It still surprises me how many businesses still don’t have even their basic information online.  Even more do not have their information in all of the right places.

What is really stopping you?

• You can get there for $0-$100 in less than an hour.
• Another company may steal your name…and your customers.
• Doing nothing doesn’t mean you can avoid it.

Low cost.

Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn all offer free accounts with the ability to set up company pages.  There is great online documentation, really good visibility, and it’s extremely easy to get started.

At the very least, customers will be able to find critical information about your location, services, and hours of business.  You can even push information directly out to them with quick, and free, status updates.

Minimal cost.

Set up a free GoDaddy account.  From there, purchase a domain name and web hosting services.  GoDaddy has tools to help you set up your site quickly and easily.  You can always build a more complex site when you are ready, right from this same account.

Stake your claim.

Even if you don’t use it, it’s worth going to the effort to purchase your domain name and set up company pages in other services.  If you wait, your name may be unavailable when you are ready. If your name is already taken, it’s only going to get harder to find an alternative.  Most people already know it’s important to be able to get the right domain name.  Don’t forget that LinkedIn company pages and Facebook pages get names, too, and just because you already have the domain name does NOT mean that you get to use the same name on these other services.  You have to stake your claims on them, as well.

The last word.

You don’t need more than a single page to say what needs to be said: business name, location, hours, contact information, and description of products and services.  Regardless of what is posted elsewhere, most customers will expect the information on a company-managed site to have the most accurate information.

Even if you think you don’t want or need a company website (what are you thinking???) your customers, Google, or even someone else may have already posted something about you and that is a huge risk.

Yes, this is just the tip of the iceberg.  But the whole point (don’t miss the pun!) is that it is at least above the waterline.

If you would like more information, I’d be happy exchange email to help you move forward.  Just don’t make the mistake of thinking your online presence needs to be expensive.