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Minnesota Startups Need a Budget for a Website and Online Advertising

Minnesota Startup Businesses

Minnesota startup businesses need a website and a budget for online advertising. Having a website is one of the most cost effective forms of advertising. This makes a website a great business tool to invest in. Minnesota startups need to leverage the power of the internet to help grow their business and get the best bang for their buck in advertising expenses.

Stay On Budget

It is critical for new businesses to find the best means of rolling out the business while staying within budget. This can prove to be a difficult task, but one piece should be set aside for the website and advertising budget.

Invest Wisely

A professionally designed website for a Minnesota startup business can help make or break a business. Everyone knows that more and more people are searching online rather than going to a big phone book. This is a great opportunity for business startups to take advantage of the search engines and get in front of customers without paying phone book front page rates. In order to get front page space on the search engines, it is critical that all of the website pieces are in place. If a startup is serious about getting found online, we would recommend going with a professional web design company. Let the pros do their job, so you can focus on your business. After all, the only way your new startup will survive and thrive is if the business model is scalable and people can get tasks done for you.

Online Advertising Budget

If you conduct some advertising research, you will find that businesses are turning away from the traditional large phone books and pumping more dollars into online advertising. It is hard to blame them too. When you can put your business in front of motivated buyers, what is that worth to your business? Answer: as much as you can afford! Another reason that startup businesses should take a look into online advertising is that they can set their budget as to how much they would like to spend. Minnesota startup businesses should definitely take a look at an online advertising budget.

Anyone who has been involved with a startup knows the importance of keeping within a budget and spending their money wisely. In today’s business market, one of the best places to invest is in a website and online advertising.



Professional Website Design Services for Professional Businesses

Professional Website Design Services

Why have a professional website design?

In today’s world, a website is an extremely useful tool. I can’t think of another advertising tool as versatile and effective than a professional website design. We have all seen the “Build It Tonight” website templates, but when it comes to being found on the search engines, you’re better off having the professionals get the job done right.

Professional Website Design + SEO = Traffic = Conversions = $$$

PLUS it is important to take in the value of Client Retention, how long they will be customers and other services you can provide for them

Establish Trust and Credibility

Establishing trust and credibility is very important on the internet. Recently I was searching for a lawn care provider to take care of my lawn. I found a few in my area on the search engines and had a look at their websites.

One of the websites had an incomplete “About Us” page with random text. Why would I go with a company that can not even come up with text on a page that is so vital when someone is looking to find more information about their company?

Having all the pages on your website filled with relevant text about your business should be priority number one. This is your opportunity to showcase your professional business on the internet.

Usability

Having a website that is easy to navigate is one of the true signs that a professional web design company is indeed a professional. When visitors are able to contact you from any page, find the information they are looking for and able to make a decision, that is when you know your website was built professionally.

Additional Products/Services You Have to Offer

When your visitors know about the other products and services you have to offer on your website, it is a great way to increase sales and show that you are a professional company. When you have that additional information about your other products and services, visitors can learn more about those specific items or services you offer and establish that professional image that you want to portray.

When a little extra thought is put into the information you are placing on your website it can help your visitors make decisions is another way how you know that your website was designed professionally.

Lead Generation

When your website is educating potential clients and letting them know more about what you can offer them, they can make a buying decision. Leads are generated everyday by a company’
s professionally designed website. It is important to have these leads contact you by email, phone or any way possible! Having your website generate leads for you also cuts down on the time you have to educate those potential customers because they will already have done some research on your website.

When it comes to getting your professional business website built, let a professional web design services company use their experience, expertise and knowledge work for you. It will save you money in the long run, and continue to build up your professional image.



5 Ways to Make More Money With Your Web Site

5 Ways to Make More Money With Your Web Site

We all want to make more money with our web sites. There are ways you can invest to get quicker
results. These 5 tips are ways we have seen that are critical in order for your web site to draw
in more clients, which means more ka-ching, ka-ching for your business:

1) Get your web site built by a professional organization.

Some professional web design companies (like Midwest Web Design) have been studying the way
of the internet for years and have watched it grow into the useful tool it is today for
information and business. Getting your web site built by a professional web design company
takes advantage of this knowledge. A business can save huge amounts of time and energy
that they can spend on building other parts of their business, such as advertising,
infrastructure, future contacts, etc.

2) Invest in search engine optimization for your site.

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO as they call it in the business, can have a huge effect on the profitability of your web site. SEO helps a web site to be found easier in the search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN. With approximately 92% of people online using search engines to find information online, it is obvious why companies would like to rank higher up in the search engines. SEO deals with keywords, descriptions, densities, articles and other bits of information that are picked up by professional web design companies.

“Having a web site built by a professional organization does have its benefits”

Don’t be fooled by internet marketers that promise “Number 1 Spots on Google,” this is not the sign of a professional. Prorofessional web design companies that know Google won’t promise a “Number 1 Spot” and they also won’t run away with your money once you paid. We have seen clients who went with these internet marketers because of what they “offered” and have came back to us feeling taken advantage of and left with an empty wallet. Once again, having your web site built by a professional organization does have its benefits!

