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STOP! Don’t Build That Website!

Thursday, May 1st, 2008

An open letter to all small and medium business (SMB) owners

Dear Mr. Business Owner,

I heard a rumor from a buddy of mine that you were currently thinking about getting a website going for your company. Congratulations – I think that is a wonderful thing! The future of your business very well may lie in the decisions that you make when building your website.

My buddy told me that you haven’t decided yet on an individual or company to do your website. He was asking me if I had any tips, which I do. I hope you don’t find my questions and tips too intrusive on your business, but if you want a truly functional and revenue-producing presence online, it’s going to be necessary.

  1. Can you navigate the web easily?
    Sometimes I meet SMB owners who are a bit proactive online – just enough to get them through the things they need to do. They can do email and stumble through Yahoo! to find what they need. They aren’t the typical Internet user, in fact most SMB owners, in my opinion, are less computer savvy than the average Joe.
    You may want to consider taking some free classes at the local library or civic center on computers. Most of them offer keyboarding basics, Understanding the Internet, and even basic Word and Excel classes. Sign up for them all. It’ll help you and your web designer, I promise.
  2. Speaking of designers, have you picked one out yet?
    You may have already started probing your business friends and family members about potential designers. Your cousin said that his neighbor’s boy is good with the Internet, so you’ve got one possible lead there. There’s also a guy in town that runs a local town-hall type website, maybe he could help you out too.
    Let me go ahead and say it now – hire a professional. Yeah, I know, they expect you to pay real money. Duh! If you bought a billboard down on the highway, would you ask your cousin’s neighbor to go paint something on it? I hope not!
    This is by far one of the most important decisions of the entire process. Choosing a web designer who can make a pretty website isn’t enough. You’re going to have to find one that understands the marketing end of web design, too. If you don’t you’re going to end up paying more in the long run. I’ll assume you don’t want to do that!
    Here are some things you should ask a potential designer:

    • Do you do keyword research prior to starting the site?
    • Do you use templates or design the site from scratch? (Using a template isn’t a deal-breaker, but it’s nice to know if your site will end up looking like other industry-related websites. You don’t want that.)
    • Do you build the framework prior to starting the design? If so, is it keyword specific?
    • Do you provide hosting, or can you refer me to a reliable hosting company? (yeah I did it)
    • After you build the site, are you done, or will there be monthly fees/maintenance? (If he says no, you may actually be in trouble!)
  3. Are you committed?
    I recently had an appointment to meet with a guy who started a new taxi service in town, and he wanted a website. I talked to him a few times and we set a time to meet. Well, when I showed up, the guy was busy with another client. He told me to ‘wait here’ and he’d be back. Fifteen minutes later, I left.
    If you aren’t committed to getting a website, or you don’t have your $h!t in order, don’t waste your designer’s time. Shoving off your designer like that is like telling him/her you don’t value their time. Bad idea.
  4. Speaking of commitment, are you committed for the long haul?
    Getting a cute little website up isn’t enough to run a business. Sure, you’ll have your own .com and you’ll think you’re great, but really – why are you building this site? To get accolades or to make money?
    If you aren’t willing to stick it out with monthly marketing fees/costs for at least a year, you may be simply helping out your competition. They’ll know in an instant that you aren’t serious, and they’ll steal all those hot leads that could have been yours.
  5. Lastly, do you have someone that can provide content (or ‘copy’) to the designer?
    Nothing is worse than hiring someone to do a website and not providing them with one ounce of text to put on it. Do you think a web designer knows the first thing about your industry? Probably not. And it’s not their job to make stuff up. Its yours. So make sure you or someone on your staff can promptly provide information to your potential designer. Don’t make them wait.

Mr Business Owner, I really wish you the best with your endeavour. Don’t get discouraged by the overwhelming amount of pre-work that goes into getting a website.

Like your Dad probably told you, It’s better that you do it right, than do it twice.

Sincerely,

Will Hanke
WillHanke.com

Posted in Marketing, competition, customer service, local marketing, small business | No Responses »

Customers Suck – Who Needs Them Anyways?

Wednesday, April 9th, 2008

With your business doing great, and the revenues up, who has time for customers? I mean, all they do is complain and ask you to show them things – and you’ve got better things to do, right?

Truth is, you’d better make time for customers. Beyond the obvious ‘They’re the ones paying the bills‘ there are many other reasons to pay attention to them.

Take Seth Godin’s post today about answering the phone. True, the most important job in a business just could be answering the phone. I’m the first to admit that I don’t always do this right, but I’m getting better. The phone answerer for some small businesses is also the owner, so what Seth says about the lowly being the ones doing the groundwork isn’t always true. Nonetheless you get the idea.

Customers come to you for a reason. Perhaps they liked your storefront. Perhaps they thought your sign or a recent flyer was pretty. Maybe they were referred by a friend who told them to ‘just go up there’. Maybe they stumbled across your website and liked what they saw (and by that I mean physically liked it, the layout, the colors, the ease of navigation).  The reasons may be fickle, but as soon as they walk in, your opportunity is huge.

No matter the reason, they came – and they want (in most cases) to give you money. And in many cases, this may be their first time to your store. You’ve been coming there for years, day after day.  You’ve noticed (but ignored) the cobwebs on your AC unit. You’ve seen the dirty and scuffed floors from all the product you’ve been moving in and out. (Those darn boots!) You’ve noticed (but ignored) that odor that the furnace puts out every winter.

But the customers notice. They aren’t just there to purchase something, they are there for the experience. The shopping experience (particularly for higher value items) is an adventure. Spending any amount of money needs to be pleasant and fun. It’s exhilarating to spend, and you should cater to that.

Mr. and Mrs. Small Business Owner, take a minute to step back today. Check out the place from a customer’s point of view. Start in the parking lot, examine the front door, and enter with your eyes darting around. Try to see what they see. Visit your business as an experience, not as your job. Ask customers to fill out a survey, not just about the satisfaction of their product, but of the entire experience.

And speaking of satisfaction, if you really want to be proactive, ask them for suggestions.

The board members at Starbucks, the uber cool coffee company, noticed a downward trend in their customer satisfaction (probably judged primarily by their declining sales). So instead of selling off their stock, or going to some marketing company that can pull together a whiz-bang campaign, they went to their own customers for ideas. They launched MyStarbucksIdea.com, a site where their customers can visit and submit new ideas to the coffee giant.  The website is doing great, and the ideas are pouring in.

Starbucks is listening to their customer.  And you know why?  Because as you’ve said a hundred times before, they pay the bills.

Posted in customer service, small business | 1 Response »

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