Look Like a Big Business in 4 Simple Steps

Guest post by Bryan Goode.  Bryan is CEO of Infratel, a company dedicated to revolutionizing the “Contact Us” experience for SMBs.

“You never get a second chance to make a first impression”

As you just start to get your new business off the ground, it is important to consider how your customers will perceive you. Will they look at you as a credible business that is capable of assisting them with their needs?  A small business that makes a negative first impression will find it difficult to close deals, and a business that’s unimpressionable is just plain forgotten.

So how do you look like a big business even though you’re just getting started?  It’s actually pretty easy using some simple online tools:

1)    First things first, create a professional looking website and get a domain for your business. Adding professional or stock photos and other media to personalize the site. Just be careful not to go overboard – only add the tools that project the image you want to show to your potential customers.

2)    Next, think about how customers will contact you with questions or sales inquiries. Recent inquires with online shoppers indicate that telephone support is still the preferred method of pre-sales assistance for a majority of website visitors.

Yet, BIA Kelsey indicates that 60% of small businesses don’t show a contact phone number on their website.

Using a simple cloud-based tool like MightyCall can give you a local or toll-free business number with an auto-attendant and is fully compatible with your existing cell phone.

3)    Once you have a custom domain, a great looking website and a centralized business phone number, go ahead and list your business online. Think about all the places where prospective customers can find you. Pay special attention to Google Places and Yelp, where you can submit your business listing free of charge!

4)    Finally, don’t forget social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Knowing which of these platforms to focus on will depend on your target audience. The great thing about social media is that it is typically free of charge and allows you to build up a base of customers and followers who can then recommend you to others. Add social media buttons to your website so that visitors can “Like” you on Facebook or “Follow” you on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Taking advantage of these tools is really simple and millions of other small businesses have already gotten started using Yola, MightyCall and other inexpensive or free web tools, including small companies like Guided Pathway, LuckyCom and Productions Octopus [among many others].

Look and sound like a Big Business today to make a great first impression.

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About Bryan Goode:

Prior to Infratel, Bryan was Vice President and General Manager at Parallels, where he was responsible for worldwide business development and offering SaaS solutions for SMBs through the company’s 1000+ cloud service provider partners.  Before joining Parallels, Bryan was responsible for product and business management for SQL Server at Microsoft.