Why A Web Site?
Web presence is quickly becoming essential for any business, and the vast majority of companies are realizing it, including your competitors.
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At the last PMPA Tech Conference, the organization’s Information Technologies Committee headed up a session focusing on solutions to information and technical issues in business. It was an open forum that allowed attendees to tap the experts for solutions to issues regarding anything from software, networks and security to barcoding, shop applications and wireless technology. Driven by specific questions from the attendees, a good percentage of the session ended up focused on Web presence and Web-based applications.
About halfway through the session, one attendee mentioned that his company does not have a Web site. He wanted to know why the company should consider including one in its marketing plans. It’s important to note that Internet usage is still on the rise. According to Miniwatts Marketing Group’s Internet World Stats, more than 70 percent of the U.S. population uses the Internet, an increase of 2 percent from 2005 and an increase of more than 25 percent from 2000. The Web has become the gold standard for research of almost any kind, and far more often than not, it is the first place a person looks for general company information. Web presence is quickly becoming essential for any business, and the vast majority of companies are realizing it, including your competitors.
A Small Business Research Board e-commerce study reports that in 2007, almost 60 percent of the U.S. small businesses surveyed had a Web site. This figure was an increase from only 10 percent in 1997 and is expected to continue to grow rapidly. Almost 99 percent of all suppliers listed in Production Machining’s 2008 Buyer’s Guide have a Web site, while approximately 75 percent of the businesses receiving the magazine have one.
The Internet has become a mainstay in how the world does business. If you use it for research in purchasing decisions, either at your company or as a consumer, you should already realize its significance. If you don’t have a Web presence, you are invisible to an electronic world of potential customers.