Advantages of an Online Presence for Your Business

Larger audience
Going public with your company profile gives you the ability to reach a larger audience. Millions of online users can now reach your website. This does not
happen overnight, but the potential is higher than spreading the word offline. This one factor alone is usually enough motivation for creating an online
presence for your company.

Accessibility
It is important for customers to know that they can reach you easily. Having this information online helps potential customers reach your offices. Not many
people use the phone book anymore, so it can be frustrating for potential customers if you have no contact information online. An online small business
profile easily solves this problem. Make sure to update this information if any changes take place. It’s equally frustrating to your prospect when they find
outdated contact details.

Creates trust
Having a commanding online presence makes consumers feel more comfortable about dealing with your company. Many prospects will do a quick online
search to see if your company is legitimate. When they find nothing, they might assume that you aren't a professional business. The time spent writing a
company profile is never wasted.

Free Advertising
This is not to say that having a company profile online will cost you nothing, but it adds more value than it takes away. You now have the ability to
promote and advertise your company in an organic, professional manner.

Brand Building
Your company brand is vital to its success and your company profile is one aspect of brand building. Delivering on the promises contained in your company
profile is where brand building comes into play. Only promise what you can deliver, and you will be on your way to building a solid reputation and brand.

Disadvantages of an Online Presence for Your Business

Downtime
The internet is not perfect and relying on digital marketing alone is not the best idea. Even though downtime is rare, there are moments when it crashes or
slows down. Use a good hosting company with reliable up-time. Make sure your website loads quickly to avoid a drop in your ranking.

Spam
What will the internet be without spam? Just as your customers can reach your company profile, so can those annoying spam senders. Your inbox might
eventually explode if you don’t have a spam folder. There are inexpensive spam filters and plug-ins for nearly all websites that will prevent most spam
problems.

Bad Reviews
Going online gives consumers the opportunity to tarnish your company's reputation. This can be due to one customer having a bad experience and writing
a negative review built on this disappointment. It does require a lot of good customer service in order to avoid it from happening, but no one is perfect. As
long as your company has more good reviews than bad, you won’t have to worry about bad publicity.

Competition
When you stay in your own little bubble away from the internet, you might not even realize the amount of competition out there. As soon as you start
developing your new online profile, this really starts to sink in. Yes, you have lots of competition. But with that knowledge, you can use your online
presence to distinguish yourself.