A: In short, YES you do. For many reasons, but here’s an example of why you do:

Scenario: Your spouse calls on the way home from work and offers to pick up some dinner, mentioning a restaurant you both like. You don’t get to it often, so you want to look up their menu online to figure out what to get. You search but can’t find their website. It finally dawns on you that they don’t have one. Since you had not been there in a while and can’t remember everything on their menu, you decided to get dinner from another place.

That business just lost a customer.

According to Jupiter Research, half of all small businesses with less than 10 employees do not have a website and 7 out of 10 solo businesses do not have a website.

Americans are spending more time than ever online and statistics show that approximately 70% of consumers shop for goods and service using the internet.

If you don’t have a website:

• Can potential customers who hear about go online to check you out?

Nope.

• Can current customers find out what your new offerings are?

No.

• How many new customers will you get from those searching for your products or services online?

None.

The bottom line is that you must get your business online – there’s no question about it. Having a website is as essential today as having business cards or a telephone number.

There are three main ways to get a website for your business:

1) Use a software-creation program to make your own (or have a friend/relative do it)

• How much time will it take to learn the web design software? How could you better invest that time?
• Does the design really look professional?
• Once you have the site up, how will you get the search engines to notice it?
• What will you do if you want more advanced options like a photo gallery, a forum, e-commerce, etc.?

2) Use a vended solution – Some industries have multi-user/shell websites that you can rent

• They have limited capability to customize the look
• They are not optimally designed or tuned for your specific business
• You pay every month to use it

3) Hire a professional to build a custom website

• You get the most professional looking results designed for your specific needs
• All the technical details are taken care of
  • Domain, hosting, email addresses,
• Your site can be optimized for search engines (SEO)
• You can be trained to maintain it
• Someone is there to help you if/when necessary

The point is, today, there is no reason for any small business not to be online, and not just online, but online with a professional, powerful presence. That way, when a customer wants to find your products or services, they will.

If they can’t find you, be assured that they will find your competitor.

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If you don’t get business leads from your website, you should read this.

Consumer Experience – Just a few years ago:

1. Pick up the Yellow Pages and try to find a nearby supplier of the product you’re looking for
2. (Sometimes) Call them to ask if they have what you need
3. (More often) Hop in your car and drive to the location
4. Locate the establishment, find parking and hope they have the style/color or other specifics that you’re looking for
5. Purchase the item
6. Drive home
7. Hope that there are no problems or issues with your purchase

Consumer Experience – Today:

1. The vast majority of consumers use the internet to find their goods and services
2. They use search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo to locate possible sources and compare prices
3. Once they choose a potential supplier, they turn to social media to get consumer feedback on that supplier, and reviews of their product or service. If they don’t like what they see, they go back to #2 to find another candidate. Once satisfied, they
4. Purchase the product online and have it shipped – or if local, drive there and buy it

In today’s online world, it is critical for a business to have a solid online presence and reputation. Those that don’t will likely not be here in 5 years. If your website is not ranked at or near the top of Google, Bing and Yahoo, you probably won’t get today’s consumers coming to your business.

Here at MVP, we have seen many websites that were built without even the basics of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). These websites can only be found if you know the name of the company or business. The main purpose of any website is to have a place where people can learn about your products, and where you can convince them to come to you rather than to one of your competitors. That’s all well and good but if nobody can find your website, they won’t even know that you exist. We call that a lazy website because it just sits there and does nothing.

Here are three very important website statistics you should monitor:

1. Number of unique visitors per week/month
2. Number of page views
3. How long the average visitor stays on your site

If your visitor count is low, the cause may be that you’re not being found high enough in the search engine ranking so consumers don’t even know to visit your site. If your visitor count is good but your page views or average time on site are low, your website may not be that appealing or possibly the navigation is too complex.

There are a number of things that can be done to make your website work for you instead of against you. Have a professional review your site and your site statistics, and then provide recommendations on how to improve the areas that are lacking. Your website will be better off and so will your business.

