Hi there! I hope you’re week is off to a good start. I know you’re super busy so I’m going to just dive right in. It’s actually two blog posts from Entrepreneur Magazine.

The first is from John Boinott about 4 ways you can make sure your website is up to date for 2016. He also makes a compelling argument from both the technology and business perspectives.

Now while I loved Boinott’s post the ONE thing I did not agree with was the idea that you want to capture a customer’s email just to send them discounts.

This is where I differ from Boinott. Email marketing isn’t just a cheap way to send coupons. It is a very effective way to keep you “top of mind” with your customer base.

You are not in the discount business even if you’re a discount business – just ask Wal-Mart. That’s why I also would like for you to check out Dan Kennedy’s post on how to use a website to attract the “wealthy” customer.

Kennedy focuses on content and gives you a 10 point checklist of what you need on your site to make it an effective marketing tool – not an electronic coupon or flyer.

You can read both Boinott’s & Kennedy’s posts in their entirety by clicking the links at the end of this post and come to your own conclusions. There are two things that both Boinott and Kennedy do agree upon are that you should be using a CMS like WordPress and that you “must” keep your websites up-to-date.

So I’m about to say something that may come across as biased, since I’m a web designer, but please try not to take this personally – I’m saying this with love and as a fellow small business owner.

The internet isn’t going away!

It’s not going away and if you plan on being in business 10 years from now – you have to be on the web. If you don’t believe me – just step outside your door and look at the people walking down the street or in the mall.

What are they doing? They’re looking at their phones right? The only way you’re going to get their attention in the next 10 years (especially Millennials) is through that phone and maybe an iPad or tablet.

I would even go as far to say that a fair number of you are reading this post on your phone or iPad or tablet, at this very moment, while waiting in line for lunch or a cup of coffee.

Mobile devices have become the way we communicate today. It may not last forever but it’s still going strong and doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

So I know by now you’re probably tired of reading this stuff, but it’s well worth repeating. It’s a new year – why not give yourself the best possible chance of starting the New Year off right?

Yes “keeping up with all of this stuff” can make you want to pull your hair out, but we’ve got to do it. Everybody’s got to do it and if you think about it, what we’re talking about here is affordable these days and really isn’t that hard – it’s just tedious, like taxes! LOL! Both of these posts are “quick reads” about 5 minutes at the most.

4 Ways to Freshen Your Outdated Website
by John Boinott

10 Things Your Website Needs If You Want to Attract the Wealthy Customer
by Dan S Kennedy

I can say with a fair amount of confidence that, as a small business owner myself, we’re not afraid to get our hands dirty. We’ve come with a fair amount of “moxie” already baked into us or else we wouldn’t be in business today. It’s what got us here in the first place.

In case you haven’t noticed it’s time to vote for a new President. I normally don’t believe in mixing politics and business, but don’t tell that to those on Capital Hill. I’m not voting for Bernie Sanders – but this goes to show that even Seniors understand that you can’t ignore mobile anymore.

If you want to leave a comment or have a question below please do so, but I’m going to be a little “politically incorrect” here and close with 3 great quotes from 3 of our Presidents:

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

– John F Kennedy

“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.”

– Lyndon B. Johnson

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

– President Barack Obama

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