By Tina Hilton of Clerical Advantage

Web Presence - (definition) The term refers to an individual or business having an established existence on the World Wide Web , through a Web site, Internet advertising, blog, or a collection of Web files. (Webopedia)

A few weeks ago, on my own blog I wrote a post about businesses that are reluctant to build and maintain a web presence. I’m still surprised at the number of local businesses that don’t even have an active website, say nothing about a Facebook page or Twitter account.  There are several reasons these local businesses fail to utilize the tremendous marketing power of an online presence. Some just don’t get it. But others see the potential and either don’t know how or don’t have the time to create one.
The chance of those that ‘don’t get it’ reading my words in this blog post are pretty slim. But just in case a few of you are reading? Newsflash! Computers and the Internet are here to stay. It’s not just techno nerds and high tech geeks that are using it anymore.  In case you haven’t noticed, people are even accessing it on the go via Blackberry and iPhone. Your target market is out there and if you aren’t, then they are going to your competitor who is. There is no excuse for not seeing why your business should have a web presence.
For those of you who see the need, but don’t have the know how or time to accomplish it, this one’s for you.  Over the next few weeks I’m going to explain how to build a web presence by using a website, networking sites, Twitter and a blog. I’ll touch on what visitors are looking for in a website and how to give it to them, how to benefit from social networking sites, how you can use Twitter to connect with your market and why you should take blogging seriously.  And for the time crunched, pointers on outsourcing to get it done, and what a virtual assistant or freelancer will expect from you.
When we get to the end of the series, you’ll see that you don’t have an excuse not to construct your own web presence.
Next week: The piece of the web presence puzzle that your business MUST have.

If you have questions concerning virtual assistance or have an interest in working with a virtual assistant you can contact Tina Hilton or visit her business website for Clerical Advantage.