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What’s particularly endearing to me about Pinterest is that it is all visual and that you can really see some gorgeous photos, obtain some magnificent recipes, and reap so many other benefits of thoughtful sayings, collector hobbies and fascinating miracles. I joined this site because of its unique ability to allow you to have so much fun sharing and displaying so much of who you are. Not to mention the sort of visual mind mapping that it allows. We literally re-designed the entire main area of our house and kitchen by pinning elements we planned to incorporate into our design.

Sadly, I am prompted to write this blog because of the “Pinterest Wannabe” crowd. This is the crowd that is joining Pinterest merely for the exposure or because they think it’s where they need to be and not for the value that it offers. According to Pinterest’s “Pin Etiquette“, read Item #3 which explains that this site is not about promoting yourself. As is true with most social networks, it’s about sharing. I have been so disappointed lately watching this “Pinterest Wannabe” crowd appear.

Wannabe Scenario:

• Someone follows me.
• I go to their link to see what fascinating things they have for me to “Like” or “Re-Pin”.
• I find they have no boards, no likes, no pins and yet they are following many and being followed by many.

What a shame. It reminds me of all of those who joined Twitter or Facebook for the same reasons – they join to be part of the “Wannabe” crowd and have no clue how to use it or make it valuable to themselves or others. It’s particularly upsetting with Pinterest because why would I want to follow someone who HAS NO PICTURES OR BOARDS? This is a visual board of your LIFE people. 20% of those following me have no boards whatsoever or one board with one pin relating to their business.

So there.. my rant.. and here’s my advice to Pinterest newbies – don’t be a Wannabe! And…

1. Don’t sign up if you don’t want to share things you love
2. If you do sign up, don’t follow anyone until you have something to show them
3. Don’t put your logo in your photo spot – this is about you, not your company
4. Have fun with this. Show pieces of who you are professionally because that’s part of who you are – but don’t bore us to death with sell, sell, sell.

Am I too sensitive?

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You can form relationships that are critical to your success, but remember, effective networking requires reciprocity through developing and nurturing win-win relationships. Through LinkedIn, you have opportunities to help those in your network by answering questions, providing relevant leads, and helping them make connections to further their goals.

In the guide to using LinkedIn for business and career management, I’m on LinkedIn–Now What??? (Third Edition): A Guide to Getting the Most Out of LinkedIn, Jason Alba explains that there are six major benefits to LinkedIn:

• The ability to be known and enhance your personal brand
• The ability to be found by recruiters or other hiring authorities
• The ability to find others and make important connections
• The opportunity to learn and share
• The ability to connect with group members
• The opportunity to show you are plugged in to current technology

These are great benefits. There are more but these comprise the top six, in my opinion. All the interaction on LinkedIn is based on respecting your connections. If you treat them with respect they will do the same.

What I DON’T like is when someone uses LinkedIn inappropriately to market their own products and services. We all know that using social networking for business is about building relationships and helping each other grow and improve, but the obvious “Spammers” just don’t seem to get it. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen someone respond to a group discussion with a statement that had nothing to do with what was being discussed. They just wanted to get as many people as possible to click on their website link, and they will respond with that identical post to as many discussions as they can. Do they really think that the people in the group don’t know exactly what they are doing, resulting in the opposite outcome the poster hoped for? Now they have angered the members of the Group, gotten reported as a “Spammer” and forever tarnished their LinkedIn reputation with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

And by the way, when I see these types of blatant misuse, I do report them. You should too.

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Before I continue with my editorial, let me first share a recent customer service call I experienced.

