Small business owners need to budget for their online presence.

Here is an insightful Q& A with online marketing expert Jeff Meland from Databae Systems. Every small business is only a sale away from taking them from obscurity to being a house hold name.

Trying to find this sale may seem daunting and at times elusive. It’s when you begin to look at things from the customers point of view that your focus will start to change. The question: “How are my customers finding us?”, will drive that fact home.

Why an Online Web Presence is Important

An online web presence is important because it is more than just a website with some test, a few pictures and contact information. Advertising is effective to promote your business online, but does it really tell the story about who you are, what your business is about, and in depth details about the types of products or services that you offer. That is why you need to create an online presence across multiple platforms and websites.

Jeff Meland, a small business owner himself, has been involved with Internet Marketing and Website development for more than 10 years. He has been certified in Google Adwords Pay Per Click advertising and also in Google Analytics.

How does an online web presence affect a small business starting out?

An on-line presence can help jump start a business just starting out. It can help the business get the word out that they are in business, where they are, and what they do. It can also help the business promote itself by including promotions, sales, and special events.

If my business is doing social media do I still need a website?

Yes. You should have your own website because that is the one piece of online property that you have complete control of. These days people expect a business to have a website so they often look for it when they know about a business. Having their own website, a business can also do more to optimize their online presence so that they appear in front of more people searching online and attract more customers.

What effect do mobile devices have on web content?

Mobile devices are extremely important in terms of internet marketing because so many people are using them to browse the internet and to find businesses. Searching for a business online is certainly taking over searching for a business in a phone book or yellow pages book.

The person searching with a mobile device is much closer to purchasing something than a person searching on a desktop PC. Many websites do not work well on mobile devices and so this will be a big job for businesses to create mobile versions of their websites so that they are useful to their website visitors.

What’s the biggest hurdle a new website has when just starting out?

Many times the biggest hurdle is to get enough content from the client. A website needs content in the form of pictures, graphics, and especially text so that search engines can understand what it’s about. The search engine needs to understand what a website is about so that it can display it to users at the appropriate time when they are searching.

What services do you offer on top of website design?

Databae offers various internet marketing services which include optimizing websites and directory listings. The goal of our services is to help the client attract more customers by getting found more often online.

Provide customers with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions. A business will soon learn that they are now poised to become a choice rather than an option.

Do you need help with creating an online web presence for your business? Reach out to Jeff at Databae, he is a true expert in the field of marketing businesses online. Thank you Jeff for taking the time to answer our questions! We have learned a thing or two and I’m sure our visitors have as well.

What is your online marketing experience? Please share with us in the comments, we would love to hear from you. Be sure to subscribe to our blog to receive future articles.