Not too long ago – perhaps 6-8 years ago (ages ago in Internet time) – having a website for a small business meant either hiring a web development company or, assigning the task to an individual in your organization to design and develop it. With that complete – you arrived on the information highway and were cruising along down the road.

Marketing your business remained very traditional – with one additional ‘cool’ feature – a web address, which you listed on every brochure, business card, and magazine advertisement you placed. And it was powerful. So much product information, industry knowledge and articulate value propositions could be displayed – graphically. Provisions for updates including internal procedures, job assignments, and sincere dedication to this new media assured its contribution to your small business success.

Celebrations were held all around and with baited breath – results were expected. Often, these results were good, sometime phenomenal, too often however – very much lacking. Even more review and internal discussions to change some of the content bore little fruit.

In the end, a decision – perhaps not a conscience one, but a decision all the same was made: ‘This site is not going to produce the results we expect. Let’s just leave it up there and get back to the business we know best. What the heck, maybe someone will find it and give us call.”

I find it curious that a small business that specializes in a particular market segment – and advocates to their customers all the good reasons for leveraging their unique abilities – doesn’t apply the same thinking to the growth of their own business.

Just having a site is not enough – certainly not today. It requires constant attention to understand the ever changing conditions in the Internet as-well-as the practices of those who use it to find relevant information, i.e., your target customer!

Are you an expert in your industry? I expect so. Are you an expert in Internet marketing? … Perhaps – but is that the business you are in? Probably not.

We’ve had a few people who’ve been promoted recently within their areas.

Vikki Donnelly, who has been with the company for 4 years now, was promoted to the position of Director of Production / Build. Vikki is responsible for all aspects of the work product and resources associated with the development and update of our customer’s websites. Vikki’s and her production team are the first people that customers encounter after joining Cazbah. Her keen sense of timing and priority has ensured a flawless record of successful customer website launches.

Mike Farney, one of the first employees of the company, was promoted to Director of Account Management. Mike’s roll is to oversee and manage the dedicated account management staff at Cazbah. Mike has been an account manager himself for 5 years and is a classic example of what effectiveness as an account manager at Cazbah is all about. Mike’s responsibility is to provide leadership to his team in all areas of their involvement with their individual base of Cazbah customers.

Louis Horton, was recently promoted to Director of Information Technology. Louis is responsible for a growing staff of software development personnel and is the principle development engineer for the company. Louis provides direction to his team regarding the design, daily operations, security, update and continuing development of Cazbah’s technology. Louis’ expert development skills have had a profound effect on the quality of the company’s technology in a very short period of time.

This group represents the management team for the company and is headed by Mike Seppala, company president, who acts as the director of operations.

Congratulations to Vikki, Mike and Louis!

That statement may seem optimistic considering all the negativity in the traditional media right now. But, it is something I truly believe. First, access to top level employees is high and getting higher. Your business gets to be at the forefront of helping to solve the unemployment dilema.

Next, a lot of your competitors are sitting on their hands waiting for something to happen. If you are out there making something happen, you have a huge advantage. I think Winston Churchill’s statement during WWII sums up our current state pretty well, “This is no time for ease and comfort. It is the time to dare and endure.”

This leads us to the next advantage. Your business is part of the solution. Small business is the back bone of the American economy. Our own President acknowledges this. So, running a well oiled successful small business, in today’s turbulent economy, only sets you up for greater success as the economy moves forward into more rewarding times.

Now, do I think it is going to be easy? Absolutely not! It’s going to take creativity, thought, planning and implementation on a huge level. Your business is going to need to have a rock solid strategy from top to bottom. In today’s business environment, any hole in your business model will quickly lead to a sinking ship.

