Can an online presence make a successful business?
Creation Date : Jul 14, 2009 10:41 AM | Modification Date : Aug 28, 2009 12:06 PM
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: Mar 5, 2010 8:53 AM
byJeremy Miller
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Barry,
Remember, commerce works both ways you are looking for clients... and clients are actively looking for answers to their problem.( your product) The easier you make it for them to find you, the better off your company will be. With the web, audio, video and, well, some outstanding photography 
.... can really help you present your product to the public.
To update a famous quote:
I would rather have 10% from a 1,000 search engines marketing my product than have 100% of my own marketing efforts.
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Expert Answer
Barry:
What is your business? It would help to know a little bit about your business.
George Meszaros
George is the CEO of Webene, a leading web presence solutions provider and new media marketing firm. Webene specializes in web design, graphic design, e-commerce solutions, web application development, custom content management systems (CMS), Internet marketing, Pay Per Click management, Search Engine Optimization, email marketing, and web analytics. Author of Triumph On The Web ? Revolutionize Your Business With Simple Online Strategies. He earned an MBA with an emphasis on Technology Management and an M.S. in Computer Information Systems. He has been a Vistage member since 2005.
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Hi Barry,
An online presence is a must-have criteria for running a business today. Many people won't consider you a viable option unless they can go to a well-thought out website that clearly articulates what you do, your value proposition and what it is like to work for you.
I am a huge advocate of digital marketing. In my business, LEAPJob, we transitioned from a classic sales model to one that relied on online marketing. Through the 90's and early 2000's we grew our business through networking, advertising and cold calling. When times were slow, like they are today, we did a lot of cold calling. By 2004 we recognized this model was broken. We were making over 1,000 calls to find one customer. This ratio was terrible! We recognized there had to be a better way.
We took conscientious steps to never make a cold call again. The web provided the most obvious place to replace these prospecting activities. We rebranded our company from Miller & Associates to LEAPJob for a better web domain and presence. We then moved forward with online branding, search engine optimization and content marketing to build our online presence.
The efforts more than paid for themsleves. We haven't made a cold call since 2005, and we now generate at least one new customer per week from Google. We have a 90% close ratio on our web leads. Even though we are in a tough economy, our business is still growing and achieving its sales targets. I credit this to our online presence. If we were still using the sales model from the 90's we would be out of business today.
Barry, take the time to build your brand online. It will more than pay for itself.
Jeremy Miller
Jeremy Miller
Jeremy Miller is a partner at LEAPJob, he also writes and speaks on how companies can build brands that sell themselves online. He is a regular contributor to a variety of publications including Selling Power, Contact Magazine and the Globe and Mail. He is frequently interviewed on television about the latest marketing and hiring trends.
You can also keep up with Jeremy from his twitter account.
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