For web developers, larger projects are typically more profitable than smaller ones. Each project has a certain amount of overhead, so the more time added to the project, the more profitable. This is typically done in one of two ways:

1. Your project starts out large
2. Project gets jacked up with change orders

Either way, the end result is that you have a website without any money left for marketing. Instead, build the bare minimum in order to get to the next step of website development.

Research shows that most people search online for 1 of 2 reasons – to be entertained or to solve a problem. What does an overly complicated site have to do with solving a visitor’s problem?

If you want a successful site, talk about your area of expertise by creating and updating content on your site. If you don’t want to pay your developer to do this, you just need a site you can maintain yourself.

Successful websites provide VALUE.

People search online to solve THEIR problems. By only providing your hours or company history on your website, you’re not helping them. Instead, show them how your product/service can solve their problems.

We live in a world with an overabundance of information and marketing channels. If you try to take it all in it’s like drinking from a fire hose. A more effective strategy is to be focused, master one or two areas and then move on. Mastery is the goal and focus is how to get there.

I’m sure you’ve seen those people tweeting all day, posting blogs, and liking like nobody’s business. They say, “it’s a lot of work but that’s what you have to do to get out there.”

To me that seems like an incredibly inefficient method of running your business.

Enter Pareto’s Principle which says, in any given system a small portion of the activity generates a large portion of the results. So if we can find that 20% that gives us the largest result – we can leverage that and get better results with less work.

Remember small business owners, we need to get smart, strategic and lean.