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PR - Home Business & the Internet
The Internet - an essential tool of any Home-based Business
With home based businesses dominating the small business sector in Australia, the big challenge for most is how to get new customers.
According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, in 2003, 67 per cent of all small businesses in Australia – an estimated 784,800 in total - were home-based, as more people opt to spend more time with their family or just to get out of the rat race and be their own boss.
“In years gone by these people may have set up shop in a strip shopping area and benefited from passing traffic,” said Lea-Anne Brighton, Marketing Resultant with e-commerce firm Solutions Management. “In choosing to be home-based, they find themselves also having to become experts in marketing".
“I have the privilege of speaking with hundreds of home-based business owners each year, and getting new customers remains the key issue for many. They try the conventional means of marketing through advertising in newspapers, magazines or Yellow Pages.
“The sad reality is that often this is not enough to sustain their business and not usually enough to give them a good return on investment.
“The answer from many small businesses was to use the Internet to grow and market their businesses. With over 66 per cent of the Australian population now on-line or accessing the Internet, the opportunity is enormous.”
Ms Brighton said it could be very cost-effective to sell to the 13 million Australians who are online and looking for things to buy.
“Research by Yellow Pages in 2003 indicated that 86 per cent of the population using the Internet are looking for products and services to buy,” she said. “My research clearly indicated that many are doing their research on-line as it saves time and effort.”
She listed the following eight practical tips to assist home-based businesses to increase sales and marketing exposure while they decrease costs:
Having a website increases your credibility with prospective clients
Make sure your website looks professional. If it looks cheap and nasty they will think that you or your product is cheap and nasty. First impressions count.
Direct people to look at your website. A good website will give you credibility and help increase your conversion of leads to sales.
Don't send brochures as they take time and cost too much money. Ask customers while on the phone if they are on-line and would like more information about what you can do for them. You can save thousands on printing and postage and give you customers the information they want fast and conveniently.
Be highly ranked on search engines. Unless you are on page 1, 2 or 3 no one will find you.
Keep your information on your website up-to-date. This means that you will have to be able to quickly and easily update your information through a content management system.
A good website levels the playing field between you and your larger competitors.
People coming to your website will not know how big or little your company is – they will know that your information is up-to-date and that you appear to supply the product or service they are looking for. This is a huge advantage for small businesses.
Also, a good website is essential for you to “win” against your smaller competition, especially in gaining new business. A highly ranked website will put you up there to be found when people search for your product or service.
Ms Brighton said that by following these simple tips, home-based businesses could make the most of their resources and position themselves to win business in a competitive marketplace.
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