Do You Really Need A Website?

Last Updated: 23 October 2006


It's hard to find someone who will deny that new technologies including the Internet are changing the way we do business, and that some businesses are doing extremely well out of it.

It's not always quite so easy to understand just what ecommerce will do for your business. In most cases someone with only a small amount of knowledge can look at a small business and recommend ways to save money, gain time efficiencies, gain a competitive edge over the competition, and get great sales leverage. The improvements might only be incremental, but if you could do 3% better in four places in your business would it help?

Like any change you might be thinking about, ecommerce should be put to some clear analysis. If something is projected to reduce your outgoings by $40 per week, is it worth $3,000? Is it worth $1,000? Is it worth $80? You decide.

A web site is seen as the flagship of the ecommerce involvement of a business, so you need one - right? And you're not getting one because they're costly - right? In both cases you might be surprised.




We recently discussed the usage of the Internet by one small business based in Perth. They have a business based on antiques and over time have developed a specialty in collectibles. These people are switched on to what they need, and over the last year or so they have become aware that they need to retain their shop to give them a chance to buy stock. However, the sales component of the business is almost entirely done over the Internet. Guess what - they don't have a web site. All of the sales can be done through a huge web site called eBay, and the cost per sale is miniscule. Click here to open a free Ebay account.

This works for them because of some specific attributes of their market. It certainly wouldn't work for the local pizza bar. But the pizza bar may find a new way of doing it too. The willingness to figure the new way to do things might be what it takes to get the edge.

So do you need a web site? We usually think yes. One thing we know for sure is that you need to think about it and then do the smartest thing available to you.


Contact us for more information on this topic.


Disclaimer: This page is designed to provide information only and is not a substitute for advice that is specific to your business. Before acting on any of the information above it is important you seek further advice from a professional who has taken into consideration the nature and circumstances of your business.

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