When speaking with many business owners who are contemplating a web presence for their company, I find that in many of them usually have unrealistic expectations as to what a website can do for them and a shaky understanding of how much web development actually costs. In a lot of cases they would site over-hyped articles in trade magazines and whiz-bang sales pitches from slick marketing firms as the foundation to their beliefs. Unfortunately, many of these articles and tactics from marketing firms reinforce the idea that a website is easy, maintenance-free, inexpensive and is the magic pill the will cure what ails your business.

As with anything in life, a truly exceptional website takes a lot of investment in both time and money. Taking advantage of the latest technology and designing your site with the future in mind will add great value to your site. Yet unrealistic expectations still persist among business people who are new to web services. In order to avoid web services sticker shock and the paralysis that goes along with technology unawareness, it best to educate yourselves on the common fallacies that exist with web services.

Common fallacies of web services

SEO strategies are equivalent to sales prospecting — As simple as this sounds, for many business people it is not an obvious statement. Many hold the view that seach engine optimization is the most critical component to sales prospecting and the only reason to have a web presence — this is simply not true. In order for any SEO strategy to work successfully, you need a website that has a wealth of content that is valuable to your customers as well as a business strategy that is sensitive to your customers needs. SEO strategies should not be looked at as a sales prospecting vehicle; they simply don’t work that way.

SEO strategies as a replacement to good content — It is a mistake to look at any SEO strategy as a shortcut to having a robust web presence with compelling content. Any SEO strategy alone, will not keep users coming back to your site. There is simply no replacement to having a website that is designed in a usable way and is a valuable service to your users.

Customized leading-edge web development available as “turn-key” at entry level prices — The ongoing advancement of the latest breed of web technologies allow people to deliver content and services in more dynamic and effective ways. Some consultants market these new technologies as turn-key solutions and entry level prices. However, the practical application of these technologies are much different than the pledges of these marketers. In addition, web hosting costs for a richly developed website with a lot of content using the latest technologies simply can’t be had at “entry-level” pricing.

Using a website strictly for marketing or sales prospecting — One of the biggest mistakes you can make in devising a strategy for your web presence is to view your new site strictly as a vehicle for sales prospecting. This single focus really does not work and will alienate a great many visitors to your site. Your website should service the needs of both new and existing clients. A website that is designed with the customer in mind, gives a value-add to your users and creates a comfort-level for doing business with you.

Latest generation web technologies generate sales leads and increased traffic — The latest technologies by themselves don’t generate sales leads or increase traffic. Although new technology allows you more freedom to present your content in new and dynamic ways; it is no replacement for working hard and exercising diligence in your business.

In conclusion

In this day in age, it may seem common to buy into marketing hype of an easier way of doing things as a magic pill for your business. In these uncertain waters, your best course of action is to become educated regarding the available technologies for your business. And when dealing with a consultant, hire someone that has a balance of both technical and business experience. Someone who will tell you the whole story, not just what you want to hear.

The best and most compelling web strategies on the Internet were not developed with minimal effort and were not a turn-key endeavor. Compelling websites are usually in continual development and are very responsive and dynamic to your client’s needs. Developing and maintaining such as site takes a significant amount of time and resources, however, it pays great dividends in improved customer communication, loyalty and satisfaction.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 at 10:52 pm and is filed under Technology Solutions.You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.