I have a credit card that had been paid off and was put in a drawer in case of future needs. A charge was put on this card without my knowledge and because I didn’t pay it (I didn’t know about it), it accrued late fees and interest charges of almost $100 in two months. The credit card company called me (non offshore… a very nice lady named Audrey) to arrange payment. I told Audrey that I needed to check on the purchase to verify its validity and would call them back. I called the company who made the charge and spoke with someone (not offshore). I was able to discuss the situation, identify it as an unapproved transaction and get a refund processed, all in one call. GREAT, then I called the credit card company back to tell them a refund was being processed and got the company’s “Level One Support”. I didn’t understand the name of the person who picked up my call, but it was obviously offshore, based on the dialect. When I posed my situation, the representative said that he would have to transfer me to a Supervisor… and then hung up (or totally blew the transfer), so I had to call back. The second call also had to be transferred and this time I was put on hold, or “Ignore” and the call went into limbo, it didn’t terminate but after 5 minutes of nothing (no music, just silence), I hung up (with thoughts of “Peggy” haunting my brain). The third time I finally got transferred properly and I could tell that I was back in the States. The Supervisor was friendly, polite and helpful. We got the situation resolved and all was finally good, but only after having to provide my account number, date of birth, address, last four digits of my SSN, and explain the reason for my call… FOUR TIMES. This experience frustrated me to no end. I can’t even tell you how angry I was by the time I reached someone who could actually help me. Been here? I thought so.

I understand the need to save money, align resources and try to achieve the greatest efficiencies, but if those efficiencies result in losing customers or damaging a company’s reputation, what have you gained? There needs to be another way.

Complimenting the usual phone support with social media support is a growing trend. Many companies are setting up social media customer service units to monitor Facebook, Twitter and other online channels for questions and problems related to their products or services. This might be a good way to get your request in ONCE, have the company triage the problem to resolution and get back to you with an answer without the frustration experienced in my example. The responsibility is then on the company to do whatever is necessary, talk to whoever is required to resolve the situation… behind the scenes… and then get back to the customer with the answer.

So here’s my final question… Am I overreacting based on my recent experience or do you see this as a viable way to buffer the consumer from “back-office” operations?

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1. It has reduced the number of phone calls and actual interactions. While I believe this may be good for business (and not all of the time – face-to-face contact is a good part of an overall business strategy), I am sometimes saddened that the only place to catch up with family or friends is through Facebook. And it really blows my skirt up when someone uses the “I didn’t see it on Facebook” as an excuse.
2. It has caused unwitting arguments. I had a certain incident where I liked a page that happened to be a competitor of someone close to me. The page was beneficial to us from our marketing standpoint, but I was called out on it and basically forced to “unlike” the page due to this conflict of interest.
3. Sometimes people post things that they are feeling, which may have a profound impact on another family member or friend. I have had family members or friends remark to me that they were hurt or upset about comments or postings from other family members or friends. While I understand that “intent” is a key factor, sometimes it’s just a post where it didn’t enter someone’s mind that someone else might be hurt before that enter key was pressed. When we post on Facebook, we are generally posting our feelings. Unless privacy controls are strictly set to restrict certain people, everyone gets to see what our feelings are, be they happy or sad. This sometimes causes old wounds to resurface and an argument to ensue or it may just remind a person of losses, things they wish had been different, things they wish are different. You get the drift.
4. Arguments or “discussuments” with family members or friends happen. Does it hurt you or help you that you can keep up with what’s going on in their life because you can still see the status on Facebook? And if they hide their statuses or, God forbid, the dreaded “UNFRIENDING” occurs, you may find yourself at a point of anger, frustration, hurt, fear or apathy. How does this affect this relationship? If you were not online, wouldn’t you pick up the phone more readily and try to come to an understanding?
5. Old Wounds. Have you “friended” someone from the past and had it bring up an old wound? I bet most of us have – whether it’s an “old love”, an ex-spouse and their family, or a memory of being ignored by the popular kid in high school. How about a once very close friendship that managed to just disappear? Somehow you manage to reconnect on Facebook but it doesn’t rekindle that once close tie.

When we taught the Facebook class for social media at the local tech college over the last 2 years, one of the examples we gave as “what not to do” was this one:
Now this may be somewhat of an extreme, but it is an example of how things might slip out that others could be hurt by. And, of course, much of the comments that we see may be taken much more to heart than the writer intended. This same type of thing occurs in email.

