By Steve Anderson and Suzanne Martin
Surfing the Internet for fun and recreation has emerged as America's favorite new pastime. But it's a whole different game when you think of sinking hard-earned dollars into a high-tech tool that may or may not pay off for your business.
The media blitz about the Internet and World Wide Web (WWW) promises that small businesses can reap big profits by getting online. E-mail for communications, Internet access for information retrieval, and Web pages for sales and marketing are all being touted as must-have capabilities for progressive businesses.
Indeed, direct marketing firms are moving en masse toward doing business on the WWW. A recent study by the A.T. Kearney consulting firm found that 54 percent of direct marketers use the Internet for sales and marketing purposes.
But what about the rest of us who run service businesses out of our homes or operate small retail shops? Does the expanding global technology of the WWW offer our businesses any advantages? "There are two basic ways that having a Web site can benefit your business," says Gene Fairbrother, NASE's ShopTalk 800 consultant. "It can help you find new customers and it can help you communicate with existing customers."
A WWW page that describes your products and services or promotes your business can be a dynamic marketing tool with the potential of reaching millions of online consumers. But Fairbrother cautions that the WWW is no magic bullet for marketing success. "You need to approach this just like any other marketing investment," he explains.
"Determine how much actual sales volume you'll need from a Web site to cover its costs and break even. Talk to your existing customers to find out if they use the Web when looking for new products or services. And check out the competition. Talk to businesses similar to yours. Ask how successful their Web sites have been at generating business."
If you're not ready to invest in a Web site exclusively for your business, you might want to investigate a group site. These sites, like the Small Business Showcase (see article page 21), let you share a Web site with other businesses. Getting on a group site gives your business a presence on the WWW but doesn't require a big marketing budget.
Even if marketing on the WWW isn't right for you, having an e-mail address for your business is quickly becoming a necessity. A few years ago, faxes offered the fastest means of exchanging documents. Today, electronic mail makes faxing seem slow. Letters, purchase orders, invoices, product and service descriptions -- just about any style or size of document -- can be sent via e-mail. And you can transmit that information to one or several recipients simultaneously. Just as important, your online customers can e-mail you with orders, questions or requests for bids. Establishing an e-mail address is easy through an Internet provider or through one of the online services such as America Online or CompuServe. Prices vary, so shop around. And have no fear, e-mail techniques are simple to master even for those intimidated by technology.
Along with Web sites and e-mail potential, the Internet offers another benefit to small businesses -- unlimited sources of information. The Internal Revenue Service, the Small Business Administration and the NASE are just a few of the organizations that maintain timely online information. When you visit the NASE's Web page at http://www.nase.org, you can link directly to the IRS, SBA and other business sites. Plus, the Internet gives you instant access to business and trade publications, industry associations and government reports. Once you begin exploring the powerful research capabilities of the Internet, you'll find favorite sites and go back for more information time and again.
So whether you want to develop an online business library, speed up communication with e-mail, or market your business on a Web page, now may be the time to catch the online wave. Just remember to keep your business goals in mind and weigh the bottom line as you surf into cyberspace.
Read the sidebar story: NASE Web Site Draws Reviews |
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