E-commerce vs brochureware sites

I'm kind of tired of hearing about how awesome e-commerce is. Yes, not having to manage a brick-and-mortar store can save you a lot of money. But that only works if people are as willing to buy online as they are in the store. One study claims that customer satisfaction in e-commerce is on the decline.

I'm not trying to knock e-commerce at all. For some things it works well. I think it's a great addition to stores. But I think we need to get real about it obliterating the walk-in store as we know it. I also think that we should re-examine the e-commerce site's red-headed stepsister: the brochure-ware site.

I think everyone who is trying to sell someone something should have a Web site. But it doesn't have to sell anything. Just putting your basic information out there, what you sell, where you're located, ect., is extremely important. I think many times, with small business owners especially, they get caught up in thinking that their site needs to do everything, sell their brand, sell their stuff, feature all kinds of flash animation. There's definitely something to starting small. Buy a domain and let it mature. There's nothing wrong with a little 5-page brochure-ware site to get you started. It may be all you need.