Some information I just take for granted, until I realize that I’m making assumptions that simply shouldn’t be made. I saw a great article today at SantaCruzSentinel.com on whether or not your business needs a website.

You may think you don’t, especially if you plan on working out of your home. But unless you LOVE sales, or you have found that customers simply call and knock on your door constantly… you might want to rethink that issue. (And if you do have too many customers, can you please let US know how you pulled it off?! )

According to the article, “It is estimated that more than 53 percent of Americans regularly shop online, representing 6 percent of all retail sales”. But then add to that the tremendously higher percentage of individuals who do product and service research online - and then you might realize just how many people are out there to reach.

Think of it this way :: about 8 out of every 10 people you know search online for things they need.

Add to this another great article about Local Search for Smaller Marketers from ClickZ. These days, there are SO many opportunities to market your business online at a local level - for realtors, you can even market yourself within a small neighborhood as part of a zip code.

So for example, if you are considering home day care, think about buying Google Keywords for your zip code. If someone does a search on weather in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago, and then does a search for day care centers, your ad will appear and cost pennies for the person who clicks on your ad - and you will only pay for qualified leads.

So, I took it for granted that you already knew to put up a web site for your business - even if it’s just one page. But hopefully, if you didn’t know that, at least now you are seriously considering it!

Tags: Small Business Tips, Business Startup Tips, Web Sites, Websites,

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