Warning.  Slight rant below…

Is Your Business Web Friendly?

Is your small business prepared for the arrival of the virtual marketplace?  For years I’ve been telling all who would listen how strategic use of the web is a critical small business asset.  I’ve been met with many glazed eyes and blank stares from small business people who just don’t get it. 

Too bad – because the clock is ticking for the small business person who is web-illiterate and who still thinks about and uses a website as only an online brochure. 

It’s going to be a rough road ahead for small businesses not actively seeking to build online assets and who lack a basic understanding of how business works on the web.

On the flip side, proactive small business owners who see the Internet as an opportunity for a business building investment will be rewarded with an exceptional rate of return on time, money and resources. 

Are you actively educating, positioning and preparing yourself and business to profit from the power of the Internet?  Where do you stand?

Quick Audit
Answering yes to the questions below indicates you are positioning yourself to build online assets that will serve you and your business well in the years ahead:

1. You have a dedicated domain name for your website and e-mail (www.yourbusiness.comyourbusiness.com) skills.
2. You have a strategic plan for your website that ends with tangible results.  These results are based on visitors taking specific actions like calling, e-mailing, registering and downloading information from you.
3. You see  analytics information at least weekly, that tracks how many people visited your site, what they clicked on and how they found you.  You use this information to improve the strategic results of your website over time.
4. You understand the basics of Search Engine Optimization and have identified the keywords potential customers are likely to type into a search engine to find you.
5. You understand what a blog is and how it works for business (just as you understand the news media and PR).  You have left a comment on a blog.
6. You have a basic understanding of what RSS is and have used a feed reader before.  You know how it’s used to subscribe to and organize video, audio, blogs and other web content.
7. You have visited MySpace, YouTube, LinkedIn, Flickr and SecondLife to familiarize yourself with social networking, Web 2.0 and network effects that govern an emerging virtual marketplace.
8. You know what a Podcast is and have listened to one.
9. You know what a widget is.
10. You have given thought to how the web is changing the rules of your business and assessed how it complements your business strengths and exploits your weaknesses.  You are actively exploring the online opportunities and threats to your business.

The more questions you answered "no" to, the less prepared you are for the rapidly approaching future.  On the other hand – there has never been a better time to start increasing your online business knowledge and skills. 

Post from: BrightCite

A PlantscapePortal website gives you:

• Simplicity – We’ve taken the guesswork out of web development.  You don’t have to spend time and energy managing web developers or trying to understand their proposals.  We help you get up on the web fast and with ease. 

• Ownership – You have and own your company domain name so if you ever decide to take your site somewhere else it’s easy.  Your web address is www.YourDomainName.com  All you do is let us know the name you want and we’ll register and set it up for you.  It’s all included with the set-up fee.

• Brand Building - Help customers realize your value, differentiate yourself from competitors and establish the unique identity of your company.

• Local search Engine Optimization – Your PlantScapePortal site is locally search engine optimized so you attract qualified prospects in your area of service.  Plus our PortalReach™ technology helps you achieve higher search engine ranking for your strategic keywords.

• Professional Online Marketing – We market additional web properties designed to refer business back to plantscapers within the PlantScapePortal network.  Our online marketing pros are constantly adding and optimizing content, adding links and online promotions designed to increase the flow of qualified leads back to your company web property.

• Professional Copy Writing – Your online content is edited by BrightCite online marketing pros to help your company website generate qualified leads and convert them into paying customers.

• Ongoing Fresh Content – Your web site is also plugged into our compelling content generation program that automatically displays new prospect/customer relevant content on an ongoing basis.  This means your customers have a reason to come back to your site often and refer your content to others.

• Site Statistics – See who’s been visiting your site, what keywords they used to find it and how effective your page is at generating leads and converting customers.

• A Cost Effective Web Solution - Professional web development can cost thousands of dollars up front.  Our web lease program lets you have all of the above benefits at a flat monthly fee.   Plus we have multiple packages to suit any budget.

Now You Can Get Professional Web Services At A Fraction Of The Cost
With a PlantScapePortal website you get more for less.  Companies spend thousands on just  online marketing and ongoing search engine optimization services.   Think of your PlantScapePortal web site as a "marketing mutual fund".  You invest a small monthly fee and get the benefit of professional management.

PlantScapePortal Beta Program
For a limited time PlantScapePortal will be in premium beta release phase.  This means we’ll be testing our systems, working out kinks and adding new features over the next 3 months.  Plantscapers who set up accounts with us during this time will receive deep discounts, free functionality upgrades, personal support and additional functionality that won’t be available once our beta phase is over.

If you’re interested in the opportunity to build your company’s online assets, we invite you to apply for a beta account today.

Post from: BrightCite