The Cost of Doing Business
Running a business can get expensive. You have a ton of expenses that you have to deal with. One of which is advertising.
There are as many different mediums to advertise as there are businesses out there. You can take a larger block out in the phone book (and online), you an put an ad in the local newspaper, you can go the free route and put an ad in Craigslist and grocery store cork boards. Of course there's also the miriad of online advertising methods: google/yahoo ads, google adwords, banner exchange, etc. However, have you considered that your website itself is a form of advertising?
We have a client, Pauletto Trucking and Excavation who we did a website for back in 2007. Up until then, the owner didn't see a need for a website. He had a large ad in the local phone books and was paying a pretty penny for that each month. Finally, he decided to take a shot at putting up a website. Within months of the site going live, it saved him thousands of dollars. Seriously. Thousands. The way the story goes is that their insurance agent needed to see their equipment. Since all their equipment is listed on the website, the agent was able to view it all there which saved them an in person inspection. In addition, since the site going live he got a lot more calls because of the site rather than his large phone book ads. So, he scaled those ads back and saved him even more money.
The point of the above example is that you shouldn't underestimate the power of your website and it's affect on your advertising. Granted, using a website alone won't cut the mustard. You need to have various methods to get your name out there. However, it's a solid start. So if you have a business and you don't have a website or it hasn't been updated in some time, you really should have that done. In today's global economy, it'll have a larger impact over time than you can anticipate.
(Shameless plug) Of course my web design company will be more than happy to help you with your site. Our pricing is fair and we'll make sure you get the best for your price point. (end shameless plug)
