e-business…….what's in it for me?

With all the emphasis on companies becoming e-business enabled, you may be asking "Do I need to expand my business by using the internet?" "Will it benefit my business or am I being forced into following the pack?"

There is no simple answer. The internet can, and will provide many beneficial resources to a business, but you need to be clear what you expect from it and how you will harness the results.

Whether you are contemplating your first commercial website or looking to expand the facilities of your existing site you should ask yourself these same basic questions:

1. Before you start the project , ask yourself "What do I want to achieve?"

2. Will my site simply portray information? (An online brochure or advertisement for my company). Do I want it to save money, or make money? (Can my website replace or enhance some or all of my daily business routines, making my business more efficient by saving on overheads, or am I looking to sell my products or services directly over the internet?)

3. Do I want a site that gathers information relevant to my business, such as enquiries, leads or contacts? What will I do with this information?

4. Bearing in mind that first impressions count and that visitors will judge your business by the website you present, what does your existing website say about you? Will your new web site reflect your professionalism in its design and performance? When considering your design what do you want visitors to see? What do you want to tell them? What do you want them to do? Unless you are clear about these points from the start, your website will fail to provide the results you expect from it because you will disappoint your visitors.

5. Have you identified the unique feature in your web project? Why will people come to your site in preference to others? Do you have a product or service that can only be obtained from you via your web site? How will you keep your visitors coming back?

6. How will this internet-based project integrate with your existing business? Do you have the procedures in place to accommodate the success of your web site? E-businesses succeed when they are a "real" business, with all the "real-world" planning that is included in setting up a "bricks and mortar" company. A successful e-business will expand your business beyond your expectations, but it can also tear apart a company where it is at odds with the operating structure existing within the core business.

7. Do you have the right partners in place for your new venture? This includes designers, service providers, technical support teams, marketeers, financiers, back office system, e-commerce facility providers, in-house response teams? You must not leave your visitors stranded. Think 24 x 7!

8. Do you have a marketing programme in place to promote and empower your new internet project?

9. How will you monitor the success of your efforts and how will you re-direct the results?

10. Where do I turn for help?

Podweb Limited are experienced in assisting you to think through all the eventualities of an emerging e-business. We have the right partnerships in place to really make your ideas come to life.

Podweb have also a new programme called SAIV ™, which is an on-line content management system that gives clients control over their web site. This facility, which can be incorporated into the design of a new site, or built on as an added feature to an existing site, uses full database integration to power the variable data on a client's web site.

This facility can be viewed on-line at the following sites, where it controls news and technical bulletins and powers the product search facilities.

www.central-auto.co.uk

www.centralfoods.co.uk

If you are interested in adding SAIV ™ to your web site, or would like a quotation from Podweb to re-furbish your existing web site, please feel free to contact us.

We cover all the points above and many more beside in our free 90 minute consultation.

Contact us today to make and appointment for your free confidential consultation.

Telephone: 01933 412122 or email: vince@podweb.co.uk

Web site: www.podweb.co.uk