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Dynamic Business just revamped their website.  They posted the following question on in their forum:

“50% of SMEs don’t have a website. Are you one of them?”

Jen Bishop, editor, posted this:

“It’s a shocking figure but surveys by Optus and others have come up with similar results. Do you have a website? If you don’t, why not, and don’t you think you need one? Some people would say, in this day and age, if you don’t have a website, you don’t exist. What do you think?”

Of COURSE I just had to comment too – this is really close to my heart;

“I think the real figures are lower, people who have a static one page website consider this a website when really it is not when compared to websites of today.
I work with retailers and only 33% of them have a website and less have shopping carts!! Makes me cry…

We know that a website it vital to any business, your comment is spot on “you don’t exist” without one.  It is one of the credentials of a serious, up to date business.
It is bad enough that businesses don’t have them, but when the reply is “We don’t need one” this is so much worse!!

The lack of awareness of the benefits of a website are an indication that at least 50% of Australian businesses are run by people who are uninformed and out of date.

The convenience of a website in operation 24 -7 and the benefits such as being a business’ ‘secret sales person’ are only the start of the benefits a website brings to a business.  Their main purpose, in my mind, is to meet the changing consumer expectations and behaviour.  They EXPECT the businesses they deal with the have a GREAT website and if they find that this is not the case, the go to Old-Man Google and find one that does. 

Websites are great tool for any business; their own magazine via a blog, their own product forum, their own brag book, their own media centre, their own movie channel within the site etc

Talking specifically about retail, in addition to the above, a website acts as a 2nd, 3rd, 4th etc store,  GLOBALLY located….what’s not to like about that??

EVERY business can adopt a website; my Doctor has a website AND refers to the web to illustrate during consultation.

In the past, one of the barriers to entry and resistance to developing a site was price, the lack of flexibility and the poor quality developers and products that were out there.  This is no longer the case.

I have a few sites; Magnolia Solutions and Paper Magnolia, which I built myself using WordPress, which is free, including my shopping cart for Paper Magnolia, which come as a low cost. I also have a couple of Posterous sites for my fanciful musings; Miss Manners and My Favourite Sydney which are also free to start. 

The time to act is NOW!!”

Websites do not have to be complicated or intricate and they should ALWAYS be updated by the business, the best place to start is in the beginning!!

I’m on a mission to get as many retailers to hone their retail skills and adopt these vital marketing tools – websites and social media.  If you would like to read about my upcoming seminars, please click here.

Time’s running out so spread the word, open your mind and enjoy the road ahead with a fabulous website!!

Please comment here or in the forum.

I encourage business owners to read Dynamic Business and Giftrap Magazine(more specifically for the retail trade) as they are both great sources of information with great contemporary journalists who understand the world we operate in!!