Emotions are hard to read when you’re not looking someone dead in the eye or hearing the sound of their voice.

I’m in the process of evaluating whether or not staying connected with family and friends on social networks is something to reconsider. If I come to the conclusion that it isn’t, and I start the un-friending process, please don’t be offended – it’s not personal. I’d much rather talk to you over the phone or visit with you in person. I am a huge proponent of family and friend get-togethers and meaningful relationships. The featured photo in this post is of my grandmother and my son a long time ago. It is a photo that memorializes a connection that just can’t be made online.

I know there are lists and I know that I can segregate my comments to specific audiences. This thought process is in its infancy stages. We, as a business, will of course stay on Facebook both through transparent personal profiles and our business page. I do believe that Facebook is a fantastic place for businesses to connect.

What are your thoughts? Is this what the future holds and you need to just “deal with it”? Or would you prefer that IRL (In Real Life) interaction with your family and friends? Is any interaction better than no interaction? Are we too internet focused? Is instant gratification the “all important”?

I don’t know about you, but I need a hug.

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1. Educate yourself on the latest tools and techniques in Social Media
2. Define your business objectives
3. Identify your target market
4. Decide how much time you have to spend on social media
5. Decide who will manage your company’s social media
6. Choose the social media channels you will use
7. Develop a strategy to achieve your objectives
8. Set up your social media channels
9. Engage with your audience
10. Manage your campaign and monitor your progress

This is an over-simplification of the process, but it outlines the major steps you should follow to be successful. If you have questions or get stuck on any of these steps, call us. We can help.

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This week, I was invited to attend a meeting for the Milwaukee Chapter of EWI – Executive Women International by a good friend and business associate.  What a fantastic opportunity she presented me with. EWI was established in San Francisco in 1938 by Lucille Johnson Perkins.  Ms. Perkins recognized the importance and potential of an association bringing key women together to promote their firms and improve their community. I plan to join this organization’s Milwaukee Chapter because it embodies many of my beliefs and it will provide another way for me to give back to the community. One of the greatest things that I left with after this meeting was a renewal of spirit and drive courtesy of this group of lovely, friendly, professional women. They shared a fantastic poem during dinner that every person should read. They should read it to their daughters and their mothers and their friends. It is quite simply called “She”, by Kobi Yamada. Not only was I inspired by its words, but I was inspired to create the image in this post reflecting the words of that poem. Click on it and read it. And then celebrate and share it with a woman you know and love.

My second atta-boy is posthumous. As has been relayed across every media channel yesterday and today a thousand times over, a great man, Steve Jobs, has left us. I have only become an Apple fan in the last couple of years after purchasing both an iPhone and a MacBook Air. I can tell you that I’m a huge fan of both. But it’s not the products that bring Mr. Jobs the atta-boy or me the inspiration – it’s his pure, unadulterated quest to follow the beat of his own drummer. It’s his speech to Stanford University in their 2005 Commencement. It’s his brilliance in forward thinking. It’s his resilience in the face of once being fired from his own company. And it’s his obvious determination to keep moving forward until the last hour – even as he battled his life threatening illness. This is deserving of an “atta-boy” – and so much more. And I just needed to say that. Rest in peace Steve Jobs. Your body may have left us, but your legacy and your spirit will live on and inspire so many more. And your family is in our thoughts and prayers.

So, for you, today – move forward, give back, aspire to do more, inspire those around you.

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1. When was it last updated?  If it was 2 years ago, this might be an issue.
2. What version of WordPress is is compatible with? It really should be compatible with the latest version.
3. How many times it has been downloaded? This gives insight into its popularity.
4. Visit the actual “Plugin Homepage”.  Is it a valid and up to date URL?
5. Ratings – What do other users say?  Does it have a good rating?  Do most say “It Works”?

If you go with the plugins that are recommended and check the above points, you are more likely to be able to trust it.  And of course, always back up your site before installing anything that you are not sure of.

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