Here we are, into the new millennium, and your company still lacks an electronic storefront on the Internet. Have you been left behind?

Actually, you have plenty of company. Surprisingly, Deloitte & Touche found in a recent survey of 156 retail companies that while 76 percent of the companies surveyed had Web sites, only 29 percent of those sites were set up for Internet commerce.

Furthermore, starry-eyed retailers who expect immediate sales and profits from their e-commerce sites often were disappointed. Among the retailers surveyed by Deloitte & Touche, sales from e-commerce sites accounted for only about five percent of overall sales, and almost half said they generated one percent or less of total sales through their Web sites.

By waiting companies may have given themselves the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of others, to spot critical trends and to take the time to map out their own successful game plan.

Many who chose to pioneer e-Commerce have seen substantial upheavals in their market capitalization of their companies as the market sorts out new priorities for pure Internet companies and hybrids with both “bricks and clicks.”

Those who carefully plan their e-commerce sites can reap significant rewards, but a frightening backlash can await those who don’t.

About one out of every three shoppers who have trying to purchase merchandise online at a specific Web-commerce site will stop shopping at that site entirely. And about six percent of shoppers who ran into a problem online also stopped shopping at that retailers “bricks-and-mortar” store as well, according to a new study by the Boston Consulting Group.

Companies might have only one chance to win over online customers. Planning an e-commerce site that meets their growing expectations will give one company a distinct advantage over retailers who dived headfirst into “dot-com” mania.

Let’s examine four principles of solid e-commerce planning:

Be realistic

E-commerce arrived with promises of allowing small businesses to reach customers around the globe and compete toe-to-toe with Amazon.com. That probably isn’t going to happen. Although small- and medium-sized bricks-and-mortar retailers control about 50 percent share of overall retail revenues, they’re capturing only about nine percent of sales on the Internet.

Conceding that they can’t compete with the large national merchants and their inherent advantages in technology, brand, and scale, many e-tailers instead are concentrating on dominating narrow, vertical markets. With a line of unusual, specialty or hard-to-find items, they offer online shoppers an attractive alternative to the mass merchandise on the mega-sites.

One example is Mac’s Auto Parts (www.macsautoparts.com), a Lockport, N.Y. dealer of auto parts for Fords manufactured between 1909 and 1970. Another is Elderly Instruments (www.elderly.com). Shoppers can find musical instruments at plenty of sites, including Ebay, but if a person is looking for a new, left-handed Martin flat-top guitar, Elderly Instruments is the place.

The large sites also enjoy click traffic advantages. They can afford to pay for lots of banner ads and positions at the top levels of Internet search engines. But some smaller e-tailers have created ways to drive traffic to their sites. They’re forming Web partnerships with other small businesses selling similar or complementary goods. The idea is to develop a single site where online customers can one-stop shop for related merchandise, such as kitchen and bath furnishings or lawn and garden equipment. When it comes time to check out, shoppers click through with a full shopping cart to the sites of the appropriate online dealers.

Have a professional build your site.

Unless a company operates a Web design business, leave the design and development of your Web site to professionals. It might seem to go without saying, yet it’s surprising how many fledgling online retailers become distracted by the technical aspects of e-commerce instead of focusing on running their business.

Web sites involve both visual design and computer programming design, one aspect seen, and the other aspect less obvious. The visual aspects of the Web site are the user interface, which should be both visually appealing and intuitive. The underlying computer programs that enable the Web site functionality are the technical aspects of the Web site. Both elements of the Web site should be left to professional. Finding Web developers is somewhat like finding graphic design firms. Study examples of their work. Make them responsible for developing a Web site that meets your esthetic and practical business objectives.

Initially, Web sites were designed by computer programmers, and they looked like they were. Today, Web sites have become sophisticated marketing and selling vehicles. Customers’ expectations have risen, and they are the final arbiters. They can tell the difference between professionally designed Web sites and Web sites created by moonlighters.

Tim Cahill, CEO of HomePage.com agrees. He explains, “Virtually all of our clients, like AOL’s ICQ, Discovery Online, PetsMart.com and others, have done substantial build vs. buy analysis in terms of looking at a personal publishing offering for their site, and they come out in favor of ‘buy.'” Cahill continues, “Outsourcing this crucial work makes sense not only economically, but also from the standpoint of allowing the company to focus on its core business and what it does best. Of course, when picking an outsourced provider of these services, an e-business needs to make sure the provider is singularly focused on serving clients and providing exceptional levels of customization.”

Make your customers feel secure.

While a professionally designed site helps customers feel like they’re dealing with a reputable e-tailer, standing behind the security of transactions on your site and letting shoppers know that you do can make the difference between a sale and an abandoned shopping cart.

Eighty-five percent of the people surveyed by the Boston Consulting Group said online privacy was the most important Internet issue. It outdistanced even the safeguarding of children (at 63 percent)! At the same time, 74 percent said they would be reassured about credit card risk if companies agreed to insure them against credit card loss.

Since most banks issuing credit cards already guarantee losses due to credit card fraud, simply publicizing that guarantee might be all that it takes to encourage a nervous online shopper to click that “Process Order” button.

As the survey discovered, security extends beyond just credit card security. Credit card security is an issue with online customers, but they are more concerned about the information that is being gathered about them and how that information is subsequently used. Companies that specialize in the collection and organization of this “marketing” data have found themselves in the “eye of the storm” as customers and customer rights advocates raise significant privacy issues. Develop an appropriate privacy policy and enforce it. Indicate what information will be maintained and for what purposes it will be used. Allow customers to “opt out”. Why drive customers to another website because they disagree with your company’s privacy policy? Customers are too expensive to squander.

Stress customer service.

Quite likely, one reason existing customers do business with a company is because of the friendly, personalized service they experience. Carrying that commitment to customer service over to the electronic storefront can be a challenge, but it’s critically important in the cold and often-confusing world of bits and bytes.

For example, online shoppers often feel that if a business can take orders at any time, day or night, then it ought to be available at those hours to answer questions, too. Yet only about 30 percent of e-commerce merchants offer a customer-service agent available via a toll-free phone call 24 hours a day. (More common is an 800 number confined to business hours.)

If an 800 number is out of your budget, then make sure to customer service e-mail links are prominent throughout the site not just on the order page. Respond to e-mails quickly and personally. (Customers can tell the difference between personal and automated e-mails.) If a customer complaint or question cannot be resolved suitably through e-mails, phone the customer directly.

Bottom line, if you feel panicked that your company still hasn’t wheeled a pushcart to the Internet bazaar, try your best to ignore the hype. Find your own success in the digital marketplace by following the well-marked trail left by those who have preceded you both the successful and the still-waiting-to-be. Stick to your core business competencies, pay attention to the unique demands of your e-commerce customers, and pat yourself on the back for waiting and doing it right.

Jerald Savin, CPA, CMC is the Chief Executive Officer of SITKA Systems, Inc., a management consulting firm located in Santa Monica. He is also Chairman of the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC), a professional association for management consultants.