Why small businesses are failing online

For any small business to succeed these days, they must have a strong online presence. The world wide web has become the great equalizer in that it has allowed small companies to compete with the giants in their fields or industry. One of the most peculiar facts that recent research has discovered is that so many small businesses are not taking advantage of this. Far too many, it seems, are sitting on the bench and not getting in the online game. More importantly, too many small businesses are simply failing online due to several factors they can’t seem to avoid or overcome.

• The major reason these businesses are crashing is because they really don’t understand how things work out there in modern marketing cyberspace. They are failing to understand how potential customers are actually searching and buying as well as failing to understand who their customers actually are and where they can be found. Also, they are not engaging with potential customers, not promoting properly, not seeking outside assistance and they are expecting SEO, and other online strategies, to be an instant gratification situation rather than a long term commitment.
• Forming a long term SEO, social media and content marketing strategy takes time and knowledge to develop and deploy. Too few small business owners fail to understand this and it is causing their rivals to overtake them in the marketplace. Another challenge faced by small business owners with regard to success online is that many professional firms have very different ideas about what you should be doing. You should take your time and chose the one that fits your vision. The other challenge for amateurs is Google’s constant tweeking of algorithms, search parameters and search results. It can be tough to keep up and specific knowledge is helpful but it takes time that most small business owners simply don’t have.
• The final challenge that leads to failure for the small business is the failure to plan. Many small companies think they can’t afford SEO and other online marketing strategies and tactics. Because of this thinking, they do nothing. When they do nothing, they find rather quickly that they are being left in the dust. You can’t possibly compete these days without an online marketing strategy and when you float the excuse of not being able to afford it, the question should really be: can you afford not to do it?

-Written by Kevin Sawyer