of the physical
  web files and the HTML programming of the content
  and presentation.
  
• 4. Logic
• Logic is the programming that ties the other
  three elements together to control how the site
  will function.

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Benefits of an Object Oriented Site

• What are the benefits of a modular design?
• Ease of Maintenance Lower Maintenance
  Costs
  
• Rapid publication of new content
• Simpler, cleaner integration of complex
  functionality
  
• Multiple presentations of the same content
• Smoother compatibility with Search Engines
• Accessibility
• Backward compatibility
• The site looks and behaves the same for
  multiple operating systems, browsers and browser
  versions
  
• Forward compatibility
• The site scales for use with alternate
  user agents (cell phones, PDAs, handicap
  browsers, etc.)
  

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Team Collaboration The Project Site
Allows the client to check our progress, and keep
informed about the project. Includes 1. Docum
entation 2. Project Updates 3. Project Roadmap
4. Educational Articles http//projectname.stre
amstudio.com
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Part Two Marketing Your Site
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Making the website payoff. ROI.

• ROI depends upon several factors
• Type of site
• Production Costs
• Marketing Effectiveness
• Revenue Generation
• Define clear Measurements of Success.
• Planning and Design should strive to achieve
  specific objectives
  
• Generate prospects
• Decrease the sales cycle
• Reduce service costs
• Promote brand identity

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The NEW Marketing Mix

• Traditional Offline Marketing
• Promote the website!
• Newspaper Advertising
• Newspaper Articles
• Nonprofit Sponsorships
• In-Store Displays
• Business Cards
• Business Stationary
• Printed Newsletters
• Radio Spots
• Direct Mail
• Guerilla Tactics

• Online Marketing
• Promote the business!
• Banner Ads
• Direct Email (Opt-In is a must!)
• Print E-Coupons
• Meta Tags
• Smart Code / Smart Content
• Search Engines
• Buy Specific Keyword(s)
• Pay-for-Placement
• Regional Site Advertising
• Austin360.com
• Netscape Yellow Pages
• City Search
• eBay / Auction Sites
• Link Exchanges
• Guerilla Tactics

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Traditional Marketing and Promotions Ideas
Retail Display Tents Shelf Liners Floor Decals
POS Display Hanging Banners Print on
Receipt Bookmark in Bag Fliers at Register Stap
le Flier to Receipt Print on Bags Product Packag
ing Product Lining Product Catalogs

• General
• Stationery
• Envelopes
• Business Cards
• Order Forms
• Invoices
• Labels, Stickers
• On Hold Message
• Promotional Items
• Cups
• Mugs
• Pens, Pencils
• Polo Shirts
• External Signage
• Internal Signage
• Traditional Newsletters
• Email Newsletters

