Establishing Your Presence on the Web:
A Three-Part Series on Making the Web Work for You

by Debra Osborne, APR

Published on BrightLane.com, December 1999 - January 2000

The new millennium is only a few short weeks away. It promises to bring more technological revelations then we dare to dream. Perhaps, there will be no better time then right now to review how we are currently using the most powerful - and underutilized - tool of this century, the Internet.

This is the first article in a three part series that will discuss in detail why you need an Internet site, what it should consist of, and how to make it work for your business. Spend a few minutes to read each article and then take a fresh look at your Web site - or your reasons why you don't have one - and make sure you aren't overlooking this incredibly powerful tool.

Part I - Why You Need an Active - Not a Static - Web Site

Have you ever had to explain to someone who you are and what you do? Sure you have. After explaining, have you ever felt that while the person may be smiling and nodding, they still don't understand? Sure you have. There is one very simple reason to have a web site, to explain who you are, what you do, and why you're better than your competition. Then, the next time you're in the elevator or at a reception and someone asks who you are and what you do, just hand them your business card, smile, and refer them to your web site.

Of course, there are other reasons to have a web site. Here are just a few:

• Market your services to those most interested in them. Take the time to properly register your Web site with search engines so people can find it. Then, on your site, have a log in or guest book system in place so you can learn more about your visitors and they can sign up to receive information from you. Be sure this is optional as few things will ruin your Internet image faster then spamming (sending unsolicited emails trying to sell something) people.



• Watch your marketing costs decrease. Marketing via "snail mail" or the U.S. Postal Service is not only slower, but more expensive than Internet email. Once you have your database of strong leads (from your web site sign-in or guest book), you can send marketing messages directly to interested parties at no additional out-of-pocket expense.



• Reduce time spent traveling. By putting your new business presentation on your web site - password protected if need be - you can reduce the time you spend traveling by personally presenting only to qualified leads. After an initial conversation with a potential client, simply refer them to your site, give them the password, and proceed to walk them through the presentation or let them go through it on their own. Include "weed out" information such as ballpark costs or logistics, and suddenly you'll find that you're personally presenting only to those who are truly interested in your products and/or services.



• Increase sales. If you sell a product, to anyone at all, then there is no reason why you shouldn't be selling it on the Web. Thanks to recent developments in security measures (SSL - secured socket layers, we'll get into this in our next article), people are shopping on the Internet like never before. Goldman Sachs and PC Data Online found that Internet users shopping from their home computers spent about $274 million from Nov. 15-21. And by all counts, the Internet is still in its infancy.

OK, so you know you need a Web site. Next comes the big "How Much Will it Cost Me?" question. The answer varies greatly, from $2,000 if you do it yourself to upwards of $2 million for the top-of-the-line model. For budgeting purposes, somewhere in the neighborhood of $5,000-6,000 would give you professional, but no frills site. There is also a $20+ per month cost for hosting, so be sure to shop around for the best deal.

One word of advice, have the professionals design your Web site. Yes, you can do it yourself, but the amount of time, frustration and expense makes it unrealistic. Your time and energy are better spent accomplishing other things. However, tell your IT pros - and put it in the contract - that they are to create your Web site in a format that allows you to perform updates yourself. This will save you an enormous amount of time and money in the future. Continual updates and interactive features will make the difference between an active and a static Web site. Static web sites are a thing of the past. New information, features and activities should be added regularly to give people a reason to visit your site - and to come back.

You know you can't afford to be the last business in America to launch an e-commerce site. What you may not know is that on the Internet, it's not how big or how small you are, but how fast or how slow. Wait any longer, and you're history.

Part II - What Makes Your Site So Special?

When was the last time you visited your own web site? Yesterday? Last week? Last month? More than likely, you have been too busy doing other things and you probably don't have anything on your web site that you must read today. But guess what; if you, the person who is the most interested and vested in your web site hasn't been there today - yesterday at the latest - then why on earth would anyone else take a look at it?

Information is the #1 reason people go online. Even the coolest graphics in the world won't drive traffic to your web site - but a simple site with great content will send your hits soaring. Just check out www.yahoo.com; there's nothing visually arresting on this site, but they are one of the most popular sites on the Internet. c To draw a person to your site, you must provide a multitude of accurate, reliable information. Your content will be THE REASON people visit your site. Therefore, the first and most important thing to do is determine who is your audience. In today's marketplace, you can't be all things to all people. It is much wiser to be the best in the one thing in which you excel. For example, let's say you're a freelance accountant and want to create a web site to market your services. Your target audience may be accountants. Great. Now, narrow it further. Tax accountants. Good. Again, narrow it further. Tax accountants for small business owners. Bingo! Now you've got your target audience. Start there.

Once you have your target audience narrowed down to a very specific market segment, it's time to prepare the content for your site. Here are some things to be sure to include:

• Guest book. Request your visitors to sign in and answer a few quick questions about themselves. Offer them an incentive to do so (a free coffee mug to the first 100 people to sign in). The information you collect will enable you to understand who is actually using your site, and help you create a list of potential customers.



• Offer free email updates. Make it an option for your visitors to sign up to receive free, useful email updates. Take great care to keep these updates of interest and importance. A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself if you'd like to receive this correspondence.



• Provide a ton of information. Literally. Remember, the #1 reason people go on the Internet is to obtain information. Let your site become known for providing complete, accurate information from multiple sources. Include any information of relevance to your audience including statistics, recent news stories, resources, links to other web sites, etc.



