Effective communication on the Internet
Your business' website is an extremely effective communication and marketing tool. Not only is it highly economical compared to traditional methods such as distributing printed material where there are also sorting and mailing costs involved, but customers and employees can access the latest information on demand at any time of the day, anywhere in the world.
The possibilities for online publishing are endless - from new product releases to newsletters or even information specifically meant for your employees; you can even allow customers to buy your products directly from the website itself!
The main differences between print and online
When publishing information on the Internet, it is very easy for customers to lose interest when reading an article on a computer screen. Chances are that you are reading this article on paper after having printed it out.
The main rule for publishing information on the Internet is to keep it as short and as simple as possible. The best design for most webpages is to have short sections of text surrounded by images.
If you can not get away from having a lengthy document, you can make the text easier for your visitors to read by using a yellow background. Make sure that the webpage blends in with the rest of your site, and does not detract from its overall design. You will also need to consider whether you want to break the document up over shorter, individual webpages. Some people find it tedious having to scroll through a seemingly endless document, while others don't like loading new pages, particularly if they are planning to save or print out the document for viewing later.
Factors to consider
Although a website is an excellent tool for providing information to your employees, keep in mind that the information will be publicly available to anyone with access to the Internet. You may need to consider password protecting the area of your website in question. You will need to arrange this with your website's hosting provider.
If you plan to publish information on your website that you do not have full title to, such as newspaper articles or any other material from a third party, you will need to take copyright laws into consideration. Even if you have paid royalties to the author for the use of his or her work, the permission may not extend to electronic publication. If in doubt, you should seek legal advice.
A disadvantage of publishing your information online is that not all of your customers will have access to the Internet. Those that do will be more likely to read a newsletter in a tangible form that is sent to them in the post than remember or even be willing to visit your website. You could encourage them by sending an email notification whenever you publish new information, but many people find this "junk" email annoying and unless you have been given express permission to do so it may detract from your business' image.
Hosting Your website
Take into consideration how your website is hosted. The term hosting refers to making your website available for people to download by storing it on a server.
If you are a large corporation, you might have your own server suitable for hosting your website located in the building. This provides you with maximum control and security and you are not limited by size. Note, however, that this type of set up is very expensive and the computer system may require complex maintenance. You will also need to make sure that the computer is capable of safely withstanding the amount of traffic you believe the site will get.
An alternative to hosting the website yourself is to use an Internet Service Provider that offers site hosting. The computer hosting your site will remain located at the ISP's premises, so there is also a security issue involved. In most cases, however, there is security in place to minimise the risk. By using an ISP you can also be certain that your site will be monitored by people with expertise in the field.
Depending on the features you are looking for, hosting plans range in price form a few dollars per month to thousands. There are also free services available, but these might place advertising on your site to pay for its hosting cost, and may not allow corporate sites to be hosted. You will need to look at the various options before you decide, taking into account price, speed, features, technical support and maintenance provided for your site.
Whatever option you use to host your website, you will need to make sure that the option you have decided on is not too slow. The last thing you want is customers being turned away and going to a competitor because your website takes too long to load.
How do you measure your website's success?
Business websites have one or more purposes - some, such as brochure sites, are aimed at generating leads for increased sales, others act purely as an informational source. Measuring the success of your site will need to take these factors into consideration.
Establishing how many repeat visitors you site receives is a useful way to measure your site's success. However, obtaining this information can often be difficult, both from a technical as well as an ethical and legal standpoint. Simple ways to gauge your site's success is to run surveys, focus groups or competitions, asking people this information in person.
This article has provided you with a very brief introduction to the possibilities of using the Internet as one of your business' communication tools as well as describing some of the issues that you will have to take into consideration. If you are seriously thinking about basing your business around the Internet, and you are prepared to set a large amount of your budget aside, you might like to consider hiring a qualified consultant who will be able to provide you with information on the best approach for your needs and may even be able to undertake market research for you. With successful implementation, your website will undoubtedly be one of your best marketing tools for now and in the future.
