You know it's time for a new website when...

Kirsty Bond — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 13:35:59 +1000

1) You are sick of receiving an invoice every time you want to make a little change on your website

Whether it be adding an image, or amending text, if you are being charged by a web company, it might be time to look for an alternative.

2) You spend hours trying to work out how to add a new deal to your home page and STILL can't work it out!

Do you ever ask yourself how much easier it would be if the content management system (CMS) you are using to enter data was 'user-friendly' and didn't require the skills of a web developer to do the simple stuff?

3) You wish you could monitor how well your website is performing

If you could only see the statistics, you would know how many visitors are looking at your website, which pages are performing better than others, where these visitors come from and so on.

4) Your website is taking an age to download

If your website hosting is on a shared server in Delhi, it may only cost you $100 a year, but does it download quickly enough to satisfy the visitors to your site?

5) You are being charged when adding another couple of pages to your website

Naturally, you want to tell people about the great new product you're offering, and the flexibility to add new pages. But when you are charged to add a new page here and there, it starts to add up.

6) Your website is not SEO-friendly

Some websites are designed and built to work with the search engines. This means the google crawlers can easily find their way around these sites so they are easier to optimise. As a result, these websites will rank higher in the search engines. Others are simply not built to be Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) -friendly. Is yours?

7) You want to easily send out newsletters and target specific groups of customers

You can use email marketing managers like mail chimp to run your email campaigns, but how great would it be to have your newsletters, database and website all in once place, so you can target and send information to customers quickly and easily?

8) Your website is hacked

The data for a number of websites - sometimes a few, sometimes thousands - is often stored in a partitioned, shared server making it one of the most common and affordable forms of hosting. Unfortunately, whilst more affordable, it presents risks. Security can be compromised in shared hosting, as it doesn’t support secure sites.

9) You wish your blog was on your own website

Rather than having your blog and website in separate places, do you ever wonder how much easier it would be if all your content were in one place, on your website, helping optimise it at the same time?

10) You have a problem with your website and noone to turn to

Often, low cost fees for hosting a website can mean you have noongoing IT support, and this spell trouble if your website suddenly crashes.

10 Tips for jump-starting your business in 2011

Kirsty Bond — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 17:02:29 +1000

Everywhere you look at the moment, there are articles about New Year's Resolutions telling us now is the time to be planning for the year ahead. Of course, everyone wants their business to achieve big things in 2011 and everyone is full of good intentions. But where do you even start? Here's some suggestions (just don't call them resolutions!) to jump-start your business in 2011.

1) Conduct a SWOT analysis on your business (that's looking at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). It doesn't have to be an essay but you might be surprised at what you find. Note any gaping holes/thoughts down and then make sure you follow them up.

2) Write a marketing plan, think about how you can target current clients as well as potential clients both off and online. Don't just file your marketing plan away in a drawer, it should be a working document that you refer to and revise throughout the year.

3) Set goals, but make them realistic. Use the information you have from the SWOT and marketing plan as a starting point. Don't just focus on winning the lotto; you are far more likely to achieve your goals if they are attainable. Bite-size is best, so aiming to increase sales by 5% a month, is easier than aiming to increase sales by 60% in the next year.

3) Consider whether your product or service can be improved. If you offer a service, perhaps there are aspects of it that you could turn into a product, such as an online tutorial. Think about any objections or hurdles potential clients have when considering purchasing your offering and overcome these.

4) Learn to work ON your business as well as IN it. You spend time working IN your business, but how often do you spend quality time working ON your business? Learn how to delegate and/or outsource tasks so you have more time to work on the things that really count.

5) Monitor your competition both directly and indirectly. You never know what new ideas or information you might glean and it is important to be familiar with their offerings so you know how you compare in the marketplace.

6) If you have a threat or weakness in your business, how do you manage it? Consider taking a course or seeking professional advice.

7) Consider getting a website or a refresh your current website. Could your business benefit from having a professional online presence and generate income for you?

8) Social Media platforms - could your business benefit from having a presence on Facebook, Twitter, or You Tube? With so many people now using these types of platforms, they could be worth tapping into.

9) Consider joint ventures with complementary businesses

10) Finally, don't forget to celebrate your successes. Step back and take the time to realise what you have already achieved. After all, what's the point in doing all that hard work if you can't enjoy it and be rewarded from time to time!

Pomegranate Marketing