So what can you do as an entrepreneur to ensure success? First, get a strong business plan. Plans help you set a course for success. They show you were your strong points are and where your challenges are. Next, be willing to make adjustments based on the information you gather that will impact your business plan and create a strategy for implementing your plan. Finally, follow through with the plan. I have seen more small businesses than I care to remember set themselves up for failure based on their lack of follow through. They have a great plan, but never implement it and end up dying off or just winging it. In today’s economy this is truly a recipe for disaster.

Lastly, as Nike likes to say ‘JUST DO IT’. Whatever it takes, do it! Don’t be afraid to ask for help there are a lot of places out there to get help. You can go to the Small Business Administration, the Internet has a ton of information and advice, local business groups, or even other local business owners themselves. Business owners can be the greatest resource because in many cases, they have been there and done that.

The E Myth — Revisited, by Michael E. Gerber — Why Most Small Businesses Fail and What to Do About It (The dog-eared book to the right is my own personal copy from 1995).

The subhead says it all! As you know if you’ve read my other posts, I’m all about overcoming the small business epidemic (a term that I coined several years ago), which gets right to the point that “most” small businesses don’t work, or fail.

Needless to say this book speaks to me. Actually, it’s been speaking to me for years and was instrumental in the development, structure and continuing success of my own business, Cazbah.

The term E Myth relates directly to the Myth that; I am an Entrepreneur, therefore I know how to start, run, manage and succeed at a small business. The data regarding small business failures in this country say otherwise. In fact, most small businesses are started by what Gerber refers to as “technicians,” people that make things or do things and start a business because they think they have a better way of making or doing things. I’ve always related the difference between leaders and managers to this point, namely – managers do things right, leaders do the right things. So simple, so relevant…

One of the characteristic pinch points for entrepreneurs is that they can never seem to get ahead. Gerber refers to this as working in the business, rather than working on the business. They are so busy making stuff that they never raise their eyes to the horizon to see what’s coming or where they are going. Like walking across a field looking at your feet. You may never get to the other side…

There are many, many small businesses (most actually) that I’ve interacted with over the years that are in a perpetual vicious cycle. They go out to their markets sell something, bring it back to the shop and build it, go out sell something, bring it back build it..(repeat). Their financial results porpoise as a result. Picture the fish (o.k., mammal), above the water – below the water – above the water – below the water, etc… It never ends and they never really grow or get ahead. They just exist like this, in some cases from one generation to the next.

The best way to begin the discussion of Success on the Internet is with a brief historical review about what exactly the Internet is and why it came into being in the first place. This may seem like an exercise in futility to some but, I assure you knowing the origins of “the Web” will help in understanding the dynamics of all of the Social Media dialogue that’s flying at us these days.Often times the basic premises upon which the Internet was established are overlooked by companies and individuals seeking their fortunes online. This is unfortunate and often leads to disappointment with their less than stellar results. A brief review of e-History will serve you well as you approach the Internet as a means to your success.

Going Back to Where it All Began
In 1962 (That’s over 40 years ago. I know this because I was born in ’62.) Dr. J.C.R. Licklider, who at the time was working at MIT as a research scientist on a project funded and sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), came up with the concept, what he referred to as the Inter Galactic Network. You see, the defense research work of DARPA at that time involved several desperately and remotely located research facilities, located at several different major universities, MIT and Stanford being among them, as well as several military installations across the country.

Communication And Collaboration
Dr. Licklider (his friends called him “Lick” for short) realized that to effectively work together on co-development projects the research teams located in these various centers needed a way to effectively communicate with each other. Ultimately, they needed to develop a means by which they could collaborate on various aspects of their research activities. Is this starting to sound familiar based on where you see the web going these days?

Where the Internet Came From
Dr. Licklider is most often credited as the man with the original vision of the Internet. In two of his most influential papers, Man-Computer Symbiosis (PDF document), which he wrote in 1960, and The Computer as a Communications Device (PDF document), which was co-authored with Robert Taylor in 1968, he describes his vision of computing, which at the time of his writing was a mere concept, a good idea at best. He also goes into some detail about the purpose of the Internet, and why it was built.

