The Internet is often perceived as a strange new world in which to transact business. This is not the case. While the Internet does pose some unique challenges, the key to success online is to remember the essentials of brick and mortar business.
Many things in online business have counterparts in the brick and mortar world. By recognizing these similarities you will find it much easier to navigate the intricacies of online business. Here are a few useful tips to consider:
1. Your web site is your store. In a traditional retail store you want a clean well lit location, with an ample selection of merchandise attractively displayed in an inviting fashion. Your web site should do the same. Consider your design - is the site visually appealing, easy to navigate, and stocked with a good selection of reasonably priced merchandise?
2. Your domain name is your address. Commercial Realtors will tell you that retail success depends on three things - "location, location, and location." Pick a domain name that is both easy to remember, type, and spell! Don't use unusual or nonstandard spelling. Despite the low cost, avoid using unpopular domain suffixes as your primary address. While you can have up to 63 characters in a domain name, research shows eleven or less is best and.com is still king.
3. Your checkout button is your cash register. In a retail store the cash registers are in a prominent location making it easy for consumers to check out. Do the same in your online store. Cross selling is potentially valuable be careful not to overdo it. A consumer who has to decline offer after offer to proceed through the payment process may grow frustrated and leave. How would you react if you had to refuse a dozen products offered by a retail cashier?
4. You need to bring customers into the store. Too many people think that they can rely on search engines. Very few online businesses can be built on search engine traffic alone. You need to use a mix of advertising and promotion to put the word out and bring the customers in. In a brick and mortar business you wouldn't rely on people searching for you, and you shouldn't do it online either.
5. Once you bring someone into your store you want to keep them there. In a retail business you want people who come into your store to actually shop there. It would be foolish to direct them elsewhere as soon as they walk in the door. People surf the web, often ending up far from where they started. That banner ad on your home page may be more interesting than your site, causing you to lose the visitor before they purchase anything.
Internet based business presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities but it is still business. Address the problems raised by the online realm, and maximize the benefits it provides but don't reinvent the wheel. Build upon the basics, and never forget that online business is just business conducted online.
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