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WebWhacked_Three_Ways_to_Avoid_Being_Overwhelmed_by_the_Internet
| WebWhacked? Three Ways to Avoid Being Overwhelmed by the Internet
There’s no reason to feel intimidated by the Web. There is so
much hype surrounding this new medium that it’s easy to believe
that you’re falling behind. It’s just not true… yet.
The truth is: · You’re not that far behind · You’ve already got
what it takes · You can’t do any worse than you’re doing right
now.
Here are three ways you can avoid getting paralyzed into
inactivity by the hype:
1. The Web is not all Interactive and E-Commerce Web Sites
There are lots of sites — some people call it brochure-ware –
that give a company a Web presence for very little money. These
sites are easy and inexpensive to put up and can attract lots of
business for your company.
The truth is: only 20% of all Web sites currently offer
real-time transactions. And that number’s only slated to reach
33% by the end of 2000. You keep hearing about e-commerce only
because the media keeps focusing on and hyping e-commerce sites.
So don’t let “e-commerce” throw you. If you find out you need
e-commerce technology — because you plan to sell in real-time on
your site —there are a number of Web hosts out there that, for a
fee, will allow you to perform real-time transactions (providing
you qualify with a bank for a merchant account). Bigstep
(http://www.bigstep.com/), Yahoo store
(http://store.yahoo.com/), GoBizGo (formerly Sitematic)
(http://www.gobizgo.com/) are just three of them.
You’ve probably also heard a lot about the interactivity of the
Web. There are two things you should know. First, it’s all true.
The Web holds the promise of being the first truly interactive
mass medium. Secondly, nobody but the very well funded
Amazon-sized Web sites are even beginning to scratch the surface
of interactive technologies. Most of the technology behind the
interactive Web sites to-date has been around for years —
databases, chat, forums, e-mail.
There are millions of Web sites out there. Very few offer the
cutting edge e-commerce and interactive tools that the press
loves to write about. Don’t let these stories scare you —
there’s still plenty of room for you on the Web at whatever
price point you want to pay.
2. What You Already Know About Business Applies to the Web
It seems like everything about the Web is new, but it’s not.
Sure there are some fine points of technology to be learned, but
business is still business. What you know about promoting your
products or services offline applies to promoting your products
and services online. The same copy will find its way to the Web,
the same target marketing, the same accounting skills, and the
same product fulfillment practices.
Take the time to find an online community that speaks the same
language you do. You’re likely to find that getting on the Web
is the same as entering any new media. Think of it as if you’re
buying your first newspaper ad or radio spot:
· First find somebody else who’s already doing it · Call them up
and ask them how they’re doing it · Do it the same way they’re
doing it
Pad your budget for a few mistakes but, if you’ve been
successful in other media, there’s no reason to think the Web
will change your success record.
3. The Web Is Very Forgiving
There are few mistakes you can make on the Web that will really
hurt you. The only two that come to mind immediately will bite
you anywhere: bad planning and bad manners.
Bad planning can cost you time and money — time to redo what
should have been done right in the first place and money paid
for useless work. Like any media, the Web can eat up your budget
on pretty graphical treatments that — at the end of the day —
cost you money but do little to gain more business. Be careful
with your Web budget and shop around. Nobody really knows what
to charge, so you can find great talent for very little money.
Remember, nobody knows your customers the way you do, so don’t
let a Web designer blind-side you with a “That’s not how it
works on the Web” line. Your customers are still your customers,
and you know how they think about your product or service better
than anyone else.
Bad manners can get you spurned pretty quickly on the Web. If
found guilty of spamming — sending out e-mail to people who
haven’t specifically requested it — you can get blacklisted and
bad-mouthed across the whole Web. In some states you can get
sued. So make sure you follow the rules of netiquette
(http://www.workz.com /manage/CSEmailRes.asp/) (Internet
etiquette). It’s not too hard to find out what the rules are —
they’re posted all over the Web (use any search engine to find
them).
As long as you keep your head about you, there’s no reason you
should be wary of the Web. In fact there’s only one big mistake
you can make — missing the opportunity.
The Web has become a new marketing channel. It’s easy to learn
and easy to get started today. But that might not be the story
two, three, or four years down the road. So you might as well
get used to it now — get a site, start small, and see what
happens. Don’t listen to the hype — you haven’t missed the boat
— just do your homework, plan ahead, and keep your eyes open.
It’ll all work out.
About the author:
David Johnson is the founder, president and director of
workz.com. He is a lifelong entrepreneur, small-business expert,
and Internet pioneer. Frustrated by the lack of small-business
resources available to help him launch and promote his own Web
site he decided to create a trusted resource of objective how-to
information to help other small businesses.
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