Why hiring your brother-in-law to do your Web site is a bad idea

New research shows that for the majority of B2B prospects, when they are considering doing business with a company they will check out that company's Web site as one of the first things they do. Duh! This is hardly news.

According to BtoB Magazine "a site that inadequately communicates the credibility of a vendor and its products can have a seriously detrimental effect on incoming leads, long before you start your official sales efforts."

So consider this sales funnel: a prospect has a need, they Google around and find likely hits, they visit Web sites to start the process of making a short list. Web sites that look like they are not credible vendors won't make it to the short list. They'll lose the sale and they won't even know it.

In a supply-driven sales world (the Old Way) we made the call and fought for the business--we knew when we won or lost and sometimes could learn why. In a demand-driven sales world (the New Way) we often don't even know who's checking us out--they no longer need sales people to make the first steps.

So our first step has to be making sure our Web site is credible--that our company is dressed in business attire, tie on, shoes polished, hair neatly combed--when potential customers come calling.