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So should your business have a website, even if your business is small and sells products or services you don’t think can be sold online? My answer is Yes, if you have a business, you should have a website. Period. No question. Without a doubt.

Also, don’t be so quick to dismiss your product as one that can’t be sold online. Nowadays, there’s very little that can’t be sold over the internet. More than 20 million shoppers are now online, purchasing everything from books to computers to cars to real estate to jet airplanes to natural gas to you name it. If you can imagine it, someone will figure out how to sell it online.

Let me clarify one point: I’m not saying you should put all your efforts into selling your wares over the internet, though if your product lends itself to easy online sales, you should certainly be considering it. The point to be made here is that you should at the very least have a presence on the web so that customers, potential employees, business partners and perhaps even investors can quickly and easily find out more about your business and the products or services you have to offer.

That said, it’s not enough that you just have a website. You must have a professional-looking site if you want to be taken seriously. Since many consumers now search for information online prior to making a purchase at a brick-and-mortar store, your site may be the first chance you have at making a good impression on a potential buyer. If your site looks like it was designed by a barrel of colorblind monkeys, your chance at making a good first impression will be lost.

Do you think blogs are a passing fad? Think again. One peek on popular blog-tracking site Technorati reveals more than 112.8 million blogs in existence. Experts estimate 175,000 new blogs are created every day.

Especially in the corporate world, a blog is an easy, effective way for a business to stay in touch with current customers and reach out to new ones at the same time. It acts like an ongoing conversation, allowing you to communicate directly to your buyers and build brand loyalty and trust.

Plus, maintaining an active blog raises your company’s online visibility, driving traffic to your Web site, meaning increased sales for you.

Consistency: Whether you update once a week or once a day, sticking to a regular posting schedule is crucial. Just like any other form of marketing, the success of your blog depends on the relationship you’ve built with your audience. Developing that relationship requires frequent communication. Regularly updated blogs score higher in search engine rankings, making it easier for potential readers (and customers) to find you online.

Write for your buyers, not yourself: Save your stream-of-consciousness poetry or Grandma’s apple pie recipe for your personal blog. Your buyers don’t care. Instead, stick to the topics your customers care about. Offer solutions for their problems, or analyze news stories and market trends that impact their lives. That’s not to say you can’t show personality in your posts. But generally, readers don’t visit a company blog to find dessert recipes. They want information and interactivity. That said …

Don’t advertise: Treating your blog like another Yellow Pages ad won’t net you new readers. Instead, provide the info your reader really wants to know, like tips and tricks, checklists, DIY guides, interviews, etc. Suppose you’ve planned an upcoming promotional event. Instead of posting a schedule or price list on your blog, run a Q&A with one of your presenters or a series of posts about a topic explored at the event in more detail. Remember that a blog is a conversation with your buyers, not an advertisement.

Comments = Traffic: Keep comments turned on, even the negative ones. Healthy debate indicates a healthy blog. Comments from those who disagree with you “add credibility to your viewpoint by showing two sides of an issue, and by highlighting that your readership is passionate enough to want to contribute to a debate on your blog.”

Make it easy for your readers to find you: Give your blog prime real estate on your company Web site. Mention it in newsletters and e-mail blasts. Be sure to use tags wisely, including social media tags for aggregators like Technorati, DIGG and del.icio.us. Finally, be sure your blogging software handles RSS (Really Simple Syndication), a feature that delivers blog updates directly to subscribers. That way, it’s even easier to keep your readers posted.