Make your web site work for you

Wherever your Web site ranks on your list of things to work on, move it up to the top. It's that critical.

Your Web site isn't "about" your company, it's an extension of your company. If it's unprofessional, you're unprofessional. If it's cluttered, you're cluttered. If it's hard to work with, you're hard to work with. By contrast, if it's well put together, smart and easy to use, so is your company. At least that's what people will perceive. Most small business Web sites don't do their companies justice.

When you invite prospects to your site, it's no different from offering them a free sample, a trial period or a formal introduction to your business. Even in the age of technology, there's nothing more powerful than a first impression, and your Web site increasingly is your introduction. I used to counsel startup companies not to underestimate the need for a professionally designed logo. I stand by that advice, but now I extend it to their Web presence as well. You simply can't afford to look anything less than first-rate online.

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