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Do You Need a Web
Site?
Perhaps you’ve put it
off, because running a Web site alongside your already busy
retail business seems like hassle you don’t need. We hope to
answer the baffling questions about whether you really need a
Web site.
With limited budgets, we
need to make educated choices about where to spend our
advertising dollars most effectively. In the past, print
advertising like newspapers, brochures, and magazines; trade
shows; or television and radio were the main forms of spreading
the word about your products. Today, we need to decide whether
to divert a share of those dollars to Internet advertising and a
Web site, remembering, even as we do so, that other types of
advertising are still necessary.
Criteria to Compete
You will need to answer
a number of questions before you embark upon your Web project.
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What is your
primary goal for your site?
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Entertainment?
Information or promotion? A good informative site is
comparable to an easily updated electronic brochure.
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Selling?
Do you need e-commerce? Do you want a full-fledged
e-commerce Web store with shopping cart? Such sites are more
expensive than information-only sites and may require more
experienced programming. Are you also willing to put in the
time and effort for price and description updates on your
merchandise?
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Can you keep up
with demand if your website is successful and your
products are popular? Can you ship in a timely fashion? If
you cannot produce results, your customers will become
unhappy and you will fail quickly.
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Is your business
suited to the Internet?
For instance, are you a store like a custom boot maker
who feels you must have a customer come to you for a correct
fitting? If so, you might be wiser to spend your
advertising dollars on local newspaper ads or in buying
booth space at retail merchandise shows.
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Do you offer
merchandise that will is easily appreciated on the Web?
People prefer to use all five senses to some evaluate
some items. As a customer, would you like to buy fresh
tomatoes on the Internet, or would you rather feel and smell
how ripe they are? What happens if you are buying a new
television set? Can you tell from the technical
specifications if you like the color and the clarity of the
picture or would you rather see and hear the real thing in a
real store?
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Internet or
Brick-and-Mortar?
The difference between ordering goods from an Internet
site and shopping in a brick-and-mortar store is that in a
store people can use their five senses to evaluate goods.
You must be able to make your Internet site compete with a
physical store. On the Internet, customers must rely on
your descriptions and photos of your product or service.
You must have quick-loading, clear photos, enticing ad copy,
and easy ordering in order to overcome the lack of physical
impact on your customer’s senses. Sometimes people will
visit a physical store in order to decide on the product
they want and then go to a website because it offers
something they cannot get at the physical store such as
lower price, better return policy, delivery at their door,
or a bonus offer.
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What are the
primary benefits of your product or service and how can
you best represent them?
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Who is your
target audience? Young people with limited budgets?
Older folks with more disposable income? How will you best
appeal to this target group?
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By what standard
will you measure the success of your site? Number of
visitors? Calls? Sales? Repeat customers?
How to Implement Your
Site
Once you have decided
that a website is right for your business, find a website
designer that you can trust, who understands your industry,
who is prompt on both the original design and updates and who is
able to coach you on your responsibilities towards the site.
Be sure your site
projects a professional appearance. Develop a logo. Brand
your site and remain unique. Make your website theme and color
scheme consistent with your logo.
Your home page
should immediately let the visitor know what you are selling or
promoting. Describe the purpose of your website and include
product photos that can help people understand your purpose and
how to purchase. Include a call to action like “Order today.”
Bring in fresh, new photos and text often to keep visitors
interested and to keep them coming back.
Customers do not
always buy on the first visit. Make their experience
memorable and pleasant so they will return. Give them reasons
to make your product the one they want to buy, even if they shop
around. Encourage repeat business.
Make visitors know
that reliable human beings run your business. Try to
include answers to the most obvious questions, but have contact
information easily accessible on each page in case visitors need
more information. Include a privacy policy. Include shipping
rates and your return & refund policy. Insist on proper
navigation and consider including a search function to make what
customers are looking for easy to find.
If your business
meets the criteria to be productive on the Internet, it is
important to construct and continually improve your website.
Computers run today’s business world. Your business needs to
decide how it should be involved with the Internet to stay
competitive. |
