For most small business owners, the web is not going to make or break your success as a business. Plenty of businesses do just fine with an inferior web presence or no presence at all. Some business must have an effective web presence and some have built their success around an effective web strategy that they won’t survive without, but again in most cases, a web presence is not a do or die decision. Some business have only a web presence and do terrible.

The web can however enhance your business, there is no doubt about that. The challenge is, at what cost is this worth, and how should it be approached? Should your web strategy qualify prospects, turn leads, close deals, or retain and add value to existing customers? There is no one way to approach the web.

Your experience with the Web comes down to one thing: What you put into it, you get out of it.

There are several aspects to this…

a.) Time: You must spend enough time on your web marketing strategy to make it worthwhile. If you short-change it then you will have wasted what little time you put into it. Like alcohol, you won’t experience the effects of alcohol with one or two sips. You need to have at least a drink or two.

Spend time thinking about your strategy, spend time communicating your strategy, spend time implementing your strategy, and spend time adjusting your strategy. You can’t just hire someone and expect him or her to make it a success while you put your time into other things. Your web strategy is like an organic entity. It must be nurtured and manicured regularly to be competitive. Plan on spending some number of hours on it each week.

b.) Money: You must be prepared to invest money into your web marketing strategy. You will have IT costs (technology), software costs, designer and developer costs, costs for content, and costs for advertising, and costs for other people’s contributions be it with emails, social media, or whatever. Find a budget that is right for you and go with it.

For entrepreneurs or solopreneurs, this could be as low as $100-$300 a month. For firms with multiple employees and hundreds of customers plan on putting a $2-3k or more into your web strategy. It just depends on what you are accomplishing and how.

c.) People: Pursuing your web strategy alone is not realistic. You want to surround yourself with people that know and understand you, your business, and your industry. More importantly, you want to align yourself with people that specialize in the various forms of Internet marketing.

Some people do web hosting and email, some do graphics and design, some do software programming and development, some do template solutions, some do custom solutions, some specialize in promotion, some in conversion, some in process, etc. A firm may specialize in several of these areas whereas individuals may specialize in only one or a few of them.

If you work with a firm then you likely have a single point of contact which can be more efficient, but also more expensive. If you work with individuals then you can save money, but plan on putting more time into managing each individual, getting your vision across to each of them, and then also dealing with breakdowns such as communication, work ethic, etc.

Surrounding yourself with people that can influence your strategy can be done physically with meet-up groups, clubs, and organizations, events, conferences, seminars, and workshops. This can also be done online in places such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc. There is an endless supply of virtual communities that can prove useful to your quest for an effective online strategy.

All this said, I think what is important here is that when it comes to understanding and tackling the web in regards to your business, you want to be cautious not to look at it as a “should I or shouldn’t I” do the web, but rather where and how does the web fit in with what I am doing.

What aspects of the web do I need for my business, what aspects do I not need, and what aspects are optional. How much time do you want to put into specific areas and how much money do you want to put into areas. What people or firms do you want involved in all this and how will you manage each relationship?

If this seems like a lot to think about, it’s because it is which is why you want the right people by your side. Most of my clients, especially the smaller ones, ended up with us and stick with us because they have tried and failed numerous times with various others. With us they experience, reliability, and a personal touch at affordable prices. It’s this trust that grows even deeper with time because every time they need something accomplished on the web, we get it done, efficiently and affordable because that’s what we are equipped to do. This is how you know you are with the right people.