Tech Tools Bring Big Success For Small Bizs
After Hurricane Katrina lashed the Gulf Coast, small businesses such as the Silk Road Collection antique store in New Orleans had little hope of surviving. Tourists and local customers had vanished, and it would take years for the city to rebuild.
Donald St. Pierre, the owner of Silk Road, and his business and life partner, Robert Turner, feared that they might have to close the shop. They couldn’t land government or bank loans, and their personal savings were keeping the business afloat.
But then Turner attended a small-business, e-commerce seminar co-sponsored by Internet giant Yahoo and AT&T. After the disaster, it was like tech manna from heaven.
Yahoo offered free online small-business services. E-commerce firm Solid Cactus designed a professional-looking website. Google provided free online software to analyze Internet traffic to Silk Road’s website. And online marketing firm Constant Contact created an e-newsletter for thousands of customers. Total cost: $5,000.
The impact has been dramatic. Silk Road’s total sales in 2007 grew to $201,000, up 23% from the year before. This year, sales are up 19%, with online and foreign sales an increasing percentage of the total take. Now, Silk Road is adding a travel blog and online videos so customers can view products as if they were at the store.
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Photo by Judi Bottoni.
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