Don’t see the need for a website as a small business? Or are you thinking, “Help I need a website,” but don’t know where to start? Then you’re in the right place.
We are in an era where everything we do is being done online. During this pandemic, you have to do everything on the Internet, including working, doing schoolwork, researching, and so on. Did you know that Google gets about 3.5 billion searches every day?
So without a website, you’re missing out on the number of possible customers coming across your brand. As a small business, it’s vital to get plenty of visibility and sales online and offline. A website can help you get more traffic and a bigger online presence.
In this guide, we’ll help you understand why you need a website today and what you should consider when making one. Read on to learn about the benefits of having a website as a small business.
Should I Get a Website for My Business?
Creating a website should be one of your top priorities. A good website can help make a good impression on your possible customers. It acts as an introduction to your business, showcasing your brand and expertise in the industry.
So, why should you get a website in 2021? Here are a few reasons why:
Increases Your Credibility
Creating a website means you have an online presence, which increases your credibility as a professional business. Customers need to find every detail of your business online, and a website is a great way to do that. Many local consumers do their research online before they plan to make a final purchase in your offline store.
Not showing up on the Internet or search engines is one of the fastest ways you can lose credibility as a new business. It can make your company look out-of-touch, dated, and untrustworthy. Without a website, you may also lose your chances for referrals and investors.
Sell Your Products and Services Online
During this pandemic, more people rely on searching for products and services on the Internet. Without a website, you’re missing your chance to sell to not only local customers but also global ones. Your website will basically act as a digital brochure and direct sales tool for your available offers.
Your customers will have a 24/7 open online store that can make sales even while your business is technically closed. Another benefit is that you can update your products and services in real-time with no waiting and need for print materials.
Let Local Customers Find You Easier
As a new business, your local customers are essential for promoting and reviewing your brand. When people need to find something, they head online to find what they need. For example, they search for restaurants near me or certain products like phones or furniture.
When locals search for something, your brand needs to appear on the first page. You can catch visitors who are in your neighborhood. With the right local search engine optimization, customers can even use Google Maps to find you.
Improves Your ROI and Revenue
In this digital age, a website acts as an open door for more revenue. With excellent website design and maintenance like SEO or engagement, you can boost your sales. Once you get your website working and generating traffic, you have a higher chance of increasing ROI and revenue.
Investing in SEO and a good domain can grab the attention of a lot of customers. You also need to watch the quality of your website to ensure you have the best purchasing exchange.
Showcase Any Discounts and Offers
Aside from the functionality and character of your brand, you have to incentivize your customers. You should show your available discounts, coupons, and sales.
Offering discounts on your products and services will draw old and new customers to your website. This strategy is beneficial when you need a boost in your cash flow, and you have plenty of products left over.
Try going for 2-in-1s, or if they buy more products, they can get a bigger discount. With an incentive like that, you can get more attention and loyal customers.
Your Competition Already Have a Website
One of the biggest reasons why you should have a website is because your competition already has one. There are thousands of brands that sell similar things as you. Customers would rather look online with your competitors instead of heading out to look at your store outside.
Your competition already looks more trustworthy than your business. They can also gain more sales and attention than yours since they started with a website. To stay atop of your competition, you need to make a unique and functional website.
Attract More Customers Through Google
As a small business, you need to rank high in Google search results. With proper SEO and functionality, you may experience a big customer turnover. Being visible in Google is one of the best ways to do this, as well as get your brand marketed by a big company.
If you want to be visible on Google, you have to be on the number one page. Not a lot of people go to page two to find what they’re looking for.
Display Your Testimonials and Reviews
A website also helps your customers find out if your brand is trustworthy. Showing all your testimonials and reviews is a great way to get a customer’s trust and establish social proof. You can show it through comments, stars, or other ways as long as you show what other people say about your brand.
You should also show your customers if other brands trust you. For example, showcase the times your business appeared on trustworthy news articles or popular blogs.
Encourages Customers to Contact You
Your overall goal for making a website is ensuring that your customer contacts you or purchases from your brand. With a website, you can tell your viewers their next step by adding a call to action or showing your contact information. Allowing your customers to engage with you helps with your brand reputation and sales.
