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Impeccable customer service. This is a dream
of any entrepreneur: "buy my product and leave
me alone". By this I mean that business owners
do not like to spend time explaining to customers
how to use the product, how to install it, troubleshoot
it, clean it, move it, turn it, and whatever else
can be done to a purchased item.
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A web site will become your best friend in meeting
the needs of your customers. It will answer
all their questions. Simply create a page of "Frequently
Asked Questions" and include its address on every
receipt. This way, before they come to you for help,
they will come to your web site for answers.
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Online presence - in step with your competitors.
You must think of the Internet as a gigantic the Yellow
Pages book. More and more people use the Web to shop
for information, services and products. If you are
not there - your competitors are! Can you imagine
not being in Yellow Pages and try to reach local market?
Unless you spend a lot of money on newspaper ads and
other local promotions - no one will know your business
exists. The same thing with the Internet. If people
can't find your company on the Web, you might as well
not exist.
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Provide an alternate purchasing method. Many
people do not like to shop in the stores, malls and
any other noisy places (I am first!). They are afraid
of long walks, pressure from sales people, sneezing
customers and bumping shopping carts. Once they discover
online shopping - they will never go back to the stores
unless absolutely necessary. By putting your products
online, you satisfy the needs of such customers and
therefore succeed in one more niche.
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Showcase your work. Whether you are a real
estate agent, construction business owner or a beauty
salon specialist - you can put your work on display
when you have a web site. Anytime a potential client
wants to see your past work and projects, simply refer
him or her to your site. No need to scan and mail
pictures, or bring your client to a finished building
project.
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Promotional Costs are very low. When I interviewed
the manager of NY State Nissan dealership, he shared
with me the costs of running an online ad compared
to a newspaper or any other printed advertisement.
He said, "We can run a whole month of advertisements
online for the same amount of money we pay for one
newspaper ad!" That's right, on an online promotion
you can spend $97 a month, while paying 10 times that
much for a one-time large ad in a magazine!
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Beat your competition to the top. Competition
online is huge today! There are over 3,000,000 sites
on the Web and this number is growing. Still, I see
at least 5 businesses a month who are not online and
getting a web site is not in their near future plans.
Why am I telling you this? Because if THEY don't get
a web site - YOU have a better chance at succeeding.
Insurance, home improvement, gift shops and other
companies are among those I see dragging their feet
in putting their businesses online. This means if
you do it now, before EVERY company is online, you
will be among the pioneers!
Yep,
that's right - Internet is still in its babyhood,
no matter how many web sites there are out there.
It has been less than a decade since companies decided
to use web sites as part of their marketing strategies.
Can you imagine what it will be like in 20-30 years??
I
could go on and on, but I hope you are convinced:
YOUR BUSINESS ABSOLUTELY NEEDS A WEB SITE!
Even
if you are not planning to sell directly online, people
will find your web site and contact you about the
services you offer. You can place your web site address
in your newspaper ads and any other promotional materials
to make people aware of your web site.