Gallery

How to start a low-risk web business

Posted on 14 Apr 2009 at 11:01

Don't let your site become static: a regularly updated website with lots of interesting, well-written content will help boost your Google ranking. Again, think laterally: a website selling spare parts for vintage cars could provide an illustrated guide on how to change the spark plugs, for example. Not only will the guide attract traffic to the site, but will give visitors confidence that the people they're dealing with are experts.

You may decide to seek professional help with your SEO. There are hundreds of so-called SEO experts out there, some genuine, some absolute shysters that could end up costing a naive website owner thousands of pounds for nothing more than a spot on Google's blacklist. "Deciding to hire an SEO is a big decision that can potentially improve your site and save time, but you can also risk damage to your site and reputation," Google advises. "Make sure to research the potential advantages as well as the damage that an irresponsible SEO can do to your site."

Be wary of any SEO company that guarantees it can get you to the top of Google rankings for your chosen keyword, for instance. You can't buy your way to the top of the Google search rankings and, despite over-excitable claims to the contrary, no SEO expert has "cracked the secret" search algorithm.

Steer clear too of any SEO firm that encourages you to swap links with other members of its client base - especially websites that have no direct relationship to your business. Google will reward sites that attract genuine, organic links from other relevant businesses, but it will almost certainly punish sites that attempt to build artificial "link farms".

Many of the tools used by the SEO experts can also be obtained for free. Google's own analytics tool (www.google.com/analytics) provides a detailed breakdown of visitors to your site, tracking details such as which keywords they typed into search engines to arrive at your site, the pages they entered and left through, and which pages are the most popular. Yahoo's Site Explorer (http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com) also keeps an eye on which sites are linking to your own, allowing you to foster closer relationships with businesses in your field.

The money spent on an SEO expert could even be better spent on "buying" traffic using Google's AdWords service. These adverts can be regionally targeted, to stop an architect in Birmingham wasting money on clickthroughs from house owners in Glasgow. Google has a bevy of AdWords tools that can optimise your paid-for keywords based on your budget, and reveal the number of competitor sites also buying those keywords.

The right time?

Anyone could be forgiven for thinking now isn't the right time to commit to risky online business ventures. The 2008 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor found that 40% of people who see new business opportunities don't act on them through fear of failure, and the UK has always erred on the side of caution when it comes to business start-ups. Less than 6% of the adult population in the UK was involved in starting a new business in 2008, compared with 10.8% in the US, where business failure carries less of a stigma.

But those who've taken the plunge, such as Alicia Navarro, say bravery now will be rewarded later. "Companies that build a strong business in this climate will be in a very strong position going forward," she predicts.