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Part 2 - Preparing to Use the Internet

I hope that Part 1 - Growing Your Business Online of this series has convinced you that not being on the web is a huge problem for local businesses that want to grow revenues and sales? Every day your business is not on the web is costing you money and potentially making money for your competitors. However there is another, perhaps equally expensive mistake: being on-line in a wrong way. How can you be on the web wrong? Great question. I found an expert to help me answer that question.

The Problem - Losing Money with Internet Marketing

Mark Asper, President of Internet Strategies, a business and Web think tank, was interviewed on the mistakes many businesses make when using the web to promote their business. He said that most businesses have a gap between what they spend and what they make on the web, that web investments are upside down. In other words they loose money on the web. He said that the reasons for the web being a money draining investment are:

• No clear Internet Strategy
• No integration of the Web activities with the rest of the business
• The thinking that their business can’t ‘sell’ on the web
• Not understanding the Web
• Too much outsourcing

These reasons can be summed up simply by saying that most websites don’t have the clear purpose of driving business into their doors and integrating the web into the money making processes of their business. Most people don’t know what the best use of the Web is for a local business. Even when the objectives are clearly known - that is make money by increasing business to your store, consulting practice, or local business - the specific strategies and tactics remain unclear

The problem is compounded by outsourcing to people who have the knowledge, you know web designers, graphic artists, programmers, but are more concerned with ‘non-business’ issues instead of your revenue goals. What you often end up with are beautiful websites full of graphics, blinking banners, perhaps even videos and audio clips. These websites might be good for the ego (which isn’t always a bad thing) but they don’t put money in your pocket. Websites like this might be great for consumers who want to learn about your products and services and shop for the best price. However unless you’re a library, providing free content isn’t helpful, at least for your bottom-line

We’ve all been on websites that

• All about ego—all about the company: We have this, we did that, we, we, we…We’re the best, or the first or have them most. Nobody cares what you have, said or did. If your visitor doesn’t see something that’s going to benefit them, they’ll be hitting for the back button, quickly.

• Brochure—a copy of the company’s brochure. Sure it has product and service information, photos, driving directions, and contact information. But it’s boring, it’s just like millions of other websites, it doesn’t offer any chance for building a relationship with the reader. Why should they pick you over them?

• Buy Me!—Another website that only cares about selling something. There’s certainly no shortage of websites offering tons of products and services to buy. The problem is most of them don’t offer anything else. No useful information, no free trial, no coupons, nothing except the opportunity to separate the visitor from their hard-earned cash.

• Don’t Buy Me!—The exact opposite of the error just mentioned. Some websites make money from getting people to read them and by clicking on their ads. They may use all of the above techniques—coupons, free information, trail offers—however they aren’t really interested in the reader or in building a relationship with them. Local Businesses need to base their strategy on building trust and long-term relationships, not profiting on one-time sales or advertising revenue.

Just as in real-life, online relationships take time. The constant barrage of sales pitches and hype has disillusioned many web surfers. Most web users have become skeptical of anything promised on the web, if not down right cynical. They hold on tightly to their wallets. Until they get to know the company behind the website they won’t easily do business with you.

All of these mistakes are easily avoided. Most are common sense. But there is a more important lesion here: having a website is not the place to start!

Start Where the Money Is

Existing businesses already have customers that interact with them on a regular basis. It’s likely that you have many email addresses and already email customers on a regular basis. The starting place is to capitalize on these resources by using the Internet to get more business from them.

Another resource that you already have are the prospects who haven’t bought yet, as well as a marketing and prospecting system. If you’re in business or want to be you’ll certainly be using many ways - off-line ways of generating business. You are probably using some mix of:

• Media Advertising (Television, Radio, Newspapers)
• Direct Mail (letters, coupons, card decks)
• Telephone—cold calling
• Referrals
• In store walk ins (local traffic)

Few of the existing methods of getting the word out about your business actually build relationships with your customers. They are one shot efforts which try to push people into a business. In general they disappear after they’re done (like an ad, a walk-in or a cold call) and they cost a lot of money. The Web, however, exists forever and becomes a resource that customers come to rely on to make purchase decisions and interact with a business.

The other problem is loosing leads. What happens to a lead once a business gets it? How many people walk into the store and don’t buy something? How many people call, attend a trade-show, or return a mail piece and aren’t followed up with? Most businesses don’t have a method to keep in touch with prospects through the customer’s buying cycle. In other words if they don’t buy immediately they’re gone, lost forever. Customers aren’t concerned about your selling cycle - they have their own buying process. When they’re ready to buy, and they will be, whoever is at the top of their mind is who they’re going to buy from. The only question is will that person or company be you?

The Strategy

Based on what we’ve just learned avoiding losing money on the Internet comes down to a couple of key principles.

• Get more business from existing customers, increasing the “share of wallet” and the lifetime value of each customer your business receives.
• Keep in touch with people so that when they’re ready to buy they buy from you
• Nurture leads into sales by keeping the prospect’s interest and attention until they are ready to buy

The tactics are equally as simple

• Create a communication campaign through an automated email system, called a serial autoresponder to existing prospects and customers
• Create a website full of content, articles, ideas, and value for people looking for the kind of products and services a business offers
• Grow your email campaign by getting more email addresses from your website visitors.

