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05.21.09 You Could Be Sabotaging Your SEO Efforts  By Dan Morrill You would think that this would be something that every new company does, build a web site first, before you start contacting potential clients. The problem is, I am finding that some companies do not have them, and I really am not interested in talking to a technology consulting company without a web site. It does not matter how hard you try to keep me on the phone, if you are in technology, you have got to have a web site. One of the first questions I am going to ask a company is what is your URL? The worst answer I can get is "we don't have a web site". If you are going to be a technology company, if you are going to try to sell consulting services, if you are going to try to do anything that convinces anyone that you have a technology understanding, you have got to have a web site. Whenever I am building a new company, whenever I am thinking of doing anything, the first thing I try to do is score the domain name and build out a web site to support the concept. From streaming audio to streaming video, to digg like services, to a book store, all those have been predicated on owning a web site to go along with that. While some companies justifiably do not think they need a web site, the best business card you have is going to be web site that you build.
It can be as simple as a couple of strung together web pages; it can be as elaborate as a site based on blogging software, or a CMS system like Drupal. The web site is the way that customers are going to do their homework about your company on, it is the place where you get to showcase the things you do, put your best marketing face on, and share your great ideas, white papers, community interaction, and how good you are doing. Anything less than that makes it much harder to startup and get attention from people who could be visiting your company, spending their money with your company, and doing research about your company. Cold calling is ok, but honestly most of us want to look at a web site to see if there is a good match between skills, need and expectations. The web site is still your best business card, it is your best way of attracting new customers, and it is also your best way of legitimizing the things you are doing. Without a web site, you are stuck in 1989, with the yellow pages gathering dust by the phone. The web site you build is what you want people to know about you; it is your best tool and option for getting the word out about what you do, and how you do it. Hampering yourself by not having a web site means you are going to miss business, it means your customers will not find you; it means that you are missing where the internet went about 1999. When you are dealing with potential customers, you will lose business and customers by not having a web site. And while it might sound like I am preaching to the choir, this is not the case today. I got to talk to a technology consulting company today who did not have a web site, who wanted me to meet one of their sales folks who was going to leave behind a bunch of brochures and reading material. The first question was "what is your URL?", and when they didn't have one, I didn't want to deal with a technology consulting firm without a web site. Note to startups: have a web site folks, it is your first, best, and easiest way to get people to notice what you are doing, who you are, and what you represent. Comments About the Author: Dan Morrill has been in the information security field for 18 years, both civilian and military, and is currently working on his Doctor of Management. Dan shares his insights on the important security issues of today through his blog, Managing Intellectual Property & IT Security, and is an active participant in the ITtoolbox blogging community. |
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