A big part of your website success is your overall company buy-in.

If your internal staff members are reluctant and unenthusiastic about your website, your site will never realize its full potential.

Your site is like any other product you sell.  Unfortunately, it just won't sell itself.

Many businesses still believe that just building a website is the end... actually it is just the beginning.

A few key things to keep in mind:

• Your customers won't automatically come to check out your site.  Give them a reason to visit.
• Make sure you constantly remind your customers when you are doing something they could more easily do online.  (e.g. if you are faxing an invoice, make them aware that they can get access to invoices via the website.)  Customers appreciate self-service things.  When it adds to their convenience, they are sure to take advantage as long as they know about it.
• You should plan to speak with your key customers briefly, but specifically about the benefits of using the website.
• Make sure you have a trained, well-prepared sales staff.  Many people don't mention the website simply because they aren't aware of what it can do.
• Schedule short, 30-minute training sessions for your staff where you have an expert do a show-and-tell on your site.
• Make sure your staff is excited that you have a full featured online presence.
• Add notices to all your printed material to indicate that you have a site and note specifically if a document is available online (e.g. invoices should say something like "Did you know you can get your invoices online?")

Like any other product you have, your website needs to be given sales attention, and "sold" to your customers.

When you show them the site and they decide it is an easy way of doing business, then the sales process is easy.