The Best Tool for Small Business in a Down Market

I’m about to tell you about the best tool for small businesses to succeed in today’s incredibly competitive market.  It’s a tool that will save you thousands of dollars and likely bring in thousands of dollars in new business.  This tool is likely the greatest “invention” of all time.

How will this tool save you thousands?  Let’s see … firstly, its a sales tool that works tirelessly … 24/7/365 .  It works without need for commissions, health plans, or workman’s comp.  You only need to “feed” it once a week – every day or two if you want to really help this tool work for you.

How will it bring in new business?  Well, by working for you  and promoting your business 24/7/365, that’s how.  This tool can present you in the very best light, showing people – your potential customers – how you are better than the competition, how your have the best product/service/price … it accepts orders, questions, emails and calls … all without a single complaint.

And yet, I find that most small businesses are not using this tool .. and they are certainly not making the best use of it .. and in a tough market like we are in today you simply have to make the maximum use of EVERY tool at your disposal.

Which tool am I talking about?

I’ll tell you in a second; but first, a question: Are you TRULY committed to using everything at your disposal to keep your business growing in a down market?  Are you COMMITTED to surpassing your competitors?  Do you want to do more than just survive the economic crunch?

Okay.  I will let you in on the MOST VALUABLE TOOL FOR GROWTH that you will EVER utilize … it’s the INTERNET.  More specifically, it’s your WEBSITE.

How do I know this?  I have been designing, programming, promoting websites for clients for over nine years.  I’m not some newly-diploma’d graphic designer fresh out of the Art Insttitue of Portland with NO experience in programming, nor am I some geek programmer who doesn’t know the answer to “What is Photoshop?”  And, with a 20-year background in the music industry marketing musicians from Jon Bon Jovi to Joan Baez, and working for MCA/Universal to Vanguard Records I KNOW how to promote your business via the internet.

Enough about me, let’s get back to what’s important … YOU and driving YOUR business toward success.  As a small business you MUST have a website.  Your website MUST be fully integrated with your corporate vision from logo to text EVERYTHING you do publicly MUST work together as a team.  Your website must be designed to TELL your visitors what they have to DO while they are there.

But that’s not enough.  I have a friend and SEO specialist whose favorite saying is “We no longer live in a ‘build it and they will come’ industry.”  With over 15 BILLION web pages out there you have to be certain your website can be found.  Thus, the search engine optimization industry was born!  An optimization helps your site get to the top page or two of search engine results pages ORGANICALLY.

Let me tell you that so many people tell me that DEX or YellowPages called them and said they can get them on the first page of Google search results.  Of course, it’ll cost them an arm and a leg because these results are PAID results .. not organic.  If you pay me enough, I can get you on page one of every search for your key terms tomorrow!  Of course, this is works only as long as you pay.  Organic results are far more important.

But that’s STILL not enough!  There’s a new game in town called Social Media Marketing.  Are you doing any social media marketing to promote your business? There’s FaceBook, MySpace, and Twitter … in fact, the list goes on.

In fact, I’ve barely scratched the surface of the depth and breadth of your BEST TOOL for business success.

Ask yourself these questions:

1. Does my business’s website enhance my company’s mission and vision?

2. Does my site re-enforce my brand with continuity of image and text?

3. Is my website on the first page or two of Google, MSN and Yahoo search engines when I search for my business’s key words?

4. Am I using my internet presence to its maximum potential?

5. Do I want to cower in the face of market challenge and let my competitors succeed?  Or do I want to succeed.

Then ask yourself “Do I have someone who can help me do all these things?”