Remarkably, “Lick” also predicted the future by stating that by the year 2000 millions of people would be online, connected by a global network. Isn’t it interesting that Dr. Licklider was absolutely correct?! He also set the table for the types of Social Media interaction that we as users of the “Inter Galactic Network” are having these days.

The Future – Now
As a futurist, he foretold of modern computing conveniences like the graphical point and click interface, digital libraries, ecommerce, online banking, and technology independent software that exists on a network (the web) and migrates to wherever it’s needed. He was also known as the “Johnny Appleseed” of computing. This is a well-deserved nickname for a man who planted the seeds of computing, and in many respects got the digital age started.

My point in this post is this, the Internet was, is and shall ever more be a communications medium designed to bring “people” together, regardless of whether we call it Social Media or Corn Flakes. No doubt about it, we have more ways to communicate with desperately located people than ever before. As I said earlier, that’s not anything new. Speaking personally, I’m having a direct (albeit cryptic = 140 characters at a time) conversation with any number of people from around the globe on Twitter as I write this. Now that is COOL!

I wish I could have met Dr. Licklider but, unfortunately he has since passed away. I consider myself a futurist too and would love to compare notes with him. There are many other contributors to the development of the web that deserve mention but, that’s for another day and another post.

Get comfortable with saying “No.” It is the most important word in your small business vocabulary. One of the predominant issues that small businesses face, due largely to the absence of a CCI – Customer Composite Index (see previous post), is their inability to say “No” to a prospect or customer when they should.

Here’s how it works; they (small business) have a sales opportunity but it’s really not what they do. But, the customers or prospect trusts them, perhaps due to a pre-existing relationship. And that prospect or customer really needs whatever “it” is. Rather than saying, “I’m sorry, we don’t do that. But, I’d be happy to help you find someone who does.” Or, “I know exactly who to point you to, let me make a phone call…” The small business decides that there’s an opportunity to make a quick buck, and “it” really isn’t that far-afield…

Well, I think you probably know the rest of the story (thank you Paul Harvey). The small business takes the job and ends up scrambling (i.e., jumping through hoops) to get it done. They don’t really understand what they are doing so the quality isn’t there. They won’t deliver on time and they spent too much money building or delivering “it.”

Net, net…
Net result? A big looser! Not only did they alienate everyone within their own small business, they lost money on the job, (they would know this if they kept track of such things). And most egregious of all, they broke the trust of a customer who may very well tell all her friends and neighbors about what a pathetic job the small business did for her. Don’t even get me started about the social media implecations of such a message getting out about you. That’s called Word Of Mouth and in this case, it’s not good!

I wish I could say this doesn’t happen very often but I can pretty much guarantee that if you are reading this you have either been involved in such a debacle, been on the receiveing end or, you know of one first hand. Solution? Do what you do best and forget the rest! Your customers, your employees and your banker will love you for it!

If you are going to succeed on the web, be it as a manufacturer, retailer, dealer / distributor, consultant, coach or whatever, it is essential that you identify, as specifically as you possibly can, who your prospective customers are. This is the foundation upon which Target Marketing is based.

An easy way to tackle this problem is through the development of a Customer Composite Index (CCI). Your CCI is a detailed list of characteristics that very specifically and succinctly defines your customers. Ask yourself the following questions: who, what, where, when, how and why.

An example of some of these types of questions are; who are our customers, what do they do, where do they live, (in the case of consumer products)? Or, where are they located (in the case of businesses)? Does their location have any significance to the product or service I’m offering? Does how they live have any bearing? What business are they in – product, service, specialty, commodity? What’s their annual income or revenue? How many employees do they have?

This content continues to get a ton of traffic elsewhere on the web so, I figured I would include it here for your viewing pleasure. This is extremely relevant information related to the development of effective communications with your potential customers.

