Solutions

What a website can do for you

Today, many people will encounter your business or organization for the first time on the Internet. And once they know you are there, they will return to it for reminders of what you do and to learn what's new. The 'net is the twenty-first century equivalent of the phonebook, the post office, the town square, the street map, even the over-the-fence backyard chat, all rolled into one. Most organizations will benefit greatly by defining their presence in this dynamic medium with their own website.

MindPick Software can help you succeed on the Internet by providing an affordable custom website unique to you and your business, one that is easy for your customers to find and use. Your website should reflect both the function and the personality of your enterprise. Its content, design, layout, navigation, and images should all portray who you are and why people need you. And it should give your clients easy access to information about you when they need it, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

What you can do with a website

Think about the ways you can use the Internet to improve your business and serve your customer.

Supply answers to your clients and customers: provide a mission statement or company goals; give contact info — phone numbers, street addresses, and e-mail addresses; respond to frequently-asked questions (FAQs) or offer online forms to request information; have a "What's New?" feature announcing company changes, new products, and press releases; show policy statements, or supply downloadable manuals.
Do you have an office or store front? Give the basic information your clients and customers have to know: Where are you located? How do you get there? When are you open? What forms of payment do you accept? You can even set up a virtual tour!
Do you have a product? Describe what your organization does, or provide an online catalog. Are you a doctor or lawyer? List your specialties. Are you a restaurant? Display a menu, explain how to get takeout, even take orders.
Who's who at your company? Give names of important employees along with short biographies.
Are you a charity or non-profit? Describe your services and how they are provided. Give an online application or enrollment form. Offer methods for giving donations.
Are you having a promotion? Show advertisements and descriptions of special items and pricing. Supply printable online coupons.
If your clients need data specific to themselves, provide a login capability and data access tools (forms, statements, etc.). Have user-customizable portals. You can even link your online databases to back-office systems.
Does your enterprise put on events? List schedules and display interactive calendars, showing event details with a mouse-over. Provide itineraries and agendas. Show photos from previous events.
Do you want to generate return business? Let customers sign up for mailing lists and then e-mail announcements, promotions, and newsletters.
Do you want to know more about your customers? Conduct online polls and surveys. Or allow them to interact with a forum.
Do you have something to say or information beneficial to your customers? How about starting a blog or creating a searchable knowledgebase. Create pages of ancillary material — lists of local fishing spots for a bait shop, common childhood inoculations for a pediatrician, sample itineraries with photos for a travel agency, or plant growing facts for a landscaper.
Do you need to work with partners? Set up an extranet to access information and create and track intercompany transactions.
Are you ready for e-commerce? Set up a searchable catalog, shopping carts, online payments, and order tracking.

Take all the content, package it up in an easy-to-use form, add some graphics or a little animation, and you have a website that will enhance your business and delight your customers.

For examples of MindPick Software's designs, see our latest work done for the North Coast Farm Bureaus, The Lorain Soil and Water Conservation District, and Si Señor Mexican Grills. The North Coast Farm Bureaus site provides, in a clean, easy to read format, the benefits of belonging to a Farm Bureau. The Lorain Soil and Water Conservation District site shows how consistent design and navigation enhances the look and usability of a website. The Si Señor Mexican Grill site reflects the festive atmosphere of the restaurant, tells the public everything they need to know about visiting it, and is inviting. What is important to recognize is that each site is unique to the organization it represents and satisfies the needs of that organization.

If you're ready to take control of your presence on the Internet, contact MindPick Software today.