Music has been placed on this page for the purpose of demonstration only. Normally music is only placed on "personal" sites although from time to time I have seen "business" pages that have it.
Small Businesses can build and promote their Web Site without going broke!
The following article was excerpted from Chapter 14 of
Business Know-How: An Operational Guide for Home-Based And Micro-Sized Businesses On Limited Budgets by Janet Attard, Adams Media / October 1999, Copyright 2000, Janet Attard, All rights reserved.
Many small businesses are reluctant to establish their own web site because of what they have heard about the high cost of creating and running a web site. Unfortunately there is some truth in what they've heard. Many small businesses have spent more money on the web than they will ever make or save by having a web site. But the good news is that doesn't have to happen. You can profit from the web if you plan carefully and use your ingenuity.
Decide what the purpose of your web site will be.
If you go to business meetings or look in the local papers, you will find numerous service providers who offer web site design, hosting and marketing services. Among them are advertising agencies and marketing firms, desktop publishers, office support services, commercial artists, computer programmers, computer consulting firms, and companies that also sell web site hosting and Internet connectivity services.
Some of them will have experience setting up huge corporate sites, some will have limited experience building web sites, and some may be people claiming to be Internet consultants or web site developers because they have just purchased a Web page creation program and assume that owning the program gives them the expertise to design web sites.
Many will try to convince you to buy their services now, whether or not you know anything about the web - or about them. Don't be pressured by their solicitations. Don't sign any agreements to buy web site space or to have a web site created until you have a clear vision of what you want the web site to accomplish.
Every decision you make about your web site should be focused on what you want to achieve by having a web site. Do you want to use the web site primarily as a capabilities statement or online version of your press kit or promotional materials? Will you be selling products to consumers directly from your web site? Or, will your primary purpose be communicating with customers, employees or suppliers?
To avoid spinning your wheels or spending money on services you don't need, make a list of all the capabilities you need and put them in priority order.
Determine your needs.
To save time, money (and possibly your sanity), plan out the web site carefully before you sign any contracts or spend any money on developing it. You can determine what capabilities you'll need and gather the information you need to get accurate pricing estimates by answering these questions:
• Who do you want to use the web site?
• How many people do you expect to use the site?
• How will you let them know about the site (how will you market it)?
• How often will you have to update the web site?
• Who will do the updates?
• What will it cost to host the site (or for your own server and Internet connection)?
• What will it cost to design the web site?
• What it will cost to market the web site?
• What will it cost to update the site?
• How many sales or leads will you need to break even on costs?
• What sale volume do you want to attain?
Use the answers to these questions to determine what it will cost you to build the site and maintain it. Then compare your costs to the results you hope to achieve and determine if the cost will justify the results.
If the results will justify the cost, set specific goals and timelines for achieving the goals and start the project. At each step along the way, compare your progress to your needs to keep it on target.
If the results won't justify the costs, look for ways to cut expenses or increase revenues. Or, don't build the site at all. You can reap many of the benefits of the Internet without having your own domain name and web site.
Don't purchase your own Internet server!
You don't have to have your own Internet servers (computer dedicated for serving pages to the Internet) and Internet access lines to put your business on the web. The most cost effective way for most small businesses to launch and maintain a web site is to rent server space from a web hosting company.
Similarly, if you don't have the time, skill and interest to do a good job of designing a Web site, farm out the chore to a reputable contractor or web design company. The reason is simple: the time you would have to invest to learn to create web pages could be put to better use selling your products and services and running your own business.
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