The web is a powerful tool, and grows stronger everyday as its user base and content base grow. When you look at what the web can do for you or your business I want you to first think about the main purpose of your site.

This will determine a number of things before we build your site. Still with me? Have that main purpose in your mind? Good. Lets talk about what a site should do, now that you know what you want yours to do for you.

Your Site Should:

1. Enhance Your Brand

Some may ask what Brand is? Well brand is the mcdonalds arches or the same taste that you get from a #6 meal in Orlando, or Atlantic City, its the same experience that your consumers receive while interacting with your company. Your site should offer a consistent look, feel and experience everytime your customer visits your website, or looks at an ad in the paper, or walks into one of your retail stores. Your advertsing through to customer service at the front desk should feel like your company.

2. Generate Revenue

Today there are numerous ways to generate revenue on the web. Pending on that main purpose I talked about a little earlier, your business should have some way to generate income.
- Product or Service Sales
- Recieving Donations for Non-Profits
- Affiliate Programs
- Ad or Referral Programs
- Lead Generation

Through any of these programs you can make money but when combining multiple revenue generating streams for your company and fully capitalizing on the technolgies available to you should be the ultimate goal.

3. Save You Money

The internet saves you money multiple ways when comparing to the startup costs for a brick and mortar store front. I would get into an example of a break down on costs that it would cost to open a virtual store compared to a brick and mortar store selling the same exact items, but there would be no need. Even if I did that the very same brick and mortar store should have a very similiar site built for it.

One thing the internet is so useful for in business is in transactions. Either sending data or processing payments. Some of these tasks can even be automated and allow you to quit answering the phone and taking orders and doing more work. Grant it the emails and orders will still need to be reviewed and taken care of but considerable amounts of time will be saved by everyone involved in the process.

4. Support Your Customer Relationships

In todays business world you need to FOCUS on CRM "Customer Relationship Management" - what is CRM? When you talk about CRM you think about interaction with the customer from first impression, look,image, feeling, service they recieve you need to cater to your target market and maintain the best relationships you can to ensure that your customers maintain their loyalty to your brand instead of going to your competitors next time.

To do this give them everything they need to make a decision. If its selling a product give them all the pertinent information at their finger tips and you will find that impulse buying has a great effect on consumers.

Perhaps your a service company that requires custom project pricing like myself. Make it easy for your audience to contact you and make sure they give you pertinent information to qualify the leads you are recieving. so you are not chasing leads that will not pay off.