Top 10 reasons why you need a website designed for your small business

Ok, so maybe you are not really sold on why you need a website for your small business. Maybe your friends are telling you that you need one but business is okay and you are still getting customers in. Maybe, you are really not sure that it will help you?

Or if you are like my aunt who sells handmade jewelry, the thought of doing anything on the computer just scares you into cleaning the bathrooms just to avoid having to deal with it. Here are a few reasons why you shouldn’t postpone building a website (or be scared) and why you should call us:

1.People are looking for your business and not finding it. You are still in business so obviously you still have customers however, in any industry, there is a certain amount of customer loss that requires new customers to maintain the same growth or to increase it, be through relocations, loss of interest or because it is no longer needed.

With the increased use of smartphones and computers to search for services, customers are going to businesses they can easily find that meet their needs. If they can’t find your basic information online to get your hours and location, they will go to where they can find that info. Just think, what would you do if 5 more customers find you? What about 30 or 50?

2. Customers are finding your competition. It’s not like the yellow pages where everyone in town was listed equally. People are using search sites like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and Yelp to find what they need and are getting more options per search, people in and out of your area.

You may be right around the corner but if they can’t find even your basic location but can find 10 competitors from your town and the next, they will go where they have information, and now they have lots of options.

3. Suggestions are coming from friends on social media. People have always been using services with the recommendations of others. Now, “others” are not just mom, sister, and best friend – it can be any of you 400 Facebook friends and everyone has an opinion.

We all know that word of mouth is important but when you get lots of mouths talking, it can be even better. People are spending an average of 6 hours a week* on social media. Your website can link to your Facebook and other social media accounts letting others know about your business, your sales and other promotions.

4. Websites are replacing paper advertising. Local newspapers, magazines and phone books are phasing out. I hate to be the barer of this news (especially because I still value the newspaper) but these services are going to online subscriptions.

This is not only better for the environment with less printing but also would give you an opportunity to have your ad linked to your website, putting more information in their “hands” and with a lower cost.

5. Familiarity. Customers can get to know you and your business. A great website design will make your business brand shine and great content can introduce you in such a way, people can be comfortable with your staff before they even meet you.

When choosing a product or service, customers are more likely to purchase from a business they know about, they are familiar with or they feel a connection to. A website can introduce customers to you and grow a sense of trust before they even meet you.

6. Quicker customer response with direct marketing. Don’t you wish you could just snap your fingers and then everyone would know you are having a great sale? Well, you almost can (it does require a little typing, of course) by updating a section on your website and prompting it to send a message to everyone on your distribution or on your social media pages (or both). It’s that easy.

7. It’s the cheapest way to sell products and services. Need to reduce your overhead or payroll but need to sell more products or services? Online orders can be taken while you are closed, filled while you are open and shipped all over the U.S., delivered or picked up in the store.

8. Educate your customer on your product, services or on changes in your industry. The more your customer understands your business and your services, the better the chance that they will use you when they need you.

9. Get to know your customers. With the advancement of computer reporting, you can determine who your customers are, where they are from and what information on your site is most important and impactful to them. Customers are less likely to tell you what they want you to change about your business but you can determine this based on what pages they look at, what links they click on and how long they are on them.

10. We are here to help you build it. The great thing about building a website is that you don’t have to be the expert and you aren’t going to do it alone. We will work with you to build the site, guiding you through this process step by step.

We will take the time to show you what you need and provide all the cost information upfront, no hidden fees or end of site build surprises. It is easy to build a site when you have partners who are invested in your business’s success – because, when you succeed, we succeed.