Johannesburg - More and more South African enterprises are looking at options to give their businesses internet "wings".

"It seems as though many are now wanting to do business online," says Sheena Ebersohn, a founder member of BrandtoWeb, a company building websites.

Ebersohn was a speaker at the Succeed magazine stall at the Business & Franchise Opportunities Expo held in Johannesburg last weekend.

Companies with no online presence are "dead" to many, Ebersohn reckons.

This applies in particular to the younger market or people spending a great deal of their time on social networks such as Facebook or Twitter.

BrandtoWeb sees increasing interest coming from the numbers of people who approach them to have an online persona created. It?s all a question of convenience. Being available online makes doing business easier and saves time and resources.

Ebersohn reckons that with the anticipated broadband improvement websites will become increasingly interactive.

"The information portal will become a business portal."

She suggests that individuals investigating online opportunities first identify how they will communicate to clients exactly where their products or services are available. "People usually struggle to find locations."

And yes, there are some businesses not suited to online sales, but this does not prevent anyone from creating a simple online presence with a website.

"Many people will look at it to decide whether or not they want to do business with you," explains Ebersohn.

She also advises people to be careful when they call in the assistance of website consultants or firms.

"There are many companies doing this [type of work], but there are also a lot of crooks," continues Ebersohn, who has herself been deceived and speaks from experience. That's the precise reason why BrandtoWeb was originally started.

"It's essential to sift carefully between the companies," she cautions.