Mike from allbusiness.com is troubled by how many retailers that do not have a presence online.  Many customers will visit your online store long before they will drive to a retail location.  They also use web sites to find out what kind of products you carry, research your pricing & product info and if they can find any special deals offered online instead of in the store.   However, it changes when you are dealing with younger adults.  Many of them shop exclusively online and wont ever walk into your retail establishment.   So do you already have an online store?  If not, what are you waiting for?  It is 2009, it is time to get with the program.  Open up your store, setup your shopping cart, get your credit card processing integrated and start selling!