Archive for the ‘Web Development’ Category

Can you really make a “Brick & Mortar” business successful on the web?

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Get ready.. This is going to be one of my famous rants..

I took some time this weekend to thumb through the paper and take a look at the local companies who advertise there. I ran across a couple of companies (names withheld to protect the guilty) that run sizable ads – like quarter page or larger – that had previously contacted me saying they weren’t seeing the results they wanted from the web and wanted to know how we could improve their site.

What I think is funny is that in each case, the costs of everything I proposed to them (including an AdWords budget) would have cost less than $1,000 with me completely guaranteeing the results. In both cases, I was told no because of budgetary reasons, or that they didn’t feel the plan I proposed would work for “their business”.

It totally bewilders me how somebody who could spend hundreds, perhaps even thousands of dollars for an advertisement that runs one day, but won’t even give a second though to investing a few bucks into improving their website so that it targets their ideal client, weeds out unqualified or undesirable clients, and compels a direct response from the visitors, which generates leads and sales at virtually no cost.

Guess what, mystery companies Y & Z: You’re about to start hearing from me a lot more.. and here’s why: You are my perfect client. It isn’t because I think you have a bad website (actually, one of them is VERY nice).. It’s simply because you appear to have never seen success from your sites.

Experience is a great teacher, and it has taught me that even though many times I have to drag the customer kicking and screaming, once they actually start receiving results from their website their entire outlook changes. Not just their outlook, but their bottom line as well. We don’t get in there and try to recommend technology just for the sake of recommending technology. We focus on your goals and what it takes to get there.

We also teach you how to measure your results. Most of the time, this is the one thing that our competition leaves out. Sure you can have a great looking web site, but do people buy? Do they sign up for more info? If you are advertising online, what ads are they clicking on?

If you don’t know the answers to those questions. Don’t worry, you will. Don’t get caught up in the mindset where you think that your business is somehow different. We can work with every business and every industry and I guarantee you, we will find a way to make your website more profitable.

As for companies Y & Z.. I have a strange feeling you will see their success stories here soon.

Thanks for your time!

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Posted in Rants & Raves, Systems Strategy, Web Development | No Comments »

How would you answer this question?

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

If you’re among the group of small business owners that have a pulse, you’ve either put up a web site or thought about it. Lets assume, for the purpose of this blog entry, that you do have a web site. I want to ask a challenging question: Are you happy with what it does for you?

The initial response I usually get to that question when I ask it in person is, “What do you mean ‘what it does for me’? It’s just a website.” Sometimes people will tell me that they’re getting however many hits a day or month and others still will tell me how proud they are of the job their brother/sister/cousin/uncle/etc did for free.

What most people don’t know is why I ask the question the way I do. Many assume that my follow up to either of the above answers is some sort of sales pitch to sell them a website. That assumption is dead wrong. I sort of consider it a pre-qualification question. Experience has shown me that people who see a website as an online brochure or some other static existence where the success is measured in “hits” are not my target customer. When I receive one of these answers, I generally change the subject, and, if I’m lucky, the other party in the conversation never figures out what I do for a living.

So, with that being the case, what is the answer I look for? I am looking for the one person out of 30 that responds by telling me how much money their web site is making them. These are the people I can help. Their feet are already wet, they have gotten a taste of business on the web and are generally hungry for more. I am always excited to continue the conversation when it heads this direction. Even more so if they begin to tell me about what they have vs. what they want or list some of the things they wish their site did that they don’t think is possible.

Interestingly enough, the reason I love talking to folks about how to make their business more successful on the web isn’t because I own a web business and am trying to make a sale. I mean, yes, I have to make a living and all, but the real reason is simple: I love creating solutions. It’s a passion I first experienced in the 80’s when I wrote a management system for a Door and Window company on group of Commodore 128 computers sharing a central hard drive… That particular solution in and of itself is a testament to my creativity – and over the last 20 years I have only gotten better. 

Anyway, I need to run for now, but if you are one of those folks that are hungry for doing more with the web, give us a call and lets talk. I promise, no sales pitches and no pressure. Let’s just see if we can come up with some ideas that fit your business. Thanks for your time.

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Posted in Marketing & Social Media, Web Development | No Comments »

Why I hate the term “Consultant”

Sunday, May 11th, 2008

Since founding Mosier Information Services, I have gone through a sort of transition. My very first business card listed my title as “President”. After a while in business, I had a new logo designed (the one we use today) and took the opportunity to update my title on my business card to “Developer / Consultant” mainly because I felt that was a little more descriptive of my job.

Today, I am again making a change to my title. I have decided to call myself a “solutions architect” instead of consultant. If you’re like everyone I have run this by so far, you’re probably thinking to yourself, “What?!”

Let me explain.

I made a conscious effort to drop consultant. As a matter of fact, I will work over the next weeks to drop the word consulting from anything that Mosier Information Services does. Not because I don’t think we’re good at helping clients – quite the opposite is true – but there is a particular stereotype that goes along with consultants. 

That stereotype – the one that during my days as an IT Director I agreed with wholeheartedly – is one that I want to shake. I forget where I heard it, but the old saying goes something like, “A consultant is someone who will borrow your watch then charge you to tell you what time it is.” 

Another illustration is from an old story talks about a plumber that was called in to fix a leak. He took a careful look at the pipe, gripped his hammer with both hands and struck the pipe as hard as he could. The leak stopped. He then presented a bill to the customer for $250.35. The client was furious. “This is outrageous; you were only here for two minutes and all you did was hit the pipe!” The plumber took back the bill and itemized it for the customer. When the man got it back it read, “Striking the pipe with hammer – 35 cents. Knowing where to hit – $250.00″

Henry Ford once said “The moment one goes into the expert state of mind, a great number of things become impossible.” I strive to keep Mosier Information Services grounded and am going to do my best to prevent us from ever developing a know-it-all mentality. Yes, we are specialists and have an enormous wealth of specialized knowledge in the technical arena, but the only expert on our customer’s business is our customers.

When we engage with clients, we want to go in and work collaboratively. We want to understand why they do what they do and how on earth they do it. We want to make sure that any solution we propose meets with their expectations, their company culture and the resources they have to make it work. Yes, by some definition, this would still fall under the guise of “consulting” – but to me – and my team – it’s much more than that. We truly enjoy building our clients businesses. Sometimes when we leave a client meeting, the solution that we all agree on have little to do with technology and more to do with organization or marketing, but it always comes from the client’s expertise coupled with our specialized knowledge. 

So in a nutshell, that’s why I have boycotted the title of “Consultant.” Maybe “Solutions Architect” isn’t the best one either, but it’s all I have for now and I am going to run with it until something better comes along. If there is one thing I am not afraid of is change.

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Posted in Rants & Raves, Web Development | No Comments »