It seems like everybody is doing it these days – launching a website, that is. If you are a small business owner, chances are you have already established your web presence, have toyed with the idea or have been told by some marketing guru that you should consider it as an essential part of your marketing and promotions campaign.

Well, if you haven’t done so already, you really should consider it. When it comes to your own online marketing, this is one occasion when you may be forgiven for using the kind of line that teenagers use to justify doing something: everybody is doing it. The truth is more people are doing more business or social networking online – they are talking on blogs, on open forums or closed proprietary sites, social networking sites and a host of online media sites. They are shopping online, signing up for services, finding jobs or doing their recruitment.

Given that the web is where you find all of these things, it is likely that is where you will connect with your customers – either your existing ones or prospects who are looking for the services or products you provide.

Before you embark on your website project, it is essential to define clearly what you hope to achieve by going online. The first step is to consider your customers. After all, you are establishing your website to reach them, right?

So you need to know what they are doing online and how your website can meet their needs. Try to find out: How they shop? What information they need before they will act? Where do they hang out online? What authorities do they trust? What media – traditional and online – do they read? Which bloggers do they follow? Which social media sites – Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, Flickr, and YouTube – are they tuned into?

You can maximise the effectiveness of your website if you take time to understand the ways people use the Internet to learn, communicate, shop and entertain themselves. This will help you to match your web presence to your customers' online habits, thus giving you a better chance of winning their confidence and business.

Having looked at your customers, you will also need to determine what you want your website to achieve. Think of your site in terms of what you want visitors (customers) to do.

Here are three common models to consider when determining the role and function of your website:

E-commerce – You offer products and services people can purchase directly on your site. This kind of website will require tools for taking orders and accepting payment—plus all the information a prospect might want (including product specs, testimonials, shipping info, etc.) for making a purchase.

Sales – Content on your site allows you to collect lead-generation data that you can use in follow-up sales efforts. The principle here is one of exchange: you offer something of perceived value, say an e-newsletter, in return for information (name, title, company, email address, etc.), which you'll either direct to your sales team or use for building a database.

Marketing -- You create a site loaded with rich content that becomes a center of community interest. As your credibility rises, you become the trusted resource of choice in a given product or category.

It is important to make the right decision about the purpose of your site and this should be in keeping with the strategic goals of your business.

All of this comes before you develop the content (the information that will be written for the site) and before you embark on its graphic design.

Speaking of content – once you have selected a website model that is closely aligned to one of the three I’ve listed, then the content should be developed in terms of what makes sense for your prospects, your customers, and your business. To get the best result, you may wish to consider engaging a professional copywriter, who is versed in writing for the web and who can work with you to develop content that creatively and accurately represents your business.

So far, we have discussed the important basics for your website. There are several more mechanical issues that you will need to consider such as domain name, finding the best (not necessarily the cheapest) host for the needs of your site, the graphic design elements and what to do when you get ready to launch. We will explore each of these in subsequent articles. In the meantime, start thinking about your customers and how you’ll connect with them online. Until next week …