Advertising Magazine Ads Newspaper Ads Direct M
ail Leave Behinds in public Traditional Newslett
ers-others
Email Newsletters-others
Public Relations Community Involvement Seminars
Conventions Author Articles Apply for
Awards Become known as an expert Event Sponsorsh
ip
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Search Engine Pay-for-Listing
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Search Engine Buy Keywords
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Create an Internet Phenomenon
Infectious Guerilla Marketing Tactics That Work!
G5 BillNoll.com/G5 Weapons of Mass Destructi
on Do a Google search and choose Im Feeling Luc
ky Budweiser Unintentional Success of True
Super Friends Think of something creative that
can be easily emailed to draw attention to your
site.
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SPAM SUCKS!
Unsolicited emails are ineffective for the
following reasons. Spam is not free! It costs
business millions of dollars in wasted time and
resources. Poor credibility Do you really want
to be associated with the types of businesses
that spam? Its not read Anti-spam software i
s on the rise. OPT-In instead Make sure your
readers expect and allow your emails.
Renew Opt-ins annually.
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Meta Tags
Meta Tags are special lines of code in your site
that interact with Internet Search Engines like
Yahoo!, MSN, AOL and Google. They help index your
site, boost rankings and enable people to find
your site easier. Once installed, they can
improve search result rankings in 30 to 90 days.
At minimum, each page should have these distinct
Meta Tags Title A short headline that des
cribes the content on the page
Description Cohesive pithy statements using
appropriate kewords and phrases.
Keyword Words and phrases relevant to
content on the page. Separate by commas and rank
by priority. Once installed, these Meta Tags ca
n improve search result rankings in 30 to 90 days.
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Smart Code / Smart Content
Smart Code Smart Code follows industry recommenda
tions to ensure content is index properly and
made available to the widest possible audience.
Smart Content Smart Content is written and pres
ented in a way that provides relevant information
to the visitor and makes it easier for the
visitor to find the page using a search engine.
Your web designer should recommend methods for c
ode optimization and content presentation to
enhance search engine indexing and boost search
result rankings. Using the strategies can impro
ve search result rankings in 7 to 90 days.
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Site Traffic Track Your Success
Know your visitor so you can serve them better.
Site Visitors, Page Views
Top Search Engine Keywords
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Improve Online Sales
When developing your website strategy
Focus sales pitches on people who are likely to
buy. Make it easy to shop. Know your custome
rs, then tailor your site to their needs.
Know your customers, and have a different site
ready for each of them. Summary Build the sit
e with the customer in mind, not your company.
Build a community around your company.
The Wall Street Journal, Monday, September
24, 2001, P. R6
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E-Tailing Looks for Results
Online Retail Sales 1996- 1 Billion 2000- 22
Billion
2001- 35 Billion 2005- 103 Billion
Online Sales Conversion Rates llbean.com 10
landsend.com 9 jcpenney.com 8.9 victoriassec
ret.com 8.2
jcrew.com 6.8
Summary Online sales (e-commerce) is still not
paying off with a high ROI for all companies.
The Wall Street Journal, Monday, September
24, 2001, P. R6
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Small Business Marketing Checklist

• 1. Choose your Domain Name.
• It must be clear, and easy to remember.
• It must be easy to pronounce.
• It must be easy to read when written.
• Resource www.godaddy.com
• 2. Plan your site.
• What are the sites goals and objectives?
• Who is the sites audience? Who do you sell to?
  Pick a small niche, if possible.
  
• What does your audience want on your site? Ask
  them.
  
• Dont take a shotgun approach. Serve your
  customers with features they want.
  
• Dont focus on technology, rather , focus on your
  customers.
  
• 3. Market and Promote your site.
• Think of your internet marketing strategy at all
  times.
  
• How can you push people to use your site?
• Create a Marketing Matrix document.
• Consider search engine placement, but dont dwell
  on it.
  
• 4. Make a Clear Pitch.
• Listen to your customers, understand their needs,
  understand what they want to buy, and understand
  how they like to buy.
  
• Dont force them to take a drink from a !

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Small Business Hosting Checklist

• What You Should Look For
• At least 100 Mb of web site and email space
• At least 10 Gigs of transfer per month
• Multiple Email Accounts for sales_at_, info_at_, etc.
• Web-based Email Administration
• Web-based Server Administration
• Robust Site Statistics
• Advanced Server Technologies
• Bundled Software Discounts
• Redundant Systems for Stability
• High Performance
• 24/7 Technical Support
• Typical Costs
• Packages range from 5 to 50 per month.
• Services and features vary.

• Stream Studio Provides
• 300 Mb with more available if needed
• Unlimited data transfer per month
• Unlimited email accounts
• Email account users can manage their own
  password, aliases, message forwarding, vacation
  auto-responders and check their email via a web
  browser (a.k.a. WEBMAIL)
• Manage email/FTP accounts, secure directories,
  site stats, backups, etc.
  
• Secure, Private access to Urchin 4 site stats.
  Learn how many unique visitors you have, which
  pages they access, who referred them, search
  engine keywords, error reporting, platform usage,
  etc.
• Support for PHP, MySQL, SSI and MS Front Page
  Extensions. Private CGI-BIN
  
• Discount SSL Certificates, Miva Merchant, Free
  Urchin Stats and web apps.
  
• Redundant Internet Connections, Power Supplies
  and Weekly data backups.
  
• Hi performance equipment directly on the Internet
  backbone.
  
• 24/7 On-Call Tech Support
• Packages
• 6 Months 107.73 (10 discount from 19.95/mo)
• 12 Months 203.49 (15 discount from 19.95/mo)
• One time server set-up fee of 35. Texans subject
  to 6.6 state sales tax.