What do I expect this to do for my business?

We often get phone calls from small business owners telling us they need websites. Our standard reply is that nobody needs a website. What they need is an answer to a problem. It might be something as simple as letting your customers know when you're open or it could be as complex as shifting your entire operation online. So ask yourself, "What do I expect this to do for my business?"

The first thing any website should do is help your bottom line. It has to generate more revenue than it costs or it's not worth doing (the rules are different for not-for-profits and I'll get to that later). That does not mean that you have to have an ecommerce site generating online sales. It means that the site has to be designed to solve specific marketing needs.

Hello world, here I am.

The most basic thing a site can do is tell the world you exist. For many businesses the most important thing is to provide new and existing customers when your hours, location and ways to contact you. This is the equivalent of an old Yellow Pages ad. You will probably also include a little about what you do, sell or offer.