• Speed, speed, speed. On the Internet, it's all about speed. Make sure your pages load quickly. Keep them simple and easy to read, with just enough graphics to keep it interesting.



• Constantly changing content. These three Cs will make your web site a hit. Try to update your content daily. If it's too much initially, begin with weekly updates and increase the frequency as soon as you can.



• Privacy statement. Internet users want their privacy protected. They are tired of being continually "spammed," sent unsolicited sales emails. It has gotten so bad that there are now software programs available to help filter out these emails. Include a page on your site that clearly states your privacy policy and whether you intend to sell names to other organizations. If you do plan on selling their names (which isn't recommended), be sure to give your visitors an option to have their information removed from such a list before it's sold.



• Security statement. A growing number of people are purchasing things on the Internet. If you plan on conducting e-commerce on your site, be sure to invest in the latest technology available and clearly state the measures you have taken.



• Search engine. If your site is going to provide the information your audience wants access to, you're going to need to include a search engine on your site. A search engine will help people find what they are looking for quickly.



• Build a community - not just another web site. To ensure that people actively seek out and use your web site, create a community. Elicit interaction between you, your visitors, and each other. Have message boards. Ask visitors to submit articles to your site and then post them. One of the most successful Internet communities is www.fastcompany.com. Spend an hour or so on their site and you'll be amazed at the level of interaction possible there. Take what you learn and incorporate it into your site.

The most important thing to remember is to shift the focus of your site off you and onto your target audience. What can you do to make their job easier? If you answer that one question correctly, you'll be handsomely rewarded with a popular and well-respected web site.

Part III - The Test

OK, you have just completed your informative, constantly changing Web site. Now we launch it, right? Wrong. Now, we test it. This should be done in two phases, the alpha test, and the beta test.

• Alpha test. For the alpha test, pick 15 - 20 of your current customers, friends, and relatives; people who's input you value, but who you don't mind seeing you "ugly." Call them and ask them to spend an hour or so over the next week to review your web site and provide their feedback. Put a questionnaire on the site and ask each of them to complete it. Don't worry if someone stumbles across your site and fills out the questionnaire, it's just more research information! Tally the results at the end of the week, and make the necessary changes. Add the things they want to see, remove things they didn't find useful, and overall provide any tweaking the site needs. Be sure to send a nice thank you gift to your alpha testers - good chocolates (like Godiva), gift certificates, or cash is always appreciated.



• Beta test. After making your changes from the alpha test, it's time for the beta test. The best test should involve a significant number of people. Aim for the 50 - 100 range. These people should be comprised of past, present and future customers. You really want to get as close to your target audience as you possibly can. Again, ask them to spend an hour or so over the next week on your site, and request they complete an online questionnaire. Also, be sure to send each one of them a special thank you gift such as the ones mentioned above.



• Professional testing. It's also wise to hire an outside contractor to test your site professionally. Professional testers will go through you site with a fine tooth comb, checking for various browser compatibility, loading speeds for each page on various connections, security breeches, and other vital information. Utilizing an outside tester will ensure your site is truly ready for the challenges today's Internet user will inflict upon it.

After completing any additional changes that may have been discovered, it's time to announce your site to its awaiting public.

Now Hear This

Congratulations, it's now time to promote your site. It does you absolutely no good to have a thoroughly tested, vastly informative, lightening-quick Web site if nobody knows about it. Here are just a few tactical measures you can take to market your web site.

• Get the help you need. It's going to take a lot of time, talent, and energy to promote your hot new Web site. Hire someone exclusively for this task. An outside public relations/marketing consultant is a great place to start. Be sure they have experience in Internet-based promotions - which does not include spamming people.



• Register the site. While there are several fee-based organizations that offer to help you register your site, skip them. All the search engines you'll be interested in will register your site for free. It's not hard to register a site, and when you do it, you'll know it is registered correctly where people can actually find it.



• Announce the site to your current customers. Send an official announcement of your new Web site to your current customers. Utilize the customer's preferred method of contact - email, fax, or the postal service - not your preferred method.



• Announce the site to your industry. Send a well-written news release to your industry trade publications, along with a personalized letter explaining - briefly - why this is different and newsworthy. Be sure to follow-up with a personal phone call.



• Announce the site to your target audience. Again, send a well-written news release to the industry trade publications your target audience reads. Be sure to include a personalized letter and conduct a follow-up call.



• Promote it through the media. One of the mistakes many companies make is they tend to do too much too fast, and end up way over budget. When you are launching a new service - such as a web site - you don't need to do ANY advertising. Let people read about you first. People place much more value on articles they read, then on advertising they see. Therefore, utilize PR to help you get published in the leading publications. Let reporters review and write about your site. Only after your Web site is established, should you look to advertising; and then come out with both barrels blasting. Advertising will keep your Web site alive, but PR will give birth to it.



• Links. Search out other web sites that your target audience might be interested in and explore mutual site links. Perhaps they could add you to their list of recommended web sites, and you can do the same.



• Speak at industry meetings/conventions. This will help you further establish yourself as an industry expert, as well as help you promote your web site as providing information of service to them, your customers.

The key to having a successful Web site is to provide your customers with the information they need, in addition to the products and/or services they want. Your goal should be to become their one-stop-shop for everything they need to succeed in today's global environment. If you accomplish that, your own success is guaranteed. Good luck!