There are few businesses today that wouldn't benefit from having their own Web site. This is particularly important if your business relies on customers who aren't in your geographical area, but even if that doesn't describe your situation, customers are increasingly using Web sites to make purchases online or at least check out the business.

If you have a retail or repair business, for example, customers can review the scope of your products or services ahead of time (can they bring in their lawnmower to your small engine repair shop, for example, or do you only handle motorcycle engines?). They can also find out key information, such as your hours of operation and your location, if those are applicable.

Image

From an image standpoint, you'll want to make sure that your Web presence echoes the rest of your business. Most important, make sure that it's easy to access and understandable. If your home page (the one that opens up first) is difficult to read or the site itself is confusing to navigate, most customers won't stick around to figure it out; they'll move on to another site, and you'll have lost them.

Hosting Services

Many Internet service providers (ISPs) make a limited Web page available as part of the monthly fee for Internet access, while trade associations and other membership-based organizations will offer reasonably simple Web site services as a membership benefit.

You should consider a dedicated hosting service, however, especially if your Web site needs high-volume capacity, secure sales options, or other special requirements.

Domain Name

Many hosting services and Web site development companies will help you to register and purchase a domain name (this is your site's address and is usually preceded by “www”), or you can obtain the name yourself by contacting a registration company directly. It's best to choose one that incorporates your business name if possible or your primary products or services to make sure that customers can find you quickly and easily. Generally, keeping a domain name short and simple works well.

Web Site Development

With the software currently on the market, you can develop your own site without too much trouble, although taking courses at your local community college will definitely help. However, think about how much time it's going to take you and how much you may — or may not — enjoy the process. When you factor in the money you could be earning instead of learning about Web site development, it might be cheaper to hire someone who specializes in it.

Also check with your hosting service, because they often offer easy-to-use templates that you simply enter your text or graphics into, and — like magic — they appear on the Web page. The templates work best if you can find one that suits the business image you want to portray and that is organized in a way that suits your needs for a Web site.

Of course, if you're looking at developing a site that will let customers purchase items and pay for them online, you'll need a more sophisticated site than most templates will provide. You'll want to talk to a Web site developer or designer in that case. Look for one that specializes in small businesses: Web site designers often understand that your budget is limited and might be able to use templates in some areas to keep your costs down.

Design Tips

One frequent complaint from Internet users is that Web sites aren't updated frequently. Don't set yourself up for an impossible task by promising regular updates and new information if you can't keep up with it. If you know you don't have the time or the budget for updates, create a site that focuses on information that doesn't change such as your contact information and basic products or services.

Designers might want to add fancy features such as pop-up boxes, or pictures or phrases that move on the page as you move the cursor. For the most part, these items just annoy your customers so avoid using these features.

In addition, make sure that your site loads quickly and doesn't contain massive graphics that will slow down a customer's computer. Clean, clear designs work best for most sites. Cut out the clutter and ensure that the site is easy to navigate — make it easy for customers to find key information, especially your contact information, which should be on each of the pages that make up your site.

Key Words

Talk to your Web site designer about the search words that people are likely to enter into Internet search engines when they're looking for the goods or services that you offer. You, of course, want your Web site to appear as high as possible in the search results. Designers use formulas to calculate how often and where the key words should appear on the site in order for the search engines to recognize them. Even after the Web site has been launched, keep an eye on how it's doing in the search ratings. If its placement suddenly seems to fall off, talk to your designer about why it's happening and what you can do to solve it.

Other Internet Advertising

Even if you're not ready to host your own Web site, you can still advertise on the Internet. It might be particularly helpful to you if you need to attract customers with a narrow interest focus from a wide geographic area — if you're running a specialty quilt supply business by mail order, for example.

Consider placing ads on sites for publications related to your business: trade, special interest, and business-to-business publications. Or consider running a contest in a Web ad to drum up new business. Of course, Internet advertising likely works best when a potential customer can click on the ad and go straight to your Web site — so consider launching one, even if it's just a simple one-page site.

Community and networking work especially well on the Internet. If you have a Web site, you can ask other Web sites to include links to yours in return for putting a link to their Web site on yours. Just make sure that these “reciprocal” links go to places that complement your business and fit your image.