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Introduction
I’ve spent a good chunk of the day learning about a new campaign from Google andYola called Getting British Businesses Online which makes it dead simple for companies in the United Kingdom that do not have an online presence, to get their business online quickly and best of all for absolutely nothing! The service provides a domain name, an email address, and a basic do-it-yourself website, so your business can take its first steps to getting online.
Think of it as the first car you were given for free by your grandmother — it barely started and sounded like a tractor, but it was one step closer to a faster and newer car; the ‘Getting British Businesses Online’ campaign is exactly that for many UK-based companies that haven’t taken the online plunge quite yet.
“There are 41 million people online in the United Kingdom, yet over 1.5 million small to medium businesses operate without a website”¹
I’ve put together a list of important steps (along with additional resources) that every small to medium business needs to take to get their company online. It’s not a completely exhaustive list and some of the steps will require additional research or help from your twenty-something nephew or niece, but if you have a little patience and time, you should get through it quicker than you think.
Step 1: Domain Name
Domain Name 101
The very first thing you need to do is grab a domain name for your business. A domain name is the address people will either type in or see in their browser windows when they visit your website (see ‘Step 3′) and it’s also the second part of your email address (see ‘Step 2′), so it’s an important part of the process that can’t be skipped.
Choosing a Domain Name
It’s best to get a domain name that includes your business name and what it is you do — this is so people know what to expect when they navigate to your website and also so search engines can better rank you for your business name and service. It’s not easy to find common combinations of domain names these days, as most have been registered (many by Domain Squatters), but most domain registration companies will offer you suggestions based on your initial search. It’s wise to try and avoid very long domain names (such as www.BobsBestLondonCakeEmporium.com) as people may not want to type this long domain name from your offline promotional materials or business cards.
Registering a Domain Name
To register your domain name you need to visit a domain name registration company and follow the instructions they give you. I like to use GoDaddy.com or 123-reg to register domain names, but there are other companies online and a simple search for “domain names” will give you a list probably longer than Santa’s.
Additional Resources:
Domain Names Explained
Domain Name Basics
How to Register a Domain Name
Step 2: Email Address
Email Tips
Now that you’ve got your snazzy new domain name for your business, you’re ready to start using a professional email address for all your correspondence with prospective clients. It’s important to remember that your-name@your-business.com is much more professional than using a generic free email address such as my-business-name@gmail.com, but always avoid, like the plague, the use of a personal account such as my-personal-email123@hotmail.co.uk for any business correspondence — most people won’t notice the difference or care about this, but some online-savvy consumers will immediately get an unprofessional vibe from your business and you want to avoid this at all costs.
Email Services
If you’ve purchased your domain name from a reputable company (like the ones above in ‘Step 1′), you may already have an email service included in your domain name package or you can add the service at a relatively small cost. If you’re planning on using other online services such as Calendars, Contacts, Documents, and so on, it may be an idea to look into setting up Google Apps for Business (which is mostly free for small businesses) on your new domain name; setting up Google Apps is quite advanced for some users, so you may need help from a friend.
Business Email Etiquette
If you’re using email for your business for the first time, it’s important to remember some key etiquette tips so your email recipients don’t interpret your messages the wrong way:
- Remember to never write using ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, as this can be interpreted as yelling or rude by some readers.
- Remember to always use an appropriate salutation (such as Dear Bob) and an appropriate valediction (such as Sincerely, Shawn) to show consideration and mutual respect to your reader.
- Remember to respond to your customers as quickly as possible; during business hours you should get back to your clients within the hour or if it’s after business hours, the next morning or early afternoon; a quick response can score you many points with your clients and also shows that you value and appreciate their custom.
Email Signatures
If you want to polish the professional look in your email correspondence and you’ve already nailed the email etiquette above, you need a clean and short email signature at the end of your email. In most email applications or web-based email services, you can set a default signature that gets added at the end of each email you send. So, what should your polished email signature consist of? A standard valediction is a good start, but also your company details, such as your business address, your multiple phone numbers, your website address (of course), and anything else you would normally put on a paper letterhead, either by choice or by law.
