"Maybe because so many of the designers who work on the web have only done websites, you end up with a lot of sites that kind of look the same," says Sharon Ferdinand, who designed the graphics for the Novatoo AV website last year. "We tried to do something a little more memorable and more eye catching." Designing an effective site for a small company is harder than it looks. You not only need eye catching grahics, but a message that cuts through the avalanche of advertising material your readers will see every day. You have to discover, then state simply and concisely, what it is about this company that makes it worth buying from rather than one of the market leaders. Read "How we created the Novatoo website" to learn how we approached copy, tag lines, design and programming technology to produce an effective, affordable site.

SMALL DEALERSHIP TALKS ABOUT THEIR RAPID GROWTH So you've started your new company and established it on a reasonably firm footing. What do you need to do to ensure continued, healthy growth? Now in their fifth year of operation, partners Tim Novak and John Toomey of Novatoo Audio Visual have been very successful in expanding their rental base and moving into a new area: AV systems installation. "We have felt for a long time that if you try to force an issue, to make something happen when the pieces aren't there, it's not the right business decision," Novak explains. Read more about Novatoo and their success in 2006