A great article by Joe Balestrino on what you need to think about when building your website:
New Virus – update your Software!
You’ve heard it on the news. Seen it on the web. But what is it really all about? Is it that dangerous? Check out PC Magazine’s articles on the new Blackworm virus and learn what you’re dealing with.
Now, go make sure your anti-virus software is up-to-date!
Website Traffic: Build It and They May Come Back
Keep the Content Coming!
Your website is finally built. It’s professionally designed, has compelling content, and it has vast amounts of helpful information about your products or services. But, and this is an important but…is your website working for you?
Your offline tools and advertisements may get your customers and prospects to go to your website home page once. But you want them to return many times. Here are some things to improve your website’s sales power:
1. Update Your Portfolio: If you have a portfolio of your work (photographers, architects, landscapers, designers, writers, etc.), keep your “latest and greatest” work current. Send an enthusiastic e-mail to your customers to let them know it’s been updated.
2. Write Articles: You are an expert in your field. Customers are hungry for the information only you can provide. Give them helpful advice and tips. On your homepage, let website visitors know about this section.
3. Add a Discussion Forum: Your website designer can help you add a discussion forum. This allows visitors to communicate with each other, and your staff can provide helpful answers.
4. Create a “Links” Page: Customers like being able to find out more information regarding their purchasing decisions. With a links page, you can map the way for them to visit other related websites.
5. Publish an Ezine: Publishing an ezine will help position your business as an expert in your field. In addition, you will be providing tips to your customers that will help them. It sets you apart from your competitors and instills confidence and trust in your readers, making it easier for them to do business with you. Archive your articles on your website on an ongoing basis to refresh your content for business.
6. Ask Your Site Visitors: Is there something in your business you are considering? Do you want some feedback on a service? Why not ask for your customers’ opinion? You can post an online opinion poll and down the road, post customers’ responses.
7. Start a Blog: If you are committed to posting regularly, a blog can be a great way to build relationships with your customers and leads. You can give them advice about services or products, you can offer them helpful advices, and you can give business updates. Best of all, a blog is easy to set up and update!
ACTION ITEM: This week, look at your website. Would a visitor want to come back? If not, write down several things you can add to your site that will entice people to return. Take the necessary steps to get it in place. Then, update your site!
Copyright 2005 Kinesis, Inc.
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Wendy Maynard, your friendly marketing maven writes Kinetic Ideas: A Marketing Blog at http://www.wendy.kinesisinc.com.
Sign up for Kinesis Quickies at http://www.news.kinesisinc.com: This twice-a-month ezine features free marketing tips and secrets for business owners and entrepreneurs.
Are you still not backing up your data?
I know it all too well. About a year ago, I accidentally downloaded something that brought massive amounts of spyware to my computer. Though I tried for weeks to clean it up and get rid of the annoyances, it became clear that nothing short of re-formatting the hard drive would get rid of the pests. I dutifully backed up everything I thought to be important to CD, then started the frightening task of a clean start. Only one problem. Somehow a directory or two missed getting backed up. A folder of minutes from my church meetings was annoying, but probably re-creatable. The Quicken file however, was costly and time-consuming to re-create (and had to be done before I could file taxes).
Since then, I’ve purchased an external hard drive where I dutifully back up all those important files and folders just in case something happens in the future. Plus, it’s been great to take infrequently used files off my hard drive and store them on my backup drive. Once the first full backup is complete, incremental backups take only a few minutes of my week while providing a great peace of mind.
Is Your City Wi-Fi Friendly?
Wi-Fi is fast becoming the way to go when accessing the internet away from home. How does your city stack up?
Is your business disaster-ready?
The hurricanes this fall have brought it to our mind, but a hurricane isn’t the only event that might qualify as a disaster for your business. Earthquakes, floods, tornados and other natural disasters (and don’t forget fires) can occur anytime, anywhere. Be prepared! Microsoft’s Small Business Center has a list of .great ideas for making sure your business is prepared in case disaster strikes. Prepare today, before disaster strikes!