Additional Resources:
How To Easily Set Up Google Apps on Your Website
6 Simple Savvy Small Business Email Tips
6 Common Email Marketing Mistakes Small Businesses Make
101 Email Etiquette Tips
Step 3: Website
Web Design Choices
Now that you have a domain name and you’ve setup your email, it’s time to get your website online. Your website needs to be professional, informative and provide a way for potential customers to contact you further if they are interested in your products or services; if your website is missing any of the pieces, you may not see the results you expect. You can either design a website by doing-it-yourself (which is acceptable for a new small business to get started online, but not really for an established business looking to generate revenue from their website) or you can hire a digital marketing company to create a website for you. **Full Disclosure: My company designs websites as one of our core services, but many companies provide this service and you should select the company you feel is suited for your requirements.**
Do-It-Yourself Web Design
If you’re thinking of taking the do-it-yourself route and you do not have any experience with web design, you will most likely end up at a build-a-website service such as Yola, as mentioned above in the introduction. There are many similar companies online that will allow you to easily design a basic website by selecting some colours, layouts and filling in your business-related content.
Choosing a Web Design Company
If you’re website is important to your business, as you want to use it as a tool to generate revenue, you need it to be clean, polished, navigable, and functional. Hiring a company that designs websites is the easiest way to get the polished and professional image your probably looking for. Every web design company is unique and may offer different services in different packages, so make sure you pick the package with only the services you need. It’s important to see the company’s previous work and look through their portfolio to see if their design-style is right for your company’s website. It’s also a good idea to speak with other local businesses to see who made their websites, as this way you can get a first-hand testimonial before you give your company’s hard earned cash to a design agency.
Do-It-Yourself Web Design vs. Hiring a Web Design Company
At the end of the day, the decision between do-it-yourself web design and hiring a company to do it, comes down to the cost and your allocated budget. It’s completely attainable to get a website for as little as nothing and have it online within hours and it’s also possible to spend thousands of pounds on a bespoke website that will take weeks or months to get online — the main difference is that one of the sites will do the bare minimum, while the other site is looking to reach your goals and is designed around your business and for your customers. It’s important to mentally spread the cost of your website over a longer period of time, as a professionally designed website can help you generate exponentially more revenue than it costs to set up, even if it’s in the thousands of pounds.
Other Services:
Step 4: Directories
Directories 101
Now that your website is online, you probably want some prospective customers, that are searching online, to find your business’s website. If a tree falls and no one hears it fall, has it fallen? The same is relatively true for a website: if your website is online, but no one is able to find it, is your website online? There are many free-to-post directories online, that allow you to add your listing, which will help Google and other search engines find and index your website’s pages, as well as prospective customers searching online.
Google Places for Business
Google Places should be your first stop to add your business listing (with your new website address of course). These listings get thrown in at the top of ‘natural’ search results on Google when people are searching for a business based on a location. It’s the easiest way to reach potentially thousands of additional prospective customers searching online. These listings even show up on mobile devices, so head to Google Places to set your owner-verified Google Places listing now!
Business Directories
Remember all those yellow pages that you used to get delivered at your doorstep? Most of these companies have now moved online and many new ones have sprouted out of nowhere. It’s relatively easy to add your listing (again with your shinny new website address) to these directories. In the United Kingdom some of the main ones are Yelp,Yell, Thompson Local, Scoot, Free Index, and HotFrog. Most of these websites have an “add your business” link in a prominent position or in the footer (the very bottom) of their websites. It’s important to add as much content to your listing as you can, so that your listing stands out from the other generic ones. After adding your listing, many of these companies may contact you to ‘up-sell’ additional services, but you’re not obligated to purchase anything to remain listed, so don’t get pushed in to advertising with them if you don’t want to.
Niche Directories
There are also thousands of niche directories specifically for and from your industry. It’s not always easy to find them directly, but if you search for similar businesses to yours on Google, some of these directories should show up in the first few pages of search results — click through on these listings to add your business as well, just like you did above. It’s important to submit your website to quality websites and never use automated submissions, as this may cause more harm than good.
Additional Resources:
Directory Submission Tips
Submitting a Site to the Open Directory Project
Niche Directory Lists
Step 5: Social Media Marketing
Social Media 101
I’ve re-written this section a few times now. I don’t want to give too much information on social networks, which can seem overwhelming, but at the same time I want to express how important it is for your business to start using social media going forward. There has never been a way for companies to reach their current or prospective customers in such an intimate way; Facebook and Twitter allow you to communicate directly with your customers and all it costs is your time. It’s important to note that social media marketing is a topic on it’s own and if you’re interested how to maximise your return, just research the topic online.
