Archive for March, 2009

We’re in a recession – so this is the ideal time to improve, maybe even expand, your website. Wait a minute: conventional wisdom advises that businesses need to knuckle down during times like this, be especially cautious. Don’t spend money, ride it out, etc. But who says anything about being conventional right now – especially when it comes to your web presence?

Recessions can present perfect opportunities for starting a new business. Just look at Whole Foods, Costco, Intuit, Applebee’s and Supercuts (all launched during recessions) as well as 16 of 30 companies that make up the Dow Industrial average (McDonald’s, General Electric, Disney) and other household names today. It’s all a matter of opportunity costs – which are less when credit is tighter and consumer confidence is low. There are other forces at work, too, during bad times: competitors may be weaker, reorganizing or closing up shop; buyers may be looking for less expensive alternatives; and customer loyalties often loosen, meaning they’re more willing to look elsewhere for a better deal. That also means big opportunity.

So if many entrepreneurs consider this period as prime time for a startup, the same thinking holds true for improving your online presence as well. Here’s why: ad rates are softening and if your product or service is truly unique, then launching during a downturn – especially if it involves innovative new solutions – could likely net new customers. All this is simply a preamble to the following 7 tips for positioning – or re-positioning – your site for success:

Take full advantage of SEO: Submit your sitemap to Google™, Yahoo!® and other search engines.

Add title tags and meta tags to your pages. Think about your keywords and how people find you.

Refresh your site content: Update, edit and fine-tune your text and images; add video and audio if possible; revamp your ecommerce strategy, maybe even your shopping cart.

Find more customers: Again, look to improve your SEO – and move beyond advertising banners and PPC to affiliate marketing programs, ad networks (remember prices are dropping), and focus on relationships and link building with partners.

Streamline your online look-and-feel: Rethink the appearance and functionality of your website.

Optimize your pages. Incorporate some of the many new open source tools to make it easier for your customers to interact with you – and find what they’re looking for, like a site search engine or user sitemap.

Consider a content management system (CMS): Not only are there a lot of free and inexpensive options available to you, in the long run you’ll save time and money on web maintenance and routine updates.

Start a blog: There’s never been a better time to add your own, unique voice to the blogosphere. Demonstrate your expertise as a knowledge leader in your field. Drive more traffic. And generate more business/professional opportunities through Facebook, Twitter and other social networking channels.