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Building and Maintaining a Web Site: What You Need to Know

Posted on: Wednesday, 22 March 2006, 15:00 CST

By Andreozzi, Lori

Download this fact: A Web site is an important tool for

attracting first-time customers.

It used to be that business cards and brochures made the first impressions on a potential client. These days, I would argue that it's your Web site.

There are a host of reasons to send a potential client to one's site. The beauty of having a site is this: Whatever you want customers to know about your company is up to you. To put it succinctly, your Web site becomes your online advertising real estate.

"A Web site should be considered a key piece of sales and marketing strategy," says Alien Daniell, vice president of operations for Internetbased business solution provider SignPresence of Digital IMS in Lincoln, Nebraska. "The level of Web site functionality depends upon the shop's customer base, its product line, and its overall marketing strategy."

"In this business, a Web site is like a TV commercial that is always on," adds Paul Streicker, owner of Streicker & Company of East Providence, Rhode Island, an advertising firm that has been designing and positioning Web sites for nine years "You want to get people to your site, give them the sales pitch, and let them call you. You have to get the Web site address to them. Put it on your business cards, your stationery, and any sales literature."

The fact that a Web site can generate awareness 24/7 is an important advantage. Is your business location-specific (i.e., attracting local customers), or are you marketing to a customer base outside your area? If your goal is to stay small, a Web site may not be necessary. However, most companies are looking to expand, hoping to attract customers throughout their state or even nationally.

If your sign company sells products that can be ordered, a Web site can be a tremendous help in conducting transactions. However, if you are a traditional sign company that offers mostly on-site service, you do not have much need for online transactions. In addition to financial transactions, practical use of your site can be in day-to-day business communications with clients or sharing files, images, and layout documents.

"With your site, you can have the customers' layouts and drafts easily uploaded to your site, eliminating misinterpretation," says Streicker. "Similarly, a customer can view a proof online, which saves time and costs. If artwork is provided by your customer and uploaded to your site, you already have a digital file for production, and you don't have to make one. If the sign company has multiple locations, files can be stored electronically in one central location."

A Web site can improve communications with your customers. Once your site is up and running, you can direct all your customers to it on a regular basis. They can learn about new products or check on the status of their order. You can also answer general questions customers may have by creating an FAQ page, which will help you save time in customer service/sales calls.

A Web site can increase your company's competitive advantage. In the new Internet economy of the twenty-first century, a strong presence on the Web can help you compete with larger companies, especially if your product is in a "niche" market. As mentioned earlier, a Web site is often the first introduction of your work to a customer. Rather than call for more information, an interested party is likely to click onto your site.

If you decide to move forward with building a Web site, think carefully about what you want it to accomplish. However, it's important to build it from your customers' perspective, not yours.

Finally, think about how you will maintain the Web site and keep it relevant to customer needs. Very few sites need to be updated daily, but at the very least, all the information on your site needs to be accurate and up to date. Will you have the time for that maintenance yourself? If not, do you have an employee who can, or are you willing to pay an outside firm to do so?

"A sign company owner needs to budget for initial development or setup costs and ongoing hosting and maintenance, as well as costs and time associated with making updates to the site," advises Daniell. "It's this last piece of the equation that tends to get lost and ends up crippling many companies.

"Often when a vendor is used to build a Web site, this is simply hosted on the server. After a short time, the site becomes outdated and needs to be updated. The sign company will have to pay for the updates."

"We encounter many sign companies that rely on internal sources to get the Web site done," continues Daniell. "This takes away from other work a designer can be doing to directly impact the bottom line. Or worse, the person that understood the programming code has moved on, and now the site is impossible to update. The sign company is back at square one."

It's helpful to know some of the typical costs associated with Web site development. Streicker gives a breakdown of rates you might find: "A college kid may do it for $200. A professional will charge from $3,000 up, depending on the features to be used. Do you want animation, a shopping cart, or any kind of interactive scripting? All these things cost, and they can easily bring the price up to five figures."

I would also add one more category: the freelance graphic designer. Many freelancers charge reasonable rates, which may be negotiable. However daunting this may sound, sorting the costs may be as easy a few phone calls or sending e-mails to Web design companies. And it's always helpful to specifically contact companies that have experience building sites for sign shops.

According to Daniell, there are four disciplines that must be mastered in order to create a relevant and viable Web site strategy:

1. Consistent and repetitive positioning of a company's brand and message;

2. A well-structured and viable public presence on the Web;

3. A strong use of private areas on the Web to maximize both internal efficiencies and external relevancy; and

4. The proper promotion of the company through overall branding and advertising.

These points can apply to a very basic Web site, as well as an advanced site. Positioning is integral to any advertising medium.

If you're considering a Web site, there are some steps to take after researching the options available. Get a digital camera and create a portfolio of your work; this helps a Web designer get a sense of your work in a first meeting.

Clearly identify what you expect from your site. A basic site needs graphics and text. A more advanced site requires a great deal of planning.

"For a sign company," says Streicker, "a more advanced site would get some typical questions answered like: What will go on the sign? What kind of sign is it? How big is it? What style does the customer want? An advanced site will allow customers to upload layouts on which you can quote. A really advanced site can even let you present some layouts based on the customer's feedback."

"It's critical to have the ability to post samples of work that the sign company provides, as well as clearly describing products and service," suggests Daniell. "This is not very difficult, and most sites accomplish this goal. Customer utilities such as file transfer, online proofing, and online ordering are rapidly growing in importance.

"Private points of entry (passwordprotected) have been successful for sign companies with repeat business. These can be personalized product and services catalogs for customers to reorder commonly needed items."

Another point of confusion with Web sites is how customers and prospects will find the sign company. There are still major misconceptions about how search engines generate business.

For some companies-especially those businesses that produce most of their revenue from standardized signs and sign supplies-playing the search engine game makes sense. However, many custom sign shops should work with customers in closer proximity to their location.

"Having a Web site online doesn't mean that it will magically generate new business," warns Daniell. "The site must be accompanied with other marketing strategies to let customers and prospects know it's there. And yes, that could mean paying to get placed higher in search engines."

Take some time to click onto popular sites such as Google and Yahoo. When you type in "signs," see where it leads. Then, find out what it would require for your site to be listed.

Streicker believes that search engines are the new Yellow Pages. "You naturally want to maximize exposure," he says. "Not only being listed, but being well-listed on search engines is crucial. This is positioning, which is akin to guerilla warfare because everyone is always trying to get to the top.

"The search engines are constantly modifying their placement criteria. Besides positioning, you might want to consider sponsoring keywords and phrases on major search engines."

"A quality Web site that has true customer utilities can make a significant impact on a sign business," explains Daniell. "It's hard to imagine a better customer service representative, sales rep, and delivery person that will work twenty-four hours a day for the same price that a Web site will cost."

For additional information on SignPresence, direct your b\rowser to www.signpresence.com.

To learn more about Streicker & Company, visit www.streicker.com.

Lori Andreozzi Lori investigates a variety of topics for us this month. First up, she tells us why Web sites have become a primary marketing tool for today's sign shop ("Marketing and Regulations," Page 30) and then explains the role of a LED display content provider through a study of a recent installation in Times Square ("Creating Content That Wows!" page 56). Finally, Lori explores the primary appeal of floor graphics in today's retail market and reports on the latest advancements being made in this segment of the sign industry. "It's all about visibility," Lori writes about the medium in her highly visible feature starting on page 60.

Copyright Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation Mar 2006

Source: Sign Builder Illustrated

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