NFIB

5 Ways To Avoid Failing Online
04/ 01/ 2002

by Nick Usborne

1. Create a site that adds value to your offline business. It's tempting to just create a quick online brochure that tells people what you're doing. Instead, build a site that helps your customers.

2. Be realistic. Two things you'll need to figure out are how long it will take to create your site and how much it will cost. Please believe me when I say that both the time and the cost you estimate will almost certainly turn out to be about half what you actually end up spending.

3. Give the project your complete support. If an online initiative doesn't have the boss's full support, it's on its way to mediocrity or downright failure. Building a site needs to be an integral part of your entire business.

4. Find a site developer you can trust. Building this part of your business is a serious investment.

5. Take the long view. Very soon, there will be no division between the offline and online components of a business. So take a fresh look at your company's future and see how both the online and offline threads can weave together to create a whole new company that spans both worlds.

Usborne consults, speaks and writes "from the customer's point of view." He can be found at http://www.nickusborne.com.

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This article originally appeared in the January/February 2001 issue of MyBusiness Magazine, NFIB's member magazine.