Yes, your small business definitely still needs a website

One question we get asked often, more than I’d care to admit, is why would my small business need a website? Well it’s 2018 and we’ve been building websites for nearly a decade now, so it’s time to nip this one in the bud.

Of course there are many reasons, but the sound byte version is:
Now more than ever, a website is likely to be one of your business’s most valuable sales tools.

Here’s why…

1. First impressions count

For many of your potential customers your website will be one of the first things they see from you. Connecting with your customers within minutes of them discovering you is invaluable. If you don’t have a website to visit, you aren’t likely to make an impression and are unlikely to get their business.

2. Establish your credibility

Anyone can come up with a business name and print off a few flyers at the library. Having a professional website that you are proud of adds credibility to your business. Have you ever gone to a networking event and forgotten your business cards? Well that’s how you feel when someone asks for your website and you have to say “I don’t have one”.

People don’t even need to visit your website to have this effect. Whenever I see businesses on the road with a gmail or hotmail email address I cringe. Even procuring a domain for an email address shows that you take your communications seriously.

3. Free leads and 24/7 service

If your small business website is search engine friendly it can be the best lead generator in your arsenal. Optimise your SEO and your customers will find you, rather than you hunting for them.

A website is also able to service and communicate with customers any hour of the day. Are you going to be available to talk about your services at 1am? Because your website is. Your website can provide information to many visitors at any time of the day or night.

4. Cover the basics and save time

Skip the introductions by letting your website do the small talk for you. A well designed site will answer all the obvious questions customers have about your business. This means by the time they send you an email or pick up the phone it won’t be for stupid questions that take time out of your busy day.

So what can you do?

We’re not saying that all businesses need multi-page sites with all the bells and whistles. There’s definitely no “one size fits all” website solution. The best thing to do is to talk to a trusted web company and find out what they recommend for your business.

When deciding the next steps for your business (and calculating your ROI), think about these points:

  • Potential profit from online sales
  • The value of leads coming from search engines
  • The time you can save delegating some of your customer service to your website
  • The cost to get your website built,
  • Ongoing costs (hosting, domain, etc)

TL;DR: Unless your business is only for walk-in or passer-by traffic, a slick and professional website will do you wonders.


Posted

in

by

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *