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Leveraging your business online is not
as simple as point-and-click, but neither is it hopelessly
complicated, regardless of your level of technological
expertise.
The Internet has come a long way since
any old web page would do. Yet those early days have
left their mark in
the mistakes you need to avoid, the ones that mark you
as a rookie in the e-business world. Here's the list
of how not to take your business online:
- Don't assume you can build it and they
will come.
- Don't assume you can build it once and be done
with it.
- Don't build a beautiful Web site that offers no
value to your customers.
- Don't build a beautiful Web site that is confusing
and hard to use - or an ugly one, either.
- Don't hand your Web site over to the local
computer whiz and forget it.
Knowing what not to do is less than half the battle.
The rest is knowing what to do right. Just like any other
business, creating a winning e-business requires a plan.
And creating a winning e-business plan requires thinking
through your strategy before you construct a single web
page. Here are ten keys to getting your Web site right:
1. Craft an e-business strategy
Developing a Web site takes time, money, and management
attention.
- Decide on the key business
objectives for your Internet initiatives. What should
your move online accomplish?
- Capturing your customers' attention is key. The
Internet has shifted the balance of power to the hands
of
consumers. Your customers can evaluate your offerings
as well as
your competitors' with just a few clicks of the
mouse. What will keep them at your Web site?
- Focus on the unique value you can bring to your
customers. Think about how you can make it easier
and more convenient
for them to do business with you. Provide lots
of opportunity for them to interact with people
in your company.
- Remember to track and measure results. It's the
only way to know what really works.
2. Analyze your potential customers
Compared with other advertising and marketing programs,
the Internet can be your best investment in finding
and acquiring customers. Use it to shorten sales cycles
and start to generate revenue more quickly. The key
is to focus on your customers' buying process:
- What is the typical decision making process
that leads to a purchase?
- Who are the decision makers, and who influences
them?
- What are the most important criteria for customers
to evaluate and select businesses to work
with?
Help your potential customers get the information they
need about doing business with you so they can make that
choice with ease.
3. Serve and nurture existing customers
It's often cheaper to provide good service to keep customers
than it is to attract new ones. Use the Internet to
connect with your customers, encourage them to do more
business with you, build customer loyalty, and reduce
customer servicing costs. The key is to focus on enhancing
value to your customers:
- Will they be happier
customers if they have a better understanding of your
products and services?
- How important is it for your customers to request
and receive technical support?
- Who are other vendors
who can help your customers get more value out of
your products?
Help your customers feel connected to resources important
to them.
4. Serve and nurture partners and your referral community
Who are the partners you work with in your supply chains
and distribution channels? Who refers your best customers
to you? Focus on what will make it easier for them
to work with you and refer customers to you.
5. Enhance organizational effectiveness
T
here
are many ways your business can use the Internet to streamline
business processes:
- Will it be a benefit to your customers
if they can make purchases online, find out online
the status of their
orders, or obtain information about their projects?
- Will it add value if your staff can access and share
documents and information online, particularly
for
those individuals who are on the road?
The Internet offers many opportunities to make communications
easier, faster, and cheaper.
6. Recruit the Team
There are several key players you need to assemble:
- Every successful project has champions
who are dedicated and passionate about making your
Internet program a
lasting success.
- A good project manager will help to keep the focus
on your key objectives, and ensure successful
implementation.
- The voices of your customers and partners, who are
the ultimate users of your Web site, need to
be represented loudly and clearly.
- You may need a technology advocate who can help
ease the fear some people may feel about
transitioning to
a different way of doing things, and provide
technical leadership.
A good e-business implementation team will help make
your vision a reality. You may find some or all of these
people within the company, or you may need to partner
with other people who have the knowledge and expertise
to help you.
7. Hash out the details
Once you've analyzed your objectives for your Web site
and put together your e-business team, it's time to
draw up a practical plan. Now it will pay off to have
a team with a good understanding of your business objectives,
with knowledge and experience in leveraging Internet
technologies, and with the ability to stay focused
on your key objectives. Your plan will include determining
the best approach to your Web site, the site's functionalities
and interactivities, the key content areas, the communications
methods, the technologies and tools to be used, access,
hosting, technical support, and ongoing management.
8. Communicate
You've reached the launch milestone - help your customers
and partners embrace it!
- Let your customers and friends know how
they can benefit by using your Web site and the Internet
tools you have
offered. Encourage them to spread the word.
- Do
you have regularly-released information that your
customers should know about? Offer them the opportunity
to opt-in to receive e-mail updates
- How do your potential customers find you? Make
sure messages about your Web site are integrated
with your
advertising
and marketing programs.
- Partner with Web sites that your target audience
frequents and are good referral sources to
link with your Web
site.
- If search engines are an important part of
your online marketing, check to see that
your Web
site is search
engine ready.
9. Make sure someone is minding the store
Build it, and keep it up! Your Web site demonstrates
to people who do business with you how well you manage
your resources and how serious you are in nurturing
relationships with your customers and partners. Develop
an operations plan and allocate the needed resources
so inquiries are answered promptly, content is kept
up-to-date, orders are fulfilled as promised, and glitches
are resolved in a timely fashion.
10. Monitor performance
How well is your Web site doing? Has the site been an
excellent referral source? Have your customers received
better service, become more knowledgeable about your
products, and become better customers because of what
you have offered them online? How do you know? There
are many criteria for measuring how well your money
has been spent, including tracking site visits, call
to action conversion rates, increase in online and
offline sales, customer and partner satisfaction, and
business operations improvements. What's more, when
you keep track of how well your Web site works, you'll
also know which parts of it you need to improve.
In the end, your successful Web site will be as easy
as point-and-click - for your customers. And because
it will be easy to use and full of the information they
want, they will come and come back again.
The key to a successful Web site
is the thought and planning that precedes it and the
execution that transforms
that plan into reality. If you set objectives and plan
your Web site to accomplish them…If you focus on
the benefits your Web site can provide your customers…If
you concentrate on how to make your business better by
using the Internet…If you measure the results and
act on what the measurements tell you…If you build
it, and continue to build it…they will not only
come, they will stay.
And your winning e-business plan will have built a winning
business.
Copyright Eva Chiu and InfoAdvantage.
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