Does a small business need a website?

This is a comment that I posted today on a Linked In Discussion called “Is a website still needed for a small business?”.Here is my answer.

I have to admit that I am a late joiner on this discussion and I simply don’t have the time to read the 417 comments that are posted, but I commend you Roman for getting some good discussion happening.

This is a question that I have been asked since the beginning stages of the internet and my answer really stays the same.

Although I agree that it is important for every business to have the Google Factor, the method to how they get there really depends on the business.

Each business out there is marketing to different groups of people and it really depends on how best to engage with that group.

Years ago for a company whom I thought did not need to jump on the website bandwagon, I would suggest other forms of marketing, such as old fashioned print advertising. This was a better alternative then just posting a one page glorified business card online which was how many of the first sites were (Oh I feel so old).

Today, my answer stays the same because of all of the other great social media tools out there that allow a person to include a profile of themselves. I will use my yoga instructor as an example.

She is not internet savvy to start so keeping a website up-to-date even with a great content managed is difficult. She has built a solid fan base through her Facebook site, her email marketing and is starting into Twitter. She uses these vehicles to get new business and to communicate changes to all of us. She asked me the other day if she needed a website and I said No. I said that there were things we could do to enhance her Facebook page so that she could post her events there and email programs that she could keep track of participants, but for her, a website was simply not a necessary investment for her limited budget at this time.

I think that marketers need to help to guide people to find the right vehicle for them and that vehicle is one that is constantly changing. I think we need to be comfortable to suggest something to someone who is out of the norm and that fits with their needs as a person. I never suggest anything to people that they don’t need, I always offer the honest solution.