I don't know about you but if I went out and spent $5000 plus on printing up several thousand quality promotion or product information brochures that I then placed in the boot or back seat of my car to be handed out to people a few at a time when I called in on them or met them at some networking function then I would say that I had made a big mistake.
And I am speaking from experience. Several years ago when I first went into business I did just that (well not $5000 worth but it felt like it to me). Well here I am almost 4 years later, not only did the business change but I still had them in my cupboard until a few weeks ago. They achieved nothing.
So what has this got to do with websites? Well, quite simply most websites I have observed d little more than that by way of a positive outcome. The business owner created the website several years ago as something not much more than a glassy brochure or worse still they recently paid for their new website and apart from putting it up they have done nothing else.
Right up there with "The cheque is in the mail" sits the other great misconception. Once I have a website the business will come my way. Sorry folks but "that just ain't gonna happen" !
People will not find you unless your website lends itself to being found by the search engines. And even once you are found unless the content is relevant, it is reputable and it is better positioned than your competitors, being in the index at position 372 is not worth the electricity is cost to see the result on Google.
Your website is as good as that box of brochures sitting in the car boot. Sure you hand out your business card with your web address on it and sometimes people will remember it or even better they have entered it into their customer relationship management system (CRM). Will they remember you 6 months later - probably not. So when they want to find a product that does what yours does they go to Google and guess who they find on page 1? Sorry it wasn't you. Lost opportunity.
