What is the importance of having an Internet presence for small businesses?
It started out as sort of a hyped message sent to small businesses, where with a Web site, you can be as big as a big business because on the Internet you all look the same size. And that was the draw, initially. You can be global. You don’t have to be local. But as many small businesses will tell you, “Oftentimes my advantage is that I am local. Because if I am in Kansas City and I am getting calls from San Diego, I can’t really service these guys.” Now we are getting the idea of communities within the Internet — and how do you present yourself in such a way that you represent that community? Q: How much should a Web site cost these days? A: If you want a presence — HTML and maybe some nice graphics — you are looking at between $15,000 and $30,000. You can get away with a lot less if you are in the graphics business. There is a perception [the cost] is going up. Now they are throwing Java in there and new applications, and now they are starting to throw [in] E-commerce. And with E-
