7 Reasons Your Business Needs a Website
You can be very quickly left behind.
Over the years, consumer behaviour has changed drastically. In the past, finding a business would require an address book like the yellow pages whereas nowadays, people have evolved to using technologies and everything is digitalised. Research has shown, around 97% of people search the world wide web to find a local business, and 50% of Smartphone users discover a new product or business when simply searching on their phones daily.
Social media is not enough to attract customers and bring in sales, as while they have the potential to increase business in the short term, investing in that alone could cost you in the long term. Facebook, for example, has seen a drastic drop in the time people spend scrolling over the last couple of years, so a website is more reliable as it is not just a short-term fix. Similarly, any digital marketing strategy should have a driving force to a landing page or website. Steering traffic to just Instagram is effectively a dead-end without a site as this will be what generates your revenue. Research has shown 81% of people will research a business before finalising a purchase, so before asking yourself why you need a website, ask why not?
Professionalism.
One of the most valuable reasons for getting a website is that it makes your business appear more professional and increases its credibility. Several companies are likely to be offering the same or a similar service, a website helps your business stand out. It can also be a place to show off any awards or accreditations your company has and will allow you to create a branded email address, again adding a level of professionalism. A study found that 84% of consumers believe your business looks more plausible if it has social media and a website, rather than social media alone, and a further 75% of people admitted to judging a company’s credibility based on the design of its website. A website may be the first impression someone may get of your business and without one, people may question how legitimate it is, people want to engage with a business they feel that they can trust.
In this generation, the 21st-century customer is a skeptic, in a study, over half of the people stated that they won’t trust a business without a website, your customers will expect you to have one to find out more. It can be your company’s biggest tool for standing out in a crowd and be a platform that delivers 24 hours of marketing messages 365 days a year!
Increase your ROI.
Being visible on google will help you to attract new customers and although you may have a strong customer base, everyone experiences consumer turnover. If search engine optimization is done right you can attract many customers, and if you’re worried that you’re not ‘tech savvy’ enough, then there are a huge number of resources that can help to make it seem easy. Research has shown that there are 63,000 searchers per second every single day, and if someone is online looking for your exact service you can attract a huge volume of traffic.
Without a website, your business is essentially invisible to the 4.5billion people who globally use the Internet. Many people won’t even be aware of, let alone be able to have access to, your products or services. If they can see it online, they are more likely to become interested in them and potentially contact you, you can create content that will influence buying decisions and commercial transactions. This is also a way of then generating even more leads, through word of mouth, for example, generating a huge increase in your customer base.
Competition.
In this increasingly digital world, your business needs to get online. If you don’t dominate the internet, you are giving your customers a reason to go elsewhere. Your website gives you a chance to compete with the giants of your industry and allows you to establish your place. Having an optimized and prominent position on the search results page will able you to challenge your competition, and if they aren’t online yet, they will be soon. Even if you have a very similar business to someone else, your website can be designed in a completely different way, helping you to stand apart.
Branding.
Going hand in hand with this is controlling the narrative. Your business may have been negatively reviewed for example, and 79% of consumers who read reviews online, have admitted to believing them. While it’s difficult to control what people are writing about you, you can combat this by posting your testimonials. You can alter people’s perception of your business by spreading a clear message, mission, and vision for your brand.
A base for communication.
As well as providing testimonials and positive reviews, a website is a space for posting your contact information, a way of encouraging customers to reach out. These details can appear on every page if you add them to a header or footer, making it super easy for them. Similarly, this will allow you to expand your working hours, you can be accessible at any time of day which will have a knock-on effect on your customer service reputation, increasing sales dramatically. Phone calls, for example, can leave customers feeling dissatisfied if unanswered, and can also take time away from your staff doing important work, the same goes for trading emails, sending out proposals, etc. Therefore, a website that will answer people’s FAQs will massively increase internal productivity and user experience.
Other benefits include features in which you can integrate your website with Google maps, so people not local to your area can easily find you. Announcements and updates can be added and when they are needed too, this will constantly keep your consumers updated on everything you’re doing. Many people choose to have a live chat feature on their site, again, giving your consumers immediate gratification.
It’s easier than ever
Websites are no longer as intimidating or expensive to create as you may think. You don’t need to be a complete tech wiz to have a website, several web development companies do all the hard work for you. They will allow you to create an attractive, mobile-friendly site, quickly and painlessly. As mentioned earlier, it is extremely cost-effective. Websites offer a better return than any form of advertisement. In summary, it has never been simpler to create an aesthetically pleasing website and there is no good reason why you shouldn’t have one!
