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Times Are Tough: Banks and large corporations have been bailed out to the tune of billions and middle class America is picking up the tab while corporate executives are lining their pockets.

The economic crisis is not the only reason that business on Main Street America need to worry. Americans have been gradually changing the way they shop for the things they want and need and unfortunately many business owners either have not seen it coming, have ignored it thinking that it is just a trend that will pass, have been too busy or too stuck in the traditional means of marketing to avail themselves of the knowledge and tools necessary to make the transition to this new kind of marketing that is the Internet.

Main Street, Not Wall Street: While most people, over 80% search online before making a purchase and although they shop online the good news is that they like to buy locally. Over 60% of the GDP comes from local business. People who are looking for a plumber, a painter, an electrician, someone to landscape their yard or a provider of a needed product or service may indeed look in the phone book but will also search for the businesses web site to find out more about them before they buy. Problem is that if a business does not have a web site the consumer will more often than not find someone who does.

Unfortunately, having a good website may not be enough. It has been said that 98% of searchers make a selection from businesses listed on page one. In a normal search, the number one spot gets about 41% of the clicks while number two gets around 12% and number three, about 8½. Other positions get fewer clicks. One can see that if a business is not among the first three on page one it is not getting people coming to their site. A business can have the best web site going but if they are not one of the top three, or not on page one at all they are not getting potential customers coming to their site.

For more information on this topic, please visit our Website with startling video facts as seen on CBS News.