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Thank you for setting us straight on sales on the web.

Your point about 3k being a lot of money for some small businesses is an excellent one. It is one of the main reasons I tend not to work for small business. I believe in them, I think small and middle sized businesses are the backbone of this country. But I also think they are not in the position to take advantage of what a sound marketing and advertising strategy can do for them. That's why I like this forum, it is a place where thoughts and ideas can be exchanged. We can all learn and grow.

I don't think anyone in advertising can or should offer a guarantee on returns - they would be lying. I wish we could but there is no way to honestly say that we can deliver guarantee numbers. And anyone out there saying they can should be avoided. There are way too many variables.

I think we are missing your strategy point. Our research has found that most people are finding or coming to websites after being informed of the website through some off-line source. Most people know what company they are looking for before they get on the web. If this is even remotely true, then the strategy has to be one that creates awareness about the company's offering and the website. Not just the website. You have got to have a way to drive them to your website, SEO is great but what about in the car, at home, in the mall, at the salon or the barber shop? Optimize all of your marketing, make sure it is reaching folks where they are, not where you want them to be, and it says what you need it to say.

cwgreen09, thanks for taking the time to consider my point and respond. As I said, I wasn't trying to argue, but rather give business owners (and hopefully a few web devs) the overall business decision to consider. Thank you again (shaking hands!).

Having a website is crucial. There is no doubt about it. Depending on what you want to include on your website you might spend $3,000 but I know quite a few companies that would be able to produce a site with e-commerce tools for around $1,000 (or even less).

A website is not used simply to draw people that are surfing online to you. A website is also used as supplemental information. Let me explain.
I own a video production and advertising company called Tonangi Media (http://www.tonangi.com). Most of my clients purchase 30 second TV ads.
There is only so much that you can tell a customer about your product or service in 30 seconds. Every single customer has placed their website address on their advertisement. This is so customers can go on the web and check out more information about their business.

When credit cards first started to become popular in the late 70s it was not necessary for all businesses to accept them. That has now changed. Very few businesses exist without accepting credit cards simply because this is one of the most popular forms of payment. This is now true for websites. If I saw an advertisement on television, on a bus, or a flyer and the business didn't list their URL I would not consider the business as credible. If I could not quickly "google it" and find out a website address, I wouldn't even consider placing an order - and this sentiment is shared with roughly 1/2 of the United States population.

If cost is your biggest issue you can create a website using tools on GoDaddy like Website Builder, or hundreds of other free or very cheap tools. Without knowing your specific needs it's impossible to tell you what you should budget but irregardless of what you do - in today's market you must have a website.

Vinod Tonangi
Tonangi Media
http://www.tonangi.com

Video Production and Advertising for Small businesses