At the Milken Institute Global Conference, Human Business Works President Chris Brogan spoke with SmartBrief editor Mary Ellen Slayter about the importance of an online presence for small businesses.
Brogan offered tips for small businesses looking to ramp up their marketing plans.
- Get a website and establish yourself online. Brogan said 60% of U.S. businesses are not online in any fashion — a huge mistake in an age in which most people rely heavily on search engines to find information about businesses.
- Invest in modernized Web design that’s optimized for search. Many businesses are still relying on techniques from the 1990s, including Adobe Flash — which isn’t recognized in Google’s search algorithms.
- Facebook doesn’t constitute an online presence. Brogan compared businesses that rely on Facebook pages as their “website” to people who would call a hotel room their “home.” Like a hotel, Facebook doesn’t allow the complete customization you would find in your home — plus, it can kick you out whenever it wants. Facebook is where you congregate fans and reach out to them, but a website is where you establish your identity, Brogan said.
For more, view Brogan’s interview.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZW8Mr2i_bA[/embed]