Some people think cornering the market for a particular product is a good thing – I disagree. Having a better product than the competition is the real key – that’s why we love competition – it makes us better at what we do.
In the web development industry, competition is everywhere. Reality says that we can’t design every website local businesses need. In fact, we really wouldn’t want to design all of them because we wouldn’t have the opportunity to compare our work to anything if we owned the market.
There are many excellent web development firms in southwest Florida – however, for every good one, there are ten bad ones that deliver terrible designs, bad copywriting, and equally bad results for their paying customers. In fact, these web developers make it easy to pick them apart because their own websites are train wrecks of epic proportions. Bad graphics, poor writing, frequent misspellings, and much more litter the local web developer marketplace.
In today’s economic climate, it’s important to get value for your money and the internet offers that value. Unfortunately, most web developers fail to provide their potential clients the education they need to get that value they so desperately need. It’s easy to pick out their work because it lacks professionalism and is so antiquated, it can’t help but create a sense of disappointment on the part of the client – and an attitude that “the internet doesn’t work for my business.”
So your probably asking, “what’s the point?” The point is short and sweet. When choosing a web development firm, use the following guidelines:
- Look at the developers own website first. How does it look? Is the text readable? Is it all hype – as in “we’re the best,” etc.? Are their frequently misspelled words?
- Look at samples of the web developers work. Ask for the samples and the keywords affiliated with each site. Google the keywords to see the results.
- Meet with the web developer one-on-one and get a feel for their knowledge of the market, their product, and the industry as a whole. Most web developers are sadly stuck in the last century and cannot offer the skills needed to succeed in today’s marketplace.
- Get the developer to outline the entire project for you, including a completion date and what steps they will take to make your website succeed. If they promise “guaranteed top placement” in Google or any other search engine, and their own website doesn’t get that type of placement, that should speak volumes about their abilities and their integrity.
This discussion could go on for pages and pages – but I think you get the big picture.
Choosing a web developer can be confusing. Everyone and their brother-in-law can design websites, right? So why do I need to pay someone?
We come across this all of the time. With all of the software out there and free website builders, who even needs a web design firm? The answer is simple: unless you are a professional web designer, YOU do!
Of course, this mostly applies to business websites. If you have a personal or informational website, a website builder or a friend is just fine. However, if you are starting a business or are creating an online presence for your existing business, professionalism is key.
That’s why we love the competition.
John Delaney
Integrity Technology Group
North Port Florida Web Development
www.integritytechgroup.com
Building a business takes outstanding management skills. The gift of managing time, money, people and their skills can help you grow your business. Online tools like LinkedIn can help you make connections with future employees and service providers, without spending a lot of time. It will most certainly help your business grow.
People use LinkedIn as an online resume. Members create profiles that provide a snapshot of their professional background – where they work currently, past work history, the businesses they own, and even the side businesses they run. So, if I am checking someone out, I visit LinkedIn because it’s usually the most streamlined place to scan professional qualifications.
LinkedIn is also a way to connect and establish relationships with new people, and expand and reinforce existing relationships. So what exactly can LinkedIn do for your business? Use it to:
- Expand your contacts. The right contacts can help you grow your business, whether you need to find business partners, suppliers or customers. Place a link to your LinkedIn profile prominently on your website (perhaps on the About page) and/or on your blog. That will encourage people to become one of your LinkedIn contacts. In addition, answer questions on the LinkedIn Answers network. Giving someone valuable information makes it easy to strike up an online conversation and from there build a relationship.
- Stay connected with existing business networking contacts. You’ve invested precious time in developing business contacts through networking –don’t let those contacts evaporate. Using LinkedIn, you can keep track of people you’ve met at in-person events or at trade shows – or people you’ve only met online. LinkedIn offers profile photos, letting you remember the person’s face even if you haven’t seen them in a while. Also, if you need an up-to-date email address for one of your connections, you can find it on LinkedIn.
- Draw traffic to your website and blog. You can link to your website and blog from your LinkedIn profile. Adjust your LinkedIn settings to notify your contacts whenever you update your profile. Then update your profile once a quarter and LinkedIn will send out a notice to remind your contacts to come see what’s changed. For instance, if you redesign your website or add a product line, you can update your profile and your contacts automatically will be notified.
- Get PR visibility. Many bloggers and journalists have LinkedIn profiles. While it may be difficult to get their attention by “cold call emailing,” try getting introduced to them through LinkedIn. You certainly do not want to spam them or annoy them. But connecting through LinkedIn is a low pressure way to start developing a relationship. Later on, after they “know” you, they may be more receptive to hearing about your online store, particularly if you serve a niche market or have distinctive merchandise.
- Reinforce your business brand. Your LinkedIn profile will include your company name. You can even include detailed information about what your business does as well as your products and services. Some savvy entrepreneurs include their URL as part of their name and title so that it appears every time their name is displayed on LinkedIn. These actions reinforce your brand at no cost to you.
- Hire service providers, freelancers, independent contractors and employees. LinkedIn is excellent for finding or checking out qualified help. All you need to do is request an introduction through an existing contact.
- Conduct market research. The collective wisdom of experienced business people is powerful. If you are exploring new price points, for instance, you could ask a question on the LinkedIn Answers network. You can also search extensively on LinkedIn and identify competitive data that way.
LinkedIn is a valuable and enduring tool. Some early adopters may have moved on from LinkedIn to the latest shiny object. However, most mainstream entrepreneurs and professionals still use LinkedIn actively.
