Why do you need a Website?
Today the internet is used for shopping and browsing more than ever before. As a business owner you should have an internet presence to effectively compete in today's technical world/environment. Handheld devices have contributed to this growth in internet use allowing the consumer to shop and browse from anywhere and not just from their home or office computer.
A term like Cyber Monday (a marketing term that refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday) is a gimmick to increase online sales. It is hyped as being the busiest day of the year for retail electronic commerce in the United States. The term was created by the National Retail Federation and announced in 2005 conjunction with the deployment of their own website CyberMonday.com designed to serve as a portal for Cyber Monday deals and offers. In store shopping continues to out perform online shopping - the most taken in a single day online was $881 million on December 7, 2007, while Black Friday in 2007 took in $41 billion.
What can be lost by not having one?
My passion for IT remains strong after more than 35 years. I have watched the growth of the internet and have used it for shopping, browsing and research. All large businesses and companies have enjoyed an increase in sales as a result of their internet presence. Recently something happened to me, which opened my eyes to the need for every business to have a website. I have used the same plumber for well over 30 years. His storefront office was either down the block from my house or on the main boulevard a block away.
One day after learning I required a plumbing job, I walk over to his store only to discover he was no longer there. I was shocked, because as I said he has been my plumber for over 30 years. So I went home, logged onto the computer and performed a search for plumbers in my area. Well to my surprise my plumbers Website came up in the list. I called him, told him I needed some work done and he said he would send the guys around that morning. Then I asked him, what happened and why did he close the storefront office. He said he did not need it; it was overhead and he was operating just fine from his home.
My point being this, without that Website, which was just a very basic, static Website, he would have lost some local business that he has been getting for over 30 years.