3) Make your site useful and easy to navigate and read for your visitors.

You should be making your site valuable to customers by showing:

  • Business Hours
  • Services/Products
  • Offers or Coupons
  • Company History
  • Email Address
  • Having the Site Easy to Navigate

Each of these are key ingredients for customers to find your web site useful. We highly recommend our clients to have all of the above.

A web site also needs to be easy to navigate. Less clutter and making your site easy to navigate can make a difference sometimes overnight. Don’t be fooled by thinking you have to have a graphically-heavy web site in order to have customers order from you. In our experience, the more simple the better, both from a user standpoint and from a search engine standpoint.

4) Add your web site to your other forms of advertising.

We are amazed at the number of businesses that do not have their web site listed on all their forms of advertising. It is one of the most valuable forms of advertising in business today. Period. The more information you have on your web site, the better. Customer make decisions while they are on a web site. Think about it, without a web site they are unable to make any decisions and you won’t get the sale.

5) Invest in internet marketing for the search engines.

Companies such as Google, Yahoo, MSN and others offer services that allow a business to be placed in certain positions that will drive targeted customers to your site. Don’t be fooled by internet marketing services that promise 800 clicks a month. You want targeted traffic to your site. Targeted traffic offers the best conversion rate from visitor to customer.

These are some of the easiest ways to make more money with your web site. Keep in mind that having a professional web design company build your web site will maximize your time and stretch your advertising dollars. They know all the little tricks and shortcuts that will help you use your web site as a tool to make more money the most effective way possible.



Web Site Redesign: Redesign Your Web Site and See Astonishing Results

Web Site Redesign

We see many web sites that need redesigns. We call them “cob webs.” There is nothing more annoying (well, within reason : -)) than a web site that scrolls horizontally, uses flashing text, has pictures from the 80’s, loads slowly and is hard to navigate. I’m sure you all are familiar with the web sites I’m talking about. Well, these sites not only reflect poorly on the designer, but also on the company image. When you, a business person, think about all the money that is tied up into your business, the last thing you want is customers to look at your image and gasp in horror at confusing messages and leave your web site and go to a competitor. Especially when building a professional looking web site is so easy to have done.

Deciding to get the web site redesign

When a web site redesign is started, there is a quick sigh of relief! A poorly designed web site is equivalent to showing up to your movie premier in Hollywood with an 80’s style afro wearing a light blue and brown striped polyester suit, with pink leg-warmers. You get the idea. What type of business image do you want to leave with a customer?

“What type of business image do you want to leave with a customer?”

When a web site is designed properly, the results can be dramatic. One of the “good” things about your web site online is that your domain name has been maturing on the internet, and is probably indexed with some of the search engines. This is a HUGE plus. Newly purchased domain names usually have a delay for indexing on the internet, called a “Sand Box Effect.” This means that Google is trying to make sure that the organization (business, non-profit, personal site) behind the domain name is “reputable.” What happens is that the domain name will not show up in Google searches anywhere between 3-9 months. Yes, 3-9 months.

A word of warning about some “SEO Professionals” and their infamous promise of a #1 Google spot

Don’t be fooled by those “seo professionals” that promise you fast #1 spots on Google. They often make unrealistic promises, take your money and before you know it, your site will be banned from Google. And with Google getting approximately 90% of the search engine market share, being banned is definitely not where you want to be. So with a mature domain name, businesses can be found on the search engines faster than a newly designed web site. Also, when users get to your site they should know how to get around to find the products or services that you offer.

“We also highly recommend that all of our clients have contact information (phone number, email address, instant message, etc) on each page.”

Navigation is extremely important for visitors

Another aspect the professional web design company will look at is the number of web pages your web site needs and the resulting type of navigation that should be used. This step is critical in order to see great results from a redesign campaign. It is very important for the user to know relatively where they are in a web site. It’s even more important to know how to get around (and where you would like to lead them!). The user should know where the navigation is and it should be consistent on each page. We also highly recommend that all of our clients have contact information (phone number, email address, instant message, etc) on each page, so in the event that a user would like to contact the company, they don’t have to leave the page they are on and navigate back to the page they are interested in. Navigation is a definite key in seeing impressive results from a web site redesign. Navigation is also part of the overall design of the web site and when critiqued correctly, your visitors will thank you in the form of referrals and repeat sales.

Last but not necessarily least, the overall design

Finally, the other important detail of having your web site redesigned is the “look and feel.” You may be asking “Well, why is this part last? Isn’t it the most important?” and the answer is most likely “no.” As any web design professional will tell you, one of the main goals of having a web site is being able to see some ROI. We have talked to countless CEO’s and business owners and they have all expressed the same concerns:

  1. How can I use this to make money?
  2. How can I justify spending the money?

Many web sites online make money. How? Most likely they were ranking in the search engines and they were easy to navigate, so the user could find the product or service and contact the business. The overall design has little to do with making the sale, but it still is am important piece. The design should be:

  • Consistent
  • Crisp
  • Flowing
  • Not confusing
  • Clear

A word of wisdom from a professional web design company

As a web design and SEO professional, I encourage you to be aware of the needs of your viewer. It is they who you are building the site for in the first place. Make it easy for them to find your products and/or services, contact you and do business with and you will see the great results or your investment.