Everything in this post is as relevant today in the Social Marketing space as it is in the dirt-world. As you will see, it’s all about communication…

Unlike the Broadway musical of the same name, the AIDA that I am referring to is not the story of timeless love between a Nubian princess and an Egyptian prince, but rather the 4 “timeless” fundamental elements of effective marketing communications.

Attention
Your audience is barraged by thousands of different marketing messages and communication inputs every day of their lives. This is only going to get worse now that we have embarked on yet another communications revolution on the web (Social Media). Ensuring that your message is seen and read will mean the difference between success and failure.

Keep in mind that “It’s Not About You!” Get your ego out of it. Your headline, in the case of an ad, or subject line, in the case of an email communication, or blog post, should be a bold and compelling benefit statement that “hits the reader where they live.” It should address some aspect of their need, that you are responding to, or the problem that you are solving. Make it as personal as you possibly can!

A good starting point is to make sure you know who you are communicating with or who you would like to communicate your message to. Remember that Search engines feed on blog posts and all other forms of online communications (web pages, twitter feeds, etc). Make sure that your content will draw the right crowd.

Most email management programs on the market today will allow you to personalize your message with the recipient’s name in the subject line, which has been shown to be highly effective in getting email messages noticed and read. By the way, non-spam email is still the highest rate of conversion on the web today.

Your audience wants to know that you’re on-top-of-your-game! After all, they are coming to your website, blog or opting-in to your ezine to find out more about you, your information or your company, with the eventual and very real possibility of spending some of their hard-earned money on your products and/or services!

An easy way of demonstrating to your customers that you are indeed on top of your game is by updating your web content frequently. Having done so, you should send an e-message to your opt-in subscribers that “new” information is available on website. They will do the rest.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve visited websites only to bailout immediately and go to the next one in line when I read this telltale sign at the bottom of the page: “Last Updated — October 2001.” See Ya! If it took me 8 seconds to get to this point, great, if not I go away with the feeling that I’ve wasted my time.

If you are using such an update notice on any one of the pages in your website, make sure that you keep it current. If you have no intention or plan to keep your web pages current and updated, remove the update notice immediately. This is essentially preventive maintenance, which is better than the damage control of trying to win back lost visitors to your web site.

Another dead give away is a web site visitor counter that hasn’t seen much action in a while! Counters do little to gain visitors confidence and trust-especially when they note that, “YOU are visitor # 246 since Oct 2002.”

I heard an interesting interview with Chris Brogan the other day. Chris, who is recognized as an expert in the social media space, was being interviewed about his use of Twitter, the micro-blogging utility that has become so popular of late. Among the various and sundry ideas that were tossed around was a comment about how he loathes getting blatant sales pitches from people who he doesn’t know, who are following him. No one on the interview had a good term, or any term for that matter, to describe this Twitter equivalent to junk mail or SPAM.

Well divine light has shown down upon me. Ladies and gentlemen, I have that term! And the term is, “TWACK.” Now I realize that sounds kind of goofy but, follow my logic. As with all words in the twitter lexicon, it begins with the letters T & W, as in Twittonary (Twitter Dictionary). This is a cool tool you can use to look up the meaning of anything and everything on twitter. “TWACK” also sounds like Elmer Fudd in hot pursuit of Bugs Bunny. “Be vewy, vewy quiet. I’m twack-ing a wabbit! Huhuhuhuhu…” LOL

Most birds chirp and tweet, the later being the term used to describe a micro-post (140 characters or less) by anyone on twitter. These chirps and tweets are melodious sounds that are pleasing to the ear. Ducks, by comparison, quack which to anyone but a duck hunter is not a melodious or pleasing sound. A “Quack” is also a derogatory term used to describe a doctor of ill repute or perhaps a shyster. The word “Quack” is rather abrasive and obnoxious, which is in keeping with the previous comment. The term “TWACK” is also rather abrupt and harsh, when you say it. Try it out. It also sounds similar to “whack,” which is to hit or strike something with a resounding blow.