Creating a Web Site
No marketing tool is more recommended than a business Web site. You may still want to use the Yellow Pages or something like it, but do not neglect securing a presence on the Web. When asked, many business owners report searching the Web first for products and services, and many never reference the phone book at all. If you know nothing about using the Internet, now is a good time to learn. Colleges offer low-cost community programs that teach computer and Internet basics. Online programs are also available, as well as educational software.
Web Site Basics
If your aversion to learning this technology is strong, you can pay someone to create, maintain, and operate your site. If you do, set up some means of employee oversight to be sure you haven't put a shyster in charge of the house; do a background check for past reported offenses. If you can budget the funds, hire a good Web site designer who has a track record with other businesses. Unfortunately, whenever there's a demand for any service, fraudulent and incompetent companies spring up to fill it like toad-stools after rain. Many will put out their shingle and advertise that they design a great site. Be sure to check them out before deciding on one.
When you look at different designers, make a list of characteristics you'd like your site to have. Ask each candidate to supply a portfolio of links to live sites they have designed. Go to each site and note whether the designs look professional and the sites are easy to navigate. Be sure that your designer doesn't crowd Web pages with too much text bunched up in one long paragraph. Breaking text up with space and pictures makes it more attractive and readable. Be careful with inexperienced designers, but don't write them off immediately. They may be able to give you a great Web site for a low price; just ask to see examples of other projects and be very detailed with your questions.
After you choose your designer, obtain a written contract of exactly what has been agreed upon — down to colors, number of pages, and any flash or specialty features. To avoid being duped, require a breakdown of costs that can be readily understood. Put charges and fees in writing as well. Communicating by e-mail provides a record of your transactions from the outset.
Now that I have a site, can I sit back and wait for phone calls?
No, although many people think you can. Publishing your site doesn't guarantee that anyone will ever see it. Once it's operational, you must inform the world that it exists. You must drive business to your site with effective marketing.
If you have less money than time, you can put together a simple but effective Web site yourself. Many companies host do-it-yourself sites and provide support. Prices vary, so search thoroughly before deciding on your host. The following sites have received favorable reports:
Ready-made or template sites such as these don't offer the flexibility that custom-built sites provide. However, for the price and limited time required to launch them, ready-made sites are functional and attractive. Flash and special features can also be added. When you choose a site, decide which features you absolutely must have, then work with that list and your budget to find the right hosting company.
Marketing Your Web Site
If you do an Internet search for Web site marketing, you'll find a lot of information on one important marketing tool: search engine optimization, a method for having your site appear higher on an Internet searcher's key word search results page. In other words, when a client enters a search for “private investigators your city, your state” into any search engine, many pages will be returned. You don't want your site to be listed on page fifty, as most people don't search past page three. Optimization can improve your standing on the list. However, don't believe any claims that guarantee you'll appear on the first page or within the first ten sites returned. At the present stage of technology, no one can guarantee this. All anyone can promise you is to improve your ranking.
Ever wonder how all those ads appear as sponsored links on your Google search results page? They're delivered according to key words that relate to your search. The advertiser pays no fee unless you choose the ad and visit his site. Check Google's AdWords and AdSense at
Other factors affect your position on search engines. Key words help with your site's ranking, but there's a lot of misinformation about this subject. Learn much more at
If you are looking for extreme Internet marketing, C. J. Bronstrup may be your man. A former private investigator, he claims to obtain better results with nontraditional marketing methods than with traditional techniques. Bronstrup warns that marketing information can be deceptive. For example, when someone advises that additional sites linking to yours will allow your site to be more available to search engines, be careful. This is only half true, according to Bronstrup. In order for any site to pull yours up by merely linking to it, that site must already have a ranking much higher than yours. A link from CNN or Fox News to your site can pull you up, but a link from a two- or three-person operation will have little effect. See his main site at
One of the newest marketing techniques is called viral marketing. This type seeks to encourage the voluntary passing of ads through social networking sites and e-mail. Promotional messages are embedded into sites such as MySpace and YouTube, using cute or funny video clips, interactive games, and text messages. Promoters use the networking function of these sites to pass their message along — one person may send it to four people, who each send it to four more, and so on. In this way, it multiplies quickly through the online community like a virus. Large corporations with resources for creating eye-catching messages, especially video clips, are using viral marketing in a big way. However, the real power of these sites is evidenced by the number of viral clips that are made by an ordinary person with a camera.
This section is meant to provide a starting place for your research of marketing information — there's a lot more out there — but be careful. If you're unsure of the veracity of a site or a marketing technique, don't use it. The Internet is difficult to police. It's a cyber no-man's-land where the legitimate and illegitimate exist side by side, but it also offers the small business owner an opportunity to present a large presence.
