Two business owners are having coffee. They have successful businesses that they are ready to expand on to the internet.

“Have you chosen a web developer yet?”

“Web developer? Are you serious? I am having my son build the website. He is on the internet all the time and knows everything about websites and stuff like that.”

“Your son, really? Does he build websites for a living?”

“No. He is still in school. He will build it for free though!”

All too often, I come across this scenario. It is one of the obstacles of being in the web development industry. The internet is unlike any other business medium. It is open to all, information is abundant and there is a SIGNIFICANT learning curve between generations. Toss around some terminology like web development, social media, cascading style sheets and search engine optimization and chances are the average web user will think you are working for the NSA. But don’t call Washington just yet. The casual web user may use the same language as a professional web developer. That doesn’t necessarily mean they can speak it.

Whether it is your son, daughter or nephew’s cousins uncle twice removed, you must gaze a skeptical eye on the services they claim to be able to provide. Let me modify the scenario a bit to explain my point:

• Would you let your son fix your company’s toilet because he watches the DIY Network?
• Would you let your daughter operate on an injured employee because she watches “Grey’s Anatomy”?
• Would you let your neighbor replace your company delivery truck’s engine because they have a subscription to “Car and Driver”?

You may think these scenarios are completely different from building a website but when broken down to the most basic form, they are identical. Each scenario above describes using a person with a casual interest in something performing a job that requires a professional. Web development is no different. In fact, using a professional web developer may be even MORE important (except the doctor example…that would be pretty dangerous).

Take the toilet example. Even if you own a storefront, chances are you might get 10-15 customers that need to “evacuate” daily. If your toilet is broken, you most likely will not lose their business. Your website on the other hand may receive 100-50,000+ visitors a day. If it is broken, or not functioning properly, your customer’s have no access to your business. We have all navigated to a website that was down or slow to load. I am sure you, just like me, closed the website in less than 10 seconds.

The fact is, web development may look easy on paper. There are hundreds of programs that claim to make it simple for anyone to use. My hope is that you will be wary when you evaluate this option. If your business is on the internet, it is part of a huge online marketplace that reaches millions of potential customers. Facing those customers with a virtual storefront that is templated, slow and functions poorly is your COMPETITOR’S best sales tool.

Use a professional! There are numerous professional web development agencies. Most focus on specific customer bases (i.e. small businesses, personal websites, e-Commerce websites etc.) so finding one that meets your needs should not be hard. You can even find a web developer near your business, and often meet with them face to face.

It may not be free, but it will be well worth the investment. A professionally developed website should pay for itself before that leaky toilet breaks down again.

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• web hosting
• email addresses
• website development
• customer ordering/inquiry forms
• website maintenance

Now most small businesses do not have (nor need) a full IT department dedicated to maintaining and developing these solutions. In all honesty, in many small businesses, the job may usually just fall into the lap of the  employee most comfortable with a computer . Without a dedicated IT department, building web solutions from scratch (which can be incredibly costly), businesses must seek the help of third party providers to obtain their desired web presence.

Like any open market for products and services, the web development industry is very competitive. Lacking experience in this field, just like being a first time car buyer, is  to your disadvantage. At least when buying a car, you can see your purchase. Often, the untrained eye does not fully understand what they are buying for their web presence.

I cannot tell you how many times we come across this issue at Dreamscape Marketing. We often discover issues with customers because their web situation is extremely complicated, and often completely unknown to them. I will give you an example of a recent project we worked on in our Maryland office:

A customer requested a new form be developed for his website. This seemed like a relatively simple request until we peeked into the IT environment. This customer had all five services listed above performed by different organizations. In fact, when using multiple web developers, the customer also began hosting their website in TWO places! We estimated that the customer had utilized ten businesses to develop their web presence over about four years. After centralizing this customer’s IT solutions, we were able to save them over TWO TIMES the cost of the order form we built for them. In addition, by canceling their unnecessary hosting and focusing everything else they had in a single location, we also significantly reduced the time it would take for this customer to solve future issues with their website.

Centralizing your web services can save you time and money. Understanding what you are actually using may sound rudimentary, but is often overlooked and could cost you when a problem occurs.

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A strategically designed website, developed utilizing a combination of search engine optimization and content building techniques, could not only improve your sales, it could begin generating sales for you in your sleep! Businesses must realize that internet marketing is the future of traditional marketing. Within the next decade, as millennial’s enter the workforce, lead generation will fully integrate into the digital arena.