Conclusion

In conclusion, a web site redesign can be an extremely valuable investment when done correctly. Optimizing for the search engines will ensure viewers easily come across your web site. Making the web site easy to navigate will make sure the viewer can easily navigate where they want, when they want. The overall design of the site is important. It should be clean and crisp, but it shouldn’t be the main focus. Having your web site built by a professional web site company will make sure that all these areas are covered and you will be on your way to converting more users to customers from your web site redesign.



Why You Should Have Your Web Site Built by a Professional Web Site Design Company

Professional Web Site Design Company

We hear it all the time…”My brother (son, grandma, uncle, etc.) knows how to build web sites and they do it for cheap! Why would I have a professional build my web site?” The sad truth is that eventually the majority of these companies wish they would have started with a professional web design company.

It’s too much work for a non-professional web design company

As time goes on, these companies who have a “cheap” web designer come to us because their designer has one of the following symptoms:

  • No time
  • Went out of business
  • Not available
  • Sick and tired of making updates

And all while the company is not getting the results they had hoped for.

It is easy for us to understand why a company would shudder when thinking about hiring a professional web design company: affordability.

“When you work with professionals, you get professional results and the peace of mind that your web site is doing what it is supposed to do.”

In this article we point out some of the things to take into consideration when you have a web site professionally built.

Benefits of a professionally designed web site
Some benefits of having a web site built by a professional organization are:

  • They have the technical expertise
  • You can focus more on your business
  • Being found on the search engines
  • Clean crisp professional design
  • Easy to use and easy to navigate
  • Increasing traffic to the site
  • Future growth and expandability

The time and money are better spent on dealing with a professional in the field that knows these areas. Those in business know that time is money. Do the math! You are here to find out how to build your business. Your neighbor down the block does this in his spare time…who would you want to do business with?

Web design professionals know all the in’s and out’s

There are many areas to be considered when thinking of getting an online presence:

  • Goals of the site
  • Usability
  • Professional, clean, crisp design
  • Future expandability
  • Who is going to keep it updated
  • The information you should we have on your web site
  • How your web site will be found on the internet

These are just a few areas that are analyzed when you decide to work with a professional web design company. Some areas are obviously more important than others. The company’s goals for the web site have much to do with the priority of each of the areas.

This is what we as professionals are trained to do: enable business owners to focus more on their business, and let us focus on doing what we do (building your online presence)

For example, I wouldn’t even think about designing and building my own cabinets. Considering the time it would take me to build a cabinet myself, it would be a better business decision to hire a professional carpenter or cabinet supplier to build my cabinets, so I can focus on my core business. Likewise, you have a core business model which you should be focusing on so that your business grows.

Let the pros do their work, so you can focus yours.

You are reading this article to get an education about possibly making a business decision in the future. Your neighbor down the street does this in his spare time (and their work on your business web site will show it)…Who do you want to do business with? Who would you work with to showcase your professional image?

When you work with professionals, you get professional results and the peace of mind that it is doing what it is supposed to do.

Having an online presence is not enough. Your web site should be optimized for the search engines. Google, Yahoo and MSN, are just a few of the search engines the professionals work with. Professional web designers have industry knowledge that help your web site rank higher and be more useful to customers. Your web site should be easy to read and to navigate. The layout should be attractive and the text should be readable.

“We enable business owners to focus more on their business, and let us focus on building your online presence.”

Future growth and expandability

One characteristic that professional web design companies focus on is the future expandability of the web site. This is very important when looking at the overall design. There are many packages available that will help you build a web site, but when the support for that package goes away or they go out of business, all the money that you invested into your web site is gone with the package. The professionals use industry standard coding practices so their code can be easily understood. This translates into a higher value web site that is faster to expand and grow, saving you and your business time and money.

When you invest in a professional web design company to build your online presence, what you are paying for is their experience in the field. However, the professionals aren’t for everyone, at least in the beginning. Eventually those businesses who wish to get a web site professionally made, but don’t want to spend the money, will fall into one of the following categories:

  1. They will go out of business, or
  2. They will end up paying a professional to build their web site

What we as professionals have seen

In our experience, the businesses that don’t invest in a professional web site eventually wish they had invested in a web design company. Considering all the important factors listed above, it is highly recommended to look closely at the benefit of working with a web design professional.

The task of building a web site and having it work for your business is too time intensive for non-professionals and the business simply won’t get the results they had hoped for without spending much time and effort learning the techniques that work well for businesses on the internet.

Conclusion

In conclusion, your job is to build your business which takes both time and energy. Save both and let professional web design companies use their time and energy to help build your business the right way.