Facebook Pages for Business
You can setup your business’s page on Facebook by visiting this link and adding all your business details, just like you did on the directory websites; if you already use Facebook for a personal account, you can add a page directly from inside your account. If you put a link to your Facebook page from your website (many DIY-services include this option out of the box), your customers can “like” your company on Facebook and any information (articles, photos, updates, promotions, and so on) that you post on your Facebook page will appear in their accounts. Facebook is great for connecting with your existing customers, but we’ll look at Twitter next which allows you to connect with prospective customers.
Twitter for Business
You can setup your business’s page on Twitter by visiting this link, and once again, adding all of your business details. Twitter allows users to “follow” your account, similar to how Facebook’s “like” feature works, but there’s also another great way for small businesses to reach prospective customers, based on what they’re “tweeting” about. You can head to search.twitter.com and search for words and terms that are relevant to your business and get realtime results of people publicly discussing them; you can then “mention” them in a response and potentially engage a new customer. Twitter does have a learning curve attached to it, so if your twenty-something niece is around, ask them for some help, as an experienced user can easily show you how it all works.
Additional Resources
Twitter for Business
Set Up a Winning Facebook Fan Page
12 Tips to Engage People on Twitter
Step 6: Get Blogging
Blogging 101
You’re reading a blog< right now; sure I’m not talking about what I ate for dinner this evening and this an article of sorts, but it’s still a blog and it’s a fantastic way to engage your website visitors and customers. It’s very easy to get blogging — all you need is time, energy, original content and a blogging platform or software, which I’ll mention below.
Using a Blogging Service
In a perfect world, your blog would be baked in to your company’s website and would share the same look and feel of your main website, and this may be the case if you’ve taken the route of a professional web design company. But, it’s not the end of the world if your blog looks different than your main website. The easiest way to get started right now, is to head to Tumblr and start a free blog. You can choose one of Tumblr’s free themes, design your own theme, or purchase a premium theme. One of the best features of Tumblr is that your blog’s address can be http://blog.your-domain-name.com instead of http://tumblr.com/my-company-blog, which only adds to the professional look of of your company online. You may need help configuring your domain name for this to work, but Tumblr provides easy instructions on how to do this.
What’s A Blog Got To Do With It?
I’m sure you’re thinking what’s the point? Why should I blog? What should I blog about? You should blog about whatever you’re knowledgeable about. There are two main reasons to write articles on your company’s blog: the first reason is that you’re creating original and relevant content that can bring prospective clients to your website or engage your existing clients; the second reason is that by creating this original and relevant content (sorry for repeating that, but it’s important) other people or companies in your trade or field may link to these articles, increasing your relevance and authority to search engines, which may increase your website’s ranking on relevant search terms. In some ways, blogging is used as a tool in search engine optimisation, but this is another article on it’s own, and all you need to know is that blogging will only help your business in one way or another. Also, remember to use your social networks to spread the news that you’ve written a new article; your subscribers may pick up on this and your content could syndicate quickly throughout the web.
Additional Resources
10 Small Business Blog Tips (that Make a Big Difference)
What a Blog Can Do For Your Small Business
Top 100 Small Business Blogs
Step 7: Advertise
Google AdWords
You’ve now established your company online, but there’s still more you can do to generate additional leads and customers. One advertising solution is Google AdWords, which is a pay-per-click advertising service that runs alongside the free or “natural” search results on Google. The unique selling point of Google AdWords is that your ads only appear when people are searching for your relevant terms and you only pay a fee if someone clicks on your advertisement. You’re also able to track your spending and your return on investment with the built-in tools. The success of your campaign is only limited to your budget and how well your website is optimised to convert visitors into customers (via contact forms, purchases, or other methods). It’s advisable to use a search engine marketing company or educate yourself about this service before trying it on your own, as it requires a complex setup to optimise your spending. **Full Disclosure: My company manages pay-per-click campaigns as one of our core services, but many companies provide this service and you should select the company you feel is suited for your requirements. We are not affiliated with Google but one or more individuals hold a related qualification issued by Google Ireland Limited. **
Additional Resources
Google AdWords: Small Business Centre
4 Ways Google AdWords Can Increase Small Business Profits
Conclusion
Every step you take to bring your company online, is a positive one. The majority of consumers and clients research everything online, so it would be a shame if they missed your company. Initiatives such as GBBO are helping spread the word — and I hope this article will help some small businesses better understand what’s required to truly get their company online.
I’m sure things have been missed — and many revisions will be made to this article in the future. If you have any comments or other suggestions for this article, please share them with me.
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