While there are about 4.7 billion active internet users in the world, fewer than two thirds of small businesses have a website.

That tells a story of missed opportunity, says Alex Wright in his new book, Every Word Counts: The Easy Way to Win More Customers Online.

The book is aimed at small professional service business owners or managers who may be excellent in what they do but are not sure where to start when it comes to creating an online presence to reach prospective customers.

Mr Wright is known to many in Bermuda’s business community, having worked on the business desk of The Royal Gazette between 2007 and 2011.

Full disclosure: I was his boss during that time.

Although he now works in his native UK as a freelance copywriter and journalist specialising in business and finance, the advice he gives in this book can be applied anywhere in the world.

Every Word Counts is written in a practical, easy-to-follow style, enabling the book to be read straight through or as a reference guide to consult when needed. It sets out to demystify the process of building a strong digital presence, adopting a step-by-step, jargon-busting approach.

So much of the world connects via the internet that failing to have a website — or having a website with sloppy content or poor structure — is “just throwing money away in lost sales and business”, Mr Wright says.

He urges business people to think of their website as a virtual shopfront and take the same care with it that they would with a physical space for walk-in customers.

He unveils copywriter secrets of how to write and structure online content that will win attention in the blizzard of information on the World Wide Web.

He backs up his advice on writing technique and strategy by giving bullet-point examples of how it might be applied to different types of businesses.

He also drops in relevant and sometimes inspiring case studies from his own experience, and adds a summary box at the end of each chapter to reinforce the key messages.

Areas covered include why you need online content, how to reach your target audience, the importance of a compelling headline, getting your tone and structure right, getting noticed on social media and why you need the media on your side.

He rounds off the book with a chapter on how to improve your verbal communication.

In the writing of the 112-page book, Mr Wright has practised what he preaches — to get straight to the point. He references his own blogs and website on relevant subject matter regularly through the book.

If there is one minor criticism, it is that the reminders of Mr Wright’s e-mail address are a bit too frequent.

For small businesses wondering how to set up or enhance their digital presence, Every Word Counts can be considered a valuable guide.

The book can be purchased on order from Bookmart at 3 Reid Street, Hamilton, with copies expected to arrive in the store by mid-November. The retail price is $24.75. It is also available in digital format through the Amazon website at https://www.amazon.com/Every-Word-Counts-customers-online-ebook/dp/B0957ZY9H1

Jonathan Kent, a freelance corporate writer and editor, is the former Assistant Editor and Business Editor of The Royal Gazette.