10 Ways to Get Your Lazy Website to Work
Did you know that the average person in the USA spends over 36 hours per
month on the internet? That's more than 9 hours per week, and almost 1 1/2
hours per day. And that's nothing; the average business person spends more
than 30 hours per week online.
Here's another statistic-there are now over 125,626,329 websites (as of July
2007)
With the amount of time people spend online, having a web site is critical
to your small business. But you can't just "have a website". With over 125
million sites, the web is huge and growing explosively.
Is your website keeping up? Or is it just sitting there waiting to be
obsolete?
Having an interactive website will help you build a community, draw people
to your website, and give you a valuable resource for your small business.
It can also help your business stand above the competition.
Here's a quick list of some ways to make your website more interactive and
more useful for your small business.
* Start a Blog (with comments)
Blogs are a great way to give customers some free information, keep them up
to date on your company, and get good feedback.
* Sell your products/services online
There is nothing more useful than selling your products/services through
your website. Your customers and your bank account will thank you.
* Run a contest in return for participation
Free stuff? Did somebody say free stuff? One of the best ways to increase
website participation is to run a contest and give something away. More
participation means more business.
* Create an email newsletter or RSS Feed
This can easily go hand-in-hand with the blog. Keeping people interested and
up to date will boost your traffic and build your small business.
* Put up a calendar of events
If you're running a workshop somewhere or giving a presentation, this could
help generate awareness and bring in participants.
* Give specials and coupons to website visitors
People like to save money. If you give them some savings in return for
visitng your website, it's very likely they will check it out.
* Start a MySpace or Facebook or LinkedIn account and link it to your
website
Social networking sites have become so popular that they can literally
transform your business. It can't hurt to check them out.
* Put a button so they can contact you on AIM, Skype, or any other
message service
Interactivity is key. People like to talk and they like it to be easy.
Giving them a button that connects directly to you could increase your sales
significantly.
* Put out surveys or polls to get feedback from your customers
Customer surveys are a win for everyone. They get to help you build
something they like more. And then they'll buy more of it.
* Open discussion forums related to your business
Create a place for people to interact, learn, and voice their opinions.
Building a community around your small business is one of the best ways to
ensure success.
* Provide something interactive and useful, and your customers will
keep coming back
The general idea is: provide something interactive and provide something
your customers can use. If you do that, your website (and very likely your
company) will be a huge success.
These ideas are just the starting point.
source:
www.smallfuel.com/blog/entry/10-ways-to-get-your-lazy-website-to-work
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