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From the Publisher: February/March 2007 |
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Written by Sue Fredericks
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Build It and They Will Come – Won’t They?
When you’ve finished reading the informative beginner’s
guide to web page design starting on page 8 of this issue, you will
have better insight into the ins and outs of creating a web page. But
that’s only the beginning.
Once it’s up there live, your page will have to start to earn its keep. You will need to maintain it on a regular basis (daily at minimum), and will need to attract people to it. If your eyes are starting to glaze over and you don’t think you have time for this, think about how much spare time you’ll have when your shop goes out of business.
Canadians have one of the highest Internet adoption rates in the world. It’s only natural that our shopping habits will follow. Who has time to go to a flower shop to browse a catalogue and send flowers to someone next door or elsewhere in the world? Why not sit at your desk and do it on your computer while you check e-mail, listen to voice mail, or have a coffee break.
The wire service and order-gathering companies have realized this is where their dollars are going. 1-800 Flowers.Com attracted 1.2 million new customers through their online channels over the 2006 holiday season (see page 6).
According to a poll done by WF&FSA early last fall, florists are lagging behind in adoption rates and as many as one-fifth aren’t using the Net at all. For many it’s the “techie” aspect and the learning curve that comes with the Internet. This fear has given the order gatherers and virtual florists the time to create a “virtual nightmare” for florists and consumers alike when it comes to online shopping.
Florists are being asked to fill orders while paying commissions as high as 30 per cent, and consumers are getting poor value for the money they spend. Local florists have to make the shift to the Net to provide a bona fide shop for consumers to order from before they give up on flowers.
Now the part about making money. The quickest way to get more traffic to your site is through your links. Keep it local at first, and try to exchange links privileges with your local funeral services. Many funeral homes have their own website now and offer the opportunity to express online condolences and order flowers too. Most often these are links to local flower shops: make sure yours is included.
Don’t forget the other obvious links, such as hospitals, caterers, wedding photographers and videographers. With the exception of the hospital, these are businesses whose interests tie in with yours and there is a natural benefit to sharing links.
When designing your website, remember to use your physical address so online shoppers can see that you do have a bricks and mortar shop. Another good link to have is to your local chamber of commerce, which will make your shop come up when someone searches your town or city. And you will expand your universe even further if you include provincial and national association links. Too much information? Find a student or local Internet service provider to help you set your links up. This stuff is elementary to them and they can
probably give you even more search engines tips. But that could be another article altogether and we’ll save it for another issue.
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