Through good web design, you can have your contact information present at the bottom of every page. You can also use contact forms to protect your business emails from getting spammed.
Simple and Affordable Digital Marketing Strategy
Overall, a website is your big step to marketing your business to people who have never heard of your brand. Although it may sound expensive and complicated, it’s worth it in the long run. This is especially so if you have a professional by your side helping you with the designs, codes, and functionality.
If you have a professional by your side, you also get to learn from them on how to maintain your website if they ever leave your side. Dedicating your time to make a website that works will definitely pay back all that you invested in creating it.
Even if you’re not so creative or tech-savvy, you can find help from professionals or use simple web design tools. Take a look at the process of web design and development to encourage your need for a professional.
What to Consider When Making a Website
Your website is going to be the face of your business in the online world. It has to be eye-catching, up-to-date, aesthetic, functional, and smooth. Before creating a website, you have to consider the following factors first.
Main Purpose
Winning websites typically circle around a singular focus. You have to know your main goal for opening the website in the first place to have fixed maintenance. You can choose to only concentrate on selling your services or products, establish your credentials, or generate more leads.
Setting specific goals for your website can guide you to ensure you don’t get lost when maintaining your website. It also gives you a greater picture of why you need your website and how you can move forward in creating it.
Target Audience
To have a website that answers your customer’s needs, you need to properly identify who the people that may come to your site are. Narrowing down your customers helps you plan the function and look of your website. However, it’s not odd to have multiple primary target groups.
Budget
Before planning to create a website, you need to set up a budget first. It will help you limit the amount you can spend on fees you may have to pay for the website. You have to make a realistic budget that can fit the amount of customization you want, content, and functionality.
It’s best to question all your and the customer’s needs for your website. For example, do you need a contact form, downloads, extra features, or various payment options for your website? Then, it’s best to list them all down and write the maximum cost to provide a precise budget.
Site Structure
Your website’s structure allows your customers to follow certain steps before buying your products or services. The site structure makes it easier for anyone who visits your store on what to do and where to go. It makes your website feel more intuitive and natural to visitors when you have a structure that’s easy to navigate.
For example, when a visitor is close to the webpage, the topics should be much more general. Without a clear structure and navigation, visitors could get lost and leave your website.
Domain and Host
Your domain name should stick to your visitor’s minds when they first see and read it. Finding the right name for your brand is essential, especially if you want customers to search and find your website easily. Aside from your domain, you also need to find the right web hosting.
If the hosting service you choose doesn’t work so well, the user experience reflects on you. Poor hosting can lead to slow loading, constant server errors, and loss of revenue.
Design and Colors
Lately, less is more. So, to attract people to your website effectively, you need a clean and minimalistic design with the right colors. A quality design can make it easier for visitors to read every word on your website.
The colors can also affect your visitor’s choice to stay on your website. The general rule with colors is 60-30-10. There should be 60% of your main color, 30% should contract your main color, and 10% for the accent color.
With a simpler small business web design, visitors will focus more on the value of your content and brand instead of the large texts and distracting visuals. The more contemporary and consistent your design is, the more visually aesthetic your website will be.
Mobile-Friendliness
With about 60% of online searches coming from mobile devices, you don’t want to miss out on a mobile-friendly website. You have to optimize your web design to make your logo, texts, pictures, and other elements fit on smaller screens.
Go for a responsive design to ensure you get a more flexible website design. A responsive design allows your website to adapt to the size of the screen, no matter how small or big. This will surely increase the time a visitor spends on your site and can also improve your rating in any search engine.
Help I Need a Website! Well, We’re Here to Help You!
Now you know the reasons to build a website, so get to it! Remember that you have to maintain your website and ensure it gets regular updates and fixes. Without proper maintenance, the quality of your site will drop, and you’ll lose the interest of viewers.
We hope we answered your first thought of “Help, I need a website!” As long as you stay true to your business goal and keep up the great quality of your brand, products, and websites, you’ll stay on top of your competitors.
Need help with your web design and web development? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered! Contact us today, and we’ll help you from phase one of planning to phase five of maintenance.