Those tactics are ordered in the proper sequence. The place to start is with an email campaign to existing customers. It costs less to keep an existing customer than creating a new one. Existing customers are already familiar with your business and just as important they have already demonstrated a willingness to spend money with you.

Future articles will cover email campaigns, autoresponders and other techniques for mining the goldmine that already exists in your business. However before the computer gets turned on there are some important preparations that need to be done. Don’t worry; anyone who’s started a business has already done the kind of preparation needed to go on the web. The thinking you’ve used to start and run a business can be applied to the web. There are only a few things that need to be done:

• Think Web
• Make some goals and have some measurements
• Gather your existing resources
• Act

Think Web

Offline and online activities are not mutually exclusive. Almost everything done offline can be done online, at least from a prospecting and customer support perspective. Creating an ad, a TV spot, or a direct mail piece whose components can also be used on the Internet not only saves money but increases their effectiveness by distributing them through another channel.

From now on whatever is done offline should be used online as well. Examine every marketing decision by how it will impact online efforts - and costs. If, for example, a Direct Mail piece is going to be sent out consider how the materials can also be used on the web. ‘Thinking Web’ means reevaluating what is currently being done and asking

• Would this be more effective on the web?
• Would costs be lowered doing this on the web?
• How can this activity be done offline and on the web?
• What would it take to do this on the web?

Please understand - this is no small thing. Thinking web is a mind-set, part of the new Strategic Plan for a business. Asking those four simple questions will save time and money, while at the same time producing better results. Often offline activities marry perfectly to online tactics, such as direct mail techniques. Thinking in terms of leveraging money and activities across as many mediums as possible with have exponential results.

Make some goals and have some measurements

I know we’ve heard about goals so much we’re sick of the subject. However, without goals the likelihood is that a business won’t be successful online. Either unrealistic goals will be set - such as becoming a millionaire overnight - or they’re won’t be any goals, which means no way of measuring success (or the lack of it). The starting place of goal setting is to determine where the business is currently. Establishing the business’ starting point and then deciding where it should go is critical to success for any business, whether it operates offline or online.

The other necessary component of goals - as well as managing a business - is having some measurements about the business. Establishing benchmarks about the processes and results a business is achieving will be important in determining the impact of expanding the business online. If it can’t be measured it can’t be managed. Generally, if it isn’t managed it is either loosing money or unnecessary. Take some time and noodle these things out.

• How many customers are there in a month?
• How many are new customers and how many are repeat buyers?
• How many customers are gained and lost each month?
• How much is spent on advertising and marketing the business now?
• What is the current store traffic?
• How many calls or leads are acquired monthly?
• Where does new business come from—referrals, Direct Mail leads, etc?
• What is the amount of your average sale? Segment this by product or services for better understanding of the profit centers. Categorize the other information, such as which current lead sources produce the most.
• What is the average number of purchases a customer makes? Do they buy once do they come back and buy more?

Now not all of this information may be known. However, start with what you have and build from there. With this information whatever is done online can be evaluated as to whether it is or isn’t producing the desired results.

Gather Your Existing Resources

A key element to jump starting the Internet process is to use what already exists. Leverage existing prospects, customers, leads, media, and materials will save tons of money and jump start going on the Internet. Why create the wheel? Use existing

• Brochures
• Advertising and print materials
• Contact lists
• Testimonials
• Existing articles and Press Releases

Any third party sources that may have published something about the business (newspapers, company newsletters, mailings, even e-mails that have been sent.Sales literature, including items that salespeople have created on their own - including interesting emails that may have answered objections or warmed up a cold call.Service documentation.Literature from venders, such as product literature and service manuals.Frequently asked questions and the responses to them

I give you that long list (and there are many more not listed) not to overwhelm you but to point out that most businesses have a wealth of information already created and ready to be used on the web. This is an untapped source of information wealth that can be used over and over again in email campaigns, websites, directories, and other online mediums.

Act and Act Now: The Most Important Element of Success

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“All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work.” Calvin Coolidge

There may be no single more important part of success than acting and acting immediately. A decision isn’t a decision until it has been acted upon. Do something while you have the enthusiasm for it. We tend to loose interest quickly and need to see results in order to stay motivated. Growing your business using the Internet takes action and is a process that happens over time. Existing information must be gathered, emails created, networking with other websites and creating your own website. There is a lot to learn and do. However, taking action now and doing at least one thing a day will propel you forward, so much so that when its done you may wonder how you ever did it.

You’re not alone here. I’ve done every step and sorted through all this information for you. The complication and programming that others have had to work through I’ve either eliminated or simplified for you. Remember you eat an elephant one slice at a time. Just take each step day by day and soon business will be finding you instead of you having to continually search for it.

“As you begin to take action toward the fulfillment of your goals and dreams, you must realize that not every action will be perfect. Not every action will produce the desired result. Not every action will work. Making mistakes, getting it almost right, and experimenting to see what happens are all part of the process of eventually getting it right.” Jack Canfield

Don’t let perfectionism and fear of failure sabotage your efforts. Getting your marketing on the web started quickly is much more important than getting it done perfectly. Just do it now. Start by moving onto the next chapter: here we take action and get online. Part 3 - Email and Autoresponder Basics