Having been involved in sales and marketing for more than 30 years I have seen a lot, tried many proven and some new fangled techniques, had great successes and yes a few failures. I equate business to my past life in extreme sports. If you’re not wiping out then you’re playing it too safe.

For most of my life I have been a self employed and it’s to you business owners that this is written.

Marketing. I don’t know of any business that doesn’t need to brand itself and reach out to the world in one way or another. It’s always amazed me how many companies have no organized, budgeted plan for getting their message out. As a young man I used to laugh at businesses that would tell me “we don’t advertise” when presented with my advertising solution, only to see them advertise a “Going out of Business” sale a year or two later.

Do all businesses need to advertise? I’m sure you can give me examples of companies that don’t need to. If you’re one of the rare few then stop reading now and share this with your friends who would benefit from sound marketing observations.

Should all companies advertise the same way and in the same places? It’s like the question we get often “what’s the best place to advertise?” If you’re not qualified to figure this out on your own, don’t just do nothing, find someone who is a professional that can point you in the right direction. And the short answer to those questions is no, and each business needs to find the best bang for their adverting dollar.

The Only Bad Decision is Indecision.

Now let’s take a moment and discuss the lead off to this article which is the “web” and is your ignorance of it hurting your business. Please know I’m not trying to call you ignorant as in that you’re a dullard. Ignorant in the manner I’m using it in means “lacking knowledge or information.” So if you are a member of Mensa yet don’t have a handle on the power of the web then you are an “ignorant genius” when it comes to web related marketing.

There currently is no place as valuable as the web to market your business, promote your brand, get the word out, find new business, keep the clients you already have loyal, network with interesting people worldwide, and much more.

Oh, one more thing. There has never been an advertising or marketing vehicle as powerful as the web nor has anything been a better bargain, none, ever, period! Advertising cost less today than it ever has.

Internet Gold Rush. Like the California gold rush of 1848 there has been for more than a decade now a rush to dominate certain niches on the web. It still goes on and will for some time more. What is your participation in it? Are you spending an adequate amount of time and resources to capture more web territory for your company or are you sitting idly by and getting your lunch eaten? Like the school bully of our youth, is your competitor kicking your butt, taking your (no longer lunch money) but vacation cash, kids college tuition, daughter’s upscale wedding funds, your retirement money, and only leaving you the crumbs in your market? Aren’t you tired of working so hard for so little?

Wake up! It’s not too late, but it almost is. If you had taken the time years ago to learn all of this then you would know that to gain favor with Google, Bing and others takes time, effort, money, skill, wisdom, and a thousand other equally important qualities.

There will be a time in the future when you will seek help, your business will be on life support and you will come to a quality web marketing firm only to find out that no amount of money would be enough to catch up to your competitors. You know those other guys taking your clients, winning the jobs, the guys that have taken this internet stuff seriously for years and are now in the driver seat. They paid their dues, worked hard, hired top-notch web designers and internet marketers and they have a solid position on the web.

Let me say this again. Please pay attention as it’s that important and I’m sorry if this bothers you and is uncomfortable but you need to hear this.

“You better learn what the web means to the future of your business or you and your company will be left behind!”

If no one has spoken to you this way before nor shared this with you then I’m either your only true friend or you need to seek out a smarter group to associate with as they are letting you down.

Advertising budget. The recommended budget for most businesses is anywhere from 6-10% of their annual sales volume. If your business averages $1M in sales then you should be spending $60,000 – $100,000 per year in the continued marketing and promoting of your company. About the cost of one of your lazy employees that puts in maybe 4-5 hours of effort 4 days per week. Now you may be thinking that you can’t afford that level of spending at this time. I get it, I’ve been there. But just because you can’t hit the levels you need to at first is no excuse for doing nothing, is it?

Newsflash. With rare exception. The only bad decision is indecision, followed by inaction.

I want to promote my company, I know that I need a solid internet strategy. Who can I trust to help me?

Now, that’s a great question and if you are thinking the same thing you’re waking up and there is hope for you. You need to find a respected, trusted web design and internet firm like BrightSky Web Design. Contact us to set up a free consultation and when we speak we’ll learn about your company, your immediate and future needs/goals. We’ll discuss budget, what’s working and what’s not. And then we’ll come up with a workable plan that will comfortably fit into your current budget. As these efforts begin to pay off and business increases then we will be able to increase your marketing budget and make even more of an impact into your targeted niche. Baby steps at first, running comes later.

BrightSky Web Design and BrightSky Public Relations has a proven record of taking web properties to higher levels and working a well thought out ongoing marketing plan to ensure web success.

Let’s recap before we close. If you know that you have no positive web presence or a horrible looking website that isn’t producing anything other than embarrassment, or maybe you have a nice looking website but no marketing effort is actively promoting or growing it. If any of these or anything we covered earlier has you worried about your lack of web strategy then we need to speak. We can help you like all the others that have come before you.

If you have taken the time to read this article I’d like to congratulate you because it’s a clear sign that you love your business and you want to succeed. It’s also a clear indication that you know you need help and that you’ve put this off long enough.

Fill out the form on our “Contact” page and request a private meeting with us and let’s see what we can do to help you on the road to internet success and business longevity. It can be done, it needs to be done and working together we can make it happen.

Contact me now, don’t wait, the future of your business may depend on the next few clicks of your mouse and keyboard.

Hoping to speak to you soon,

Grant Burhans

Grant Burhans is President of Business Marketing LLC, BrightSky Web Design, BrightSky Public Relations and many other internet based companies.