“Why It’s the Perfect Time to Take Your Business Online”

“Why It’s the Perfect Time to Take Your Business Online”
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Many businesses still don’t leverage the online world for their business the way they should. Some people still “pooh pooh” the internet in general like it’s a passing fad. Nothing could be further from the truth.  If you don’t have an online presence for your business today, you’re at a huge disadvantage.  The good news, though, is that you’re not too late and now is the perfect time to take your business online.

Although some people disagree with me on this point, I contend that the internet is still in it’s infancy.  Think about it: the internet has only had a major presence in our culture for less than a quarter of a century.  Further, comparing apples to oranges, look at the automotive industry and the technological advances that have been made in how cars are being built, features, etc., since the turn of the 20th century. 

I think if you look at the progression of that industry through the years, you’ll see what I’m talking about. Who would have imagined the concept of a car that drives itself even ten years ago? Yet, it’s estimated that fully autonomous vehicles are only a few years away from development with testing being done by several companies daily in several major cities in the US. 

And this usually holds true for any major technological breakthroughs. 

It was only about two decades ago that technology was known to double— in what we knew and could apply in just about every field—every 3-5 years. Online technology now doubles at a rate of about every six months.

So, what does this have to do with your business—no matter what size it is? Because of the technological advances, as well as most of the developed world embracing social media and other online forums, the attention for your business is to be found online.  And because the internet is still very young and developing, learning how to use the online world to get attention—and ultimately customers—for your business is relatively easy.  You just need to learn how it works and then learn to navigate it. And the answers to this are online too. You can simply Google ANYTHING you want to learn and it’s at you fingertips in seconds. 

If you’re a “baby boomer” like me, it’s easy to get intimidated with how everything works online. I went through this for a few years before my work as a marketing consultant, speaker and copywriter literally forced me to learn how to use social media, email marketing and other online technologies to market and sell my services.  This was simply because this was where my industry—and customers—were. 

As of this writing, Facebook currently has 2.19 BILLION monthly users. That’s almost 29% of the world’s population!  I always ask local business owners a “trick” question.  My question is simply, “Where are your customers?”. I invariably get answers that are related to geography.  They name the cities and towns near them where their customers come from.  But if you really want to know where most of your customers are—no matter where they live—it’s on Facebook. 

That’s why Facebook advertising became so big.  When Facebook Ads started, it gave virtually (no pun intended) any business owner a way to reach their target audience. And the beauty of Facebook Ads is that you can target your audience precisely based on just about any demographic you can think of.  And the good news here? Facebook Ads are still very underpriced and a good bet for ANY business that wants to get the attention of their customers and stand out in a very competitive marketplace. 

The whole point here is that now is a great time to get your business online.  I just started building my Instagram following last year and today I still see many people with only a couple hundred followers on there. People are joining this platform daily. And  this is why Instagram is the second fastest-growing social media platform, only behind Facebook (who happens to own Instagram).  Savvy businesses should not wait any longer to enter the online world.  The internet is going to continue to disrupt and change many industries, retail and otherwise. 

It’s suggested you do like I did and start studying how things work online. The train is leaving the station and there’s never been a better time to get onboard.