If you're fairly new to the Internet scene, you may just be a bit overhelmed with family members, friends, collegues, and advertisements urging you to get your own website for your business. Typically, this is good advice for businesses. However, for most small local businesses, running your own website may not be the best idea. Here's why:
Websites Take Time to Build. Whether you're buying your own WYSIWYG software to design the site yourself or you're hiring a skilled web designer, it will take time to decide on a good domain name, plan the site, create it, and then get it running online.
Websites Cost Money. There are a few basic costs:
- Domain name registration fee
- Web design fee
- Monthly web hosting fee
- Applicable setup fees
Plus, because a website needs to be "findable" in order to be beneficial for your business, you will have to, at minimum, invest in additional services such as:
- Search engine optimization fee
- Web maintenance fees
- Online and offline advertising for your website
Websites Take Time to Maintain and Alter. Your website will need at least some occasional modifications to keep it current. Most busy business owners simply don't have this kind of time.
Your Business is Local. Unless you are planning to actually sell and ship products worldwide via your website, you probably don't need to have your own website for your local business. Most local businesses simply need local exposure and an online presence.
The Bottom Line
If you already have an existing website, we sincerely hope you will have great success with it. However, if you have a local business, and you are looking for a way to build local exposure and have your business's details easily found online by your target customers in your area, local online directories that focus on retail shops, restaurants, and services may be the key.
The author is one of the original co-founders of The Socal411 Directory website, the popular lifestyle directory in Southern California. He is a promoter of small business in the Los Angeles and Orange County area, and often speaks on topics such as the importance of advertising locally on the Internet to get ahead of your local competition. For more information see, How to Promote Your Southern California Business Using the Internet.
![]() Top Stories - Google News Updated : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:24:40 GMT+00:00 Israel believes East Jerusalem row won't stop Mideast talks - Ha'aretz
Publ.Date : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:41:21 GMT+00:00 Obama gives away $1.4M Nobel prize - The Associated Press
Publ.Date : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:27:49 GMT+00:00 Health Care and Student Loan Programs Collide - New York Times
Publ.Date : Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:55:03 GMT+00:00 Reid's wife seriously injured in 4-vehicle wreck - The Associated Press
Publ.Date : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:03:39 GMT+00:00 Cost of F-35 Has Risen 60% to 90%, Military Says - New York Times
Publ.Date : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:44:48 GMT+00:00 Strong quakes torment Chile as president sworn in - The Associated Press
Publ.Date : Thu, 11 Mar 2010 23:54:03 GMT+00:00 NY AG Cuomo removes himself from governor probe - Reuters
Publ.Date : Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:08:22 GMT+00:00 Increase Web Traffic |

"I have a small business with just a couple of... Read More
The internet is a sea of knowledge. Getting your information... Read More
After having decided to start a business, the next thing... Read More
With the New Year upon us yet again, it's time... Read More
Making maximum profit from your law firm website is important,... Read More
Launching a new small business website is often a long... Read More
You know exactly what your organisation does and what your... Read More
Have you ever wondered what challenges are faced by other... Read More
A website provides invaluable advantages for businesses who have one.7... Read More
More and more businesses are recognizing the importance of content... Read More
If you were asked to put a value on your... Read More
When you take a look at the most visited sites... Read More
Starting an internet business can be confusing to non-veterans. The... Read More
This article was prompted by some customer support work I... Read More
Project Safekids provides webmasters a valuable tool which could save... Read More
I still remember it very clear ... It was almost... Read More
Why do some web sites reap huge benefits while others... Read More
Conceptualize, Build and Publish a Web site - What's required... Read More
What to do if you are an artist after you... Read More
Dance is how you pamper your soul and satiate your... Read More
Like most average persons, I wanted some extra money to... Read More
Why do some sites succeed while the vast majority of... Read More
People often come to me in a state of crisis... Read More
I'm one of those people that always wanted a website,... Read More
The DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) states that service providers must... Read More

I recently received an unsolicited e-mail from some company offering... Read More
1) A marketing necessityI still hear it said from time... Read More
1. Address your targeted audience on your business site. Example:... Read More
The process of Web application development is critical to the... Read More
When I started my company in 2002, I knew I... Read More
"Build it and they will come."--Filed of Dreams (1989) If... Read More
"If you build it, they will come"; is an age... Read More
In this example I have used the map of the... Read More
If you are looking for creating your online presence you... Read More
What to put your the website if you are an... Read More
Before you start building your site, ask yourself "WHY?". Why... Read More
While studying online for IT investment opportunities, I found that... Read More
2 Golden Rules for an Engaging Website35% of visitors fail... Read More
You want to give your site's visitors a way to... Read More
When I set up my website I felt paypal was... Read More
While it may seem like a "quick and easy" task,... Read More
You work hard to build traffic to your web page.... Read More
Often time I've browsed sites and seen the same thing... Read More
Appealing to others is really important when you have a... Read More
Before you jump into spending coutnless hours on designing and... Read More
Just starting out, you can start with a simple informational... Read More
One of my most salient memories from when I sold... Read More
Affiliate programs are a great way to earn an income... Read More
Web sites are an Ongoing Part of Business.All too many... Read More
People like to get immediate responses to requests. Autoresponders are... Read More
Web Development |