‘I’m only a small business, I don’t need a website’ oh dear that is something I have heard a few hundred times over the years!
Every single business in every single business sector can indirectly or directly benefit by having a quality online presence. The internet allows you to promote yourself and your business to a global audience who might be looking for exactly what you have to offer. Your business website is the most effective promotional and marketing tool you will ever have, FACT.
It’s good to advertise in the local paper as this can give your company excellent local exposure, however are you certain that people who want your products or service reads that very paper? Most people are now on the web and once your website is up and running there is a huge chance that someone searching on the internet for your type of business, in your local area or field of expertise, will see it. Have a think about how you look for services and products yourself. For most people, their first port of call is a search engine – “I’ll just check on Google” – is uttered frequently in most businesses and at home. If you are going online to find things, it is likely that your potential customers are doing the same thing. We recently met up with one of our website customers and she explained how he came to the decision that he needed to get his business online. He said: “I started to realise if I was looking for an electrician, decorator or even a cake maker, I’d look on the internet, then I thought, I’m not on the internet and I should be part of it with my own website!”
Before I go further, I should point out it’s better probably better to have NO website than one that is poorly designed that doesnt function well. Your website is often the first contact a customer will have with you and your business, first impressions count. Plan your website from a potential customer’s point of view. It has to be user friendly, appealing and relevant to your business. If you are baffled by all of this and are not sure where to start, it is worth having a quick call with one of our team for a free web review so that they can talk through what would work for you and your business plans.
Cost is, of course, relevant especially for a small business. But did you know that we can help you create, launch and maintain your website for as little as £400. There are other ways to do it of course, but have a proper think before using a low-cost template. It’s low cost for a reason and there will be hundreds if not thousands exactly like it out there.
Once you’ve launched your website, make sure you give it time. The phone will not start ringing off the hook with new orders straight away. You have got to think of the website as part of your overall marketing mix. It should complement other efforts to drum up business not replace it.(Online selling is an altogether different proposition and one that definitely requires professional help to set up. And if your business lends itself to selling online, go for it!)
Blogging is one way to use your site to keep customers entertained or informed about what is going on with your business. If you are a small independent, it could be a great way to interact with some of our customers and find out what they think about you. Visibility should be another reason to have a website. It’s available when you aren’t. Opening times, telephone contacts, directions to your office, product details, special offers and more. A customer is also more likely to trust you if they can see who, where and what you are, online. As a result, it’s getting harder and harder to reach customers through traditional advertising. So before you ask if you can afford a website, the question is can you afford not to have one?
You’re perhaps a small business owner or entrepreneur that wants to increase the visibility of your business on the web. You know that traditional advertising does not cut it anymore. Most of your customers are looking for you online! A good quality website will ensure life becomes easier as extra income and additional lead generation is guaranteed with our friendly assistance.
Your competition may be operating with a traditional non-mobile optimised site. What does that mean? It means that mobile users will prefer to purchase from you because they can use your services on the move. A bigger market share will improve your business and drive up sales.
