Name of your website?Millcraft Outdoor Furniture
Your name?
Josh
Your Location (city, etc)
New Holland
When did you start your website and why?
We started the website three years ago because we wanted to bring our outdoor furniture to a wider geographic area, because up till then we mostly sold on the East coast.
Please give us a short summary of your website, business model, etc
We manufacture outdoor furniture from recycled plastic lumber. We also make the recycled plastic lumber so we can offer 17 beautiful colors. That is more than any of our competitors.
What has been the most difficult part of creating and running your website?
Keeping the website up to date is difficult and getting it listed well in search engines so people can find it.
What has been the easist part of operating your website?
Talking to customers. We love hearing what people think of our furniture and the people we talk to love to tell us how much they like the furniture.
What was your biggest mistake?
The biggest mistake was under estimating the amount of time it takes for the search engines to list a website. We didn't realize it would take so long before they started sending traffic.
Who maintains your website and why?
I do. I know enough about how things work to make it happen.
Tell us how your business has benefitted from your website?
We have been forced to be more efficient with everything because customers on the web demand small lead time, whereas our dealers expect a little longer wait.
What are your views on ecommerce and the future of the internet?
I think ecommerce can only get larger and more efficient.
What are your views on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
It is a necessary evil. It would be nice if search engines just automatically told all the customers that are looking for your type of product where you are at, but that is not the case.
What are your views on Search Engines? Have they helped or hindered your website?
We wouldn't have any sales without search engines. They can be rather hard to understand at times, though.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
Google Adwords
What method has been least successful for promoting your website?
Direct Mail
What would you like to see change with respect to the internet?
I would love to see a lot of the cruft go away. Scraped sites, spam, viruses could go away and not be missed.
What is your favorite NFL team?
The New England Patriots! Go Pats!
What is your website address?
Millcraft Outdoor Furniture