What a website can do for your business 
The benefits
For a business the main purpose of a website is to provide increased revenue, through additional income and/or improved efficiency. A website can help to achieve this through several means. Depending on the type of business you own, some methods are more relevant than others.One way is simply to use the website to advertise the business. The income will come through the traditional offline methods, but the customers will approach your business after finding it on the web, as opposed to traditional means such as advertising in brochures, the press, yellow pages etc. . One good method is to combine both offline and online advertising. This can be achieved for example by having a traditional advert in the press, but including your website address. Customers are then able to find out more detailed information about your company by visiting your website.
Another way to provide additional income is to conduct some or all of your business over the internet. This can be as simple as providing limited customer sales enquiries through email, right through to having a full online shop taking credit card payments. Some of the benefits of trading online include the ability to sell directly to customers (rather than through distributors as you may normally have to do) and also the fact that your website will be available 24hours a day, every day, so purchases can be made at any time. Other benefits include the fact that you can sell to a worldwide audience and also that the location of your business premises is not so important.
A website can also be used to enhance your relationship with existing customers and to cut support costs. This can be achieved by providing up to date information on new products/services and also through providing online support for existing products/services. The online support varies depending on your type of business, buy may include: Detailed instructions, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and updated versions of products. Providing online support reduces costs since many customers would be able to find the answer without even contacting you and those which do, could do it through means such as email, which would mean less telephone staff would be needed.
If your company employs staff who are out of the office regularly or are based a long distance apart, your website can be used for collaboration purposes. It is possible to use online project management, accounting and sales systems so that all staff can be kept up to date at all times and that management can track what everyone is doing. This results in company being able to save costs through reduced travel and accommodation expenses. It also permits the possibility of employees working from home.
Specific Examples
We will now look at some examples of how a website can help specific types of businesses.Imagine you opened a new restaurant in the heart of Suffolk. The restaurant was located away from any major town, village and not on a main road. The customers you do attract were very pleased with your service and quality of food, but you find it difficult to attract more. A website could be an ideal solution. Your website could include details of your restaurant, including directions on how to find it. It could also include your menu online. This could be easily updated daily/weekly by you, so your customers could view it. The website could also include news about the restaurant and details of any special events or promotions. By registering your site on various search engines and directories, it would be possible to get people to visit it and ultimately go to the restaurant for a meal. If required, it would be possible to add other features such as online table reservations.
Another situation could be if you owned an independent estate agent. Since you are independent it is not viable to use major property websites such as Rightmove. You will find that actually by having your own website rather than using ones such as Rightmove, can be a significant advantage. By having your own website you are able to market the image of your company a lot better. You also have ultimate flexibility in how you site will look and feel. One method of managing the property details is to have a secure admin part of the website where you update the property details through a standard web-browser. This can be advantageous since you can do this whenever you want - in the office, at home or when you're on the move. Another method of maintaining the property details is to interface to the property management software your are currently using. This of course depends on which software you use, but in many situations it is possible.
A further example could be if you were an antique dealer, who owned a small shop in a picturesque village. You attract a reasonable passing trade from people visiting the village and also have some regular customers too. If you had a website you would be able to attract customers from a much greater distance. Your website could give details about the company, directions on how to find you and also full details of your current products. You could also attract additional visitors by including details and photos of the picturesque village you are based in. The product details could easily be updated via a secure admin section on the website. It would be possible to list your antiques sites such as ebay and to have a link to your website where customers could obtain full details on the products. By listing your website in relevant directories and search engines you would be able to attract further visitors to your site and your shop.
What should I do now?
If you require a website to be created or your existing one to be updated, ropernet
IT are pleased to be able to offer you assistance. We are able to offer you a no
obligation quotation or alternatively
feel free to contact us to discuss any
questions you may have.
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About the author
Mark Roper is the proprietor of ropernet IT. ropernet IT supply web design, site hosting and domain registration services. For full information please visit www.ropernetit.co.ukThis article is copyright ropernet IT 2004. If you wish to reproduce or publish this article in any form, please contact us.