Getting on(line) in business
One of the more obvious parts of my setting up a new business checklist has been to setup an online presence. By that I don’t mean getting a Hotmail account and a free webspace, putting them on my stationery and handing them out to everyone. Instead, I’m referring to what I have seen some online writers refer to as “the package”, including:
- Domain name
- Web hosting
- Website software
- Email storage
- VOIP telephone numbers
- Traffic monitoring
- Associates links
- FeedBurner (RSS)
It might seem like a strange task list, but this was done partly to avoid the mish-mash of confusing contact details we’ve all seen on brochures and trades vans, where you have something like:
Bill’s Plumbing Services
http://userpages.freewebhosting.com/~billsplumbing/index.htm
[nohide]billsplumbing@hotmail.com[/nohide]
While there’s not necessarily anything wrong with free or low-cost email and web providers — in fact, when effectively used, they can provide excellent service for next to no capital outlay — but using them as shown above is comparable to having a local carpenter and joiner create custom fitted shelving for you, then not painting or decorating it once completed.
Regardless of whether the fictitious company above spent a fortune on professional web design, anyone who has corporate awareness or more than a passing familiarity with the Internet will know that both of these addresses could have been given a sleek, unified appearance for under £10 a year:
Bill’s Plumbing Services
www.billsplumbingservices.com
[nohide]info@billsplumbingservices.com[/nohide]
Whether the company uses a free web hosting facility and free email storage is immaterial, providing that it’s possible to conceal that fact from customers. Next to the online presence faux pas described above, is showing the real website location once the customer has browsed to it, or replying “From” the free email address. Nearly all domain name providers and free email providers allow you to conceal these facts. It’s not about tricking the customer, but rather about presenting a streamlined professional experience for the customer.
This is part one of a series of articles discussing setting up an online presence. Part 2 will discuss web hosting…