If you need a recent reminder of this trend, look no further than your own business. Four years ago, “green” business was restricted to paperless credit card statements and cell phone bills. However, today, I guarantee your business has taken some steps to become more environmentally friendly. Website development has assisted this movement with huge steps, integrating websites with operating systems and moving data from print to PDF just to name a few examples. Green marketing is now the future of marketing. In order to stay competitive in business, companies must be ready to utilize eco-friendly marketing techniques to stay on par with competitors.

In much the same way, lead generation through a properly optimized website is the future of sales. With a dynamic website that ranks your business for relevant keyword searches, your sales area will expand from regional to global. Another advantage is that your website, unlike your company’s salespeople, does not have a salary, health benefits, vacation, sick days, sales metric bonuses, or suffer from bouts of procrastination. It will work for you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Additionally, website development and optimization services can be performed to a level that fits within your business’s operating budget. Your return on investment from the proper development of a website can often be measured in multiples of spend. Using products like Google Analytics, marketing consultants can track this data for you and present it in a concise and clear manner.

We recently had the opportunity to work with Rhino Group Media,  a Philadelphia website development client. Rhino Group launched a site with an interactive flash sample portfolio that creates an unique experience for their site visitors, while simultaneously providing compelling sales messaging.

Instead of restricting yourself to your traditionally customers, think outside the box ahead of the curve. Using your website to generate sales leads today can lead to significant business growth tomorrow.

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A prospective client has most likely heard many elevator pitches, and will not be receptive to yours unless it breaks the mold of monotony. Danny Wood, a Sales Expert based out of Northern New Jersey, recently discussed some interesting tactics to differentiate your sales approach from your competitors. He  recommends two useful strategies:
-    “Don’t tell prospects about your company and product services. Instead, share the stories of frustration your previous prospects asked you to solve before they became customers.”
-    “Stop telling them what you can do for them. Show them you understand their problems. People what to know how much you care before they care how much you know.”

Another important aspect of your elevator pitch is a hook question. A hook question offers prospects the chance to “bite” on your sales effort. A good example utilizes the strategies above. After discussing past client frustrations, ask “Have you ever had any difficulties similar to these?” A positive response will successfully bridge the customer’s needs to your business’ services and extend the relationship from sales pitch to follow up meeting.

Thirty seconds could mean sale or sorry. A focus on the prospects needs and problems can turn a pitch into a profit.

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As the recession continues to loom like a dark cloud that continuously ruins your family vacations, what can you do to improve your business forecast? Most companies, like my former, decided to cut costs. Cutting costs unfortunately almost always means cutting people, and cutting very good people. While this solution may help a short term goal of reduced expenses (or to the terminated employee, their income/mortgage payments), in the long term this will only bury the organization under more work for a diminished workforce to handle. It is like quicksand, the harder you try to fight tough economic times, the farther you get pulled into them. In my mind, the best approach is to take action. Face the bull head on. Instead of cutting costs because of reduced business, go out there and find more business. The key to new business is marketing.
Ken Fisher, a Forbes columnist for over 25 years, is famously quoted saying, “It’s not the hot gadget that puts small companies over the top but hot marketing…if a troubled company is strong on marketing it is a good bet to solve its problems…So I like companies run by a top-notch marketing person or companies with one close to the boss’ elbow and ear.”
A creative and innovative marketing strategy can not only break your economic downtime, it can help you to leap ahead of your competitors. While the masses add lick their wounds and pull back, an aggressive marketing approach can actually lead to significant business growth. Stop reacting like the rest of your industry and start acting!
The benefits of this approach are numerous, but three truly stick out:
1)    Cost effective: Most basic marketing strategies cost less than the coffee you offer in your business’ break room each month. In fact, some marketing strategies (like Search Engine Optimization) can be purchased on a bounty system meaning you only pay if they hit agreed upon targets (a specific page rank on Google for example).
2)    Long Term Success: Winning new clients during a tough time puts your organization on a path towards long term success. Any customer you can win today, during the recession, can translate into a long term customer who will increase spend as the economy rebounds. With an established relationship during tough times, these customers will be more loyal and less likely to seek out your competitors.
3)    Moral: A strong marketing plan will boost moral around your office. It will present a united and public front from management that says “we are confident in the success of our business.” Employees will be motivated by this approach and work hard to be a part of it. Instead of layoff fears employees will be talking about the businesses next strategic initiative around the water-cooler.
Regardless of your businesses current financial state, a strong marketing plan is still a feasible strategy. If you are concerned, start small, but remember that this economy will eventually turn around. When that happens, you want to be the bull.

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Let us know what you think about Cuil and if you think it has a chance at taking on Google!

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