21st Guru

In the current economic environment as the recession hits harder, people will be turning more and more to the internet to find their purchases. Firstly they can look for the best bargains and then purchase over the web without even having to leave their homes. This beats the hell out of having to drive miles, find parking space, queue for bargains and then carry the items home or wait for delivery of large products. If your company is still living in the dark ages, and you don’t have an online presence then you are offering the competition sales on a plate.

In order to stay competitive, businesses need to offer their services or products online, as well as doing business the traditional way. A friend of mine used to work in an appliance warehouse where they had lots of those Maytag Refrigerators (One of those big American style fridges) and one day I picked her up from work and she showed it to me, at which point I decided I just had to have one. That was several years ago, but last week I took delivery of mine having thoroughly researched the full range available on line.

In the end I bought it from a physical retailer (John Lewis, because it’s true they have never knowingly been undersold!) but I was able to research the best deals online before I went in and ordered it.

Businesses today need to communicate with potential customers who do business mostly online. Be smart and start today to get your company online and out in front, even if you do sell mainly offline.

These days just having a well built website is no longer enough. Even if you are in a very specialist industry you will still have to promote your web pages in order to take full advantage of the search community traffic.

One example of one of these businesses is a client of mine who provides access control software which isn’t a sector that you would predict is very competitive on the internet, but in fact has a lot of competition.

When you run an online business you potentially have a global audience, depending on your product or service. This means you need to have 24 hour customer access, due to the time differences around the world. Automatic systems to respond to enquiries will be a vital part of the website design otherwise you will need staff available working unsociable hours. In this new world, the old ways of import/export will become obsolete.

When running an online business you need to be a Jack of all trades. But communication is an essential part of all the different aspects of running a business. Email and instant messaging are efficient ways of communicating with employees, particularly when different time zones are a complication. Setting up an online conference room will save the need for physical space and travelling and will provide a forum for members to air their views, concerns and challenges.

The website home page is the first thing visitors see when visiting your site. To make a good impression you will need a good brand image, clear information and a user friendly process so that customer will find it easy to purchase their goods. (Don’t make it hard for your customers to find their way around the system and buy products, no matter how clever something may be.)

A good web design agency with a track record in successful SEO Marketing can enable you to update your website whenever you want, so that any changes in pricing or items are current, and get your products in front of as many potential customers as possible by using the search engines.

Statistics reporting is another service which can give you valuable data on how many people are accessing the site, and from that information you can see if your services/goods are attracting the sales you want. If not then there is an opportunity to revamp your products or website to improve on conversion rates.
For customer satisfaction make sure your business provides good quality products, efficient service, and an easy to use system. Where items are good value for money, customers will be happy to recommend your company to friends and family and sales will increase.

The growth of the internet gives a whole new meaning to the world of commerce. Using ecommerce websites millions of people are out there starting new online businesses, all wanting a piece of the cake, all wanting to make their millions. So make sure your business is one of the forerunners and get yourself up there on the first page on Google. Don’t wait, get started now before your competitors leave you behind. Five years from now you’ll be glad if you read this and took action. You have got a five year plan right?