We are currently sprucing up the house, as tends to be our habit at the beginning of the year. Hey, when you’re trapped inside due to the cold, what else are you going to do? One of the projects we’re tackling is painting our master bathroom.

This bathroom is full of odd corners and angles. Narrow spaces between trim and the next wall. I love it thoroughly but as I look at it, I realize that I’d rather spend some money to have it done right than do it myself and do a poor job. So, I started looking for people to outsource my work to.

A quick online search led me to several prospects. Most of them had websites and contact forms. I sent messages to a few. The last painter’s site I visited had no contact information beyond their phone number. Since it was late on a Sunday, I was really hoping to find an email address or contact form because I wanted to send my inquiry right then.

So, I was pleased to notice a Google+ business page listing linked on their  website. When I visited it though, there was still little information listed. In fact, there were only three posts on the business page. Two of those posts were the business complaining about G+.

Now, even with putting my love for Google+ aside, this gave me a fairly negative view of the business. Complaining publicly about a platform ON the platform that you’re trying to market to me seemed like a poor judgment. It made me question both their judgment and their attitude. It seemed unprofessional.

So, I did not call them.

While an online presence is important, it is also important to keep in mind how your online presence can benefit or harm your business. You never know how people will first encounter your business – so being professional at every turn is important. Especially considering that your online presence lasts forever – even if you’ve forgotten about it.