Many small businesses worry about keeping costs down when they first get started, and for good reason. Anyone who's starting a business of their own, knows it can be an extremely costly endeavor that carries a lot of risk. Unfortunately, too many businesses see a website as a luxury they can't afford. The truth though, is having a great website is a tool that businesses can't afford to not have.
Why is a website so important?
Before getting into what a 'kickass' website looks like, let's first look at why a website is important in the first place:
1. A website is your most important marketing tool
Before you invest your time and money in other marketing efforts like social media or print advertising, you need to have a website first. Today's customers are constantly searching on computers, tablets and smart phones for their next purchase or service appointment. Getting online enables you to reach more people locally or outside of your region while paying less for the exposure than traditional marketing strategies. On top of this, having an online presence will help to establish your brand, share your story, and build relationships with potential customers.
2. A website makes your business look professional
Having a good website instantly boosts your credibility as a legitimate business. Recent studies have shown that anywhere between to 30 -50% of online customers won't even consider your business, if you don't have a website. On the flipside, having a high quality, easy-to-use website makes customers feel more comfortable purchasing your products or using your services.
3. A website makes your business easily accessible
In today's world convenience is king. Customers expect access to information instantly and all the time, and don't want to have to visit your business to find the information the need. Having a website that clearly and concisely explains who you are and what you do, and also allows customers to take the next step in purchasing or booking an appointment, will help meet the demand for convenience.
4. A website gives you the opportunity to showcase what makes your business special
No matter if your business is a clothing boutique, a restaurant, a salon, or something else, there is a
100% chance that there are other companies offering similar services or goods. Your website give you chance to differentiate yourself from all of your competitors. You do this by
5. A website will save you time (and possibly money)
Providing all your current or potential clients with information on the phone or face-to-face times up too much valuable time. A website allows automatic communication of your businesses most important information 24 / 7. In addition, having a website may help your business to avoid spending money on traditional methods of advertising like brochures or print ads.
6. Your competition is already online.
Perhaps the greatest reason for your business to have a great website is that your competition most l likely already has one, and it's stealing business from you. Everyday that you don't have a website, is a day that you're missing out of sales or new customers.
What does a great website look like?
Although there are many different types of websites on the internet, many of the most successful websites are visually appealing, have engaging and informative content, they're easy to use, are mobile-friendly and are easy to find on a search engine.
Visual Appeal: A visit to your website could very well be the first impression someone might have of your business. Even if you offer fantastic products and services, a poorly designed website may generate the negative impression, and customers will quickly leave your site. A sharp looking website uses font that is easy to read and modern, meaningful graphics that help customers learn more about your brand and navigate your site, good use of color, high quality images, and simple layouts that allow your audience to focus on what's really important. Have a look at loftgarten.co for a great example of an aesthetically appealing website.
Great Content: Even if your website looks great, the copy on your website needs to be on-point to convert visitors into paying customers. Your website needs to show display strong, confident, authoritative, and succinct copy about your brand, and product or service. One of the biggest issues new website designers have is writing too much content to try to win over new customers. In today's world your customers will scan your website for 10-15 seconds before deciding whether or not to stay or leave your website, which means they don't have time to read a lot of information, and if the content isn't fresh or original, forget about it.
Functionality & Usability: Along the same lines of having succinct and original content, is the need for an easy-to-use website. When someone uses your website they shouldn't have to look to hard to find the information they need, and navigating through your website needs to be fast, intuitive and convenient. The customers' journeys from learning about new products and services to checkout needs to be simple as possible. User Experience (UX) is also key is improving your site's SEO, so that it can easily be found when using search engines.
Optimized for Mobile Use: We don't always have our computers with us, but we always have our phones within an arm's reach, which is why your website needs to be easily used on a cell phone. Mobile traffic, and the amount of online shopping th.at is completed daily, has grown exponentially in the last 5 years, so if your website is not mobile-friendly, this needs to be your top priority going forward. Having a mobile-friendly website is so important that many website designers not approach creating a website from a mobile first perspective. shutterfly.com is an excellent example of a mobile site that is easy to user for new and old mobile customers.
SEO is Still King: SEO or search engine optimization is still paramount, because it makes your website easier to find on search engines, which means more customers will be viewing your website. There are numerous strategies, actions and best practices (which will be discussed in a future blog entry) to improving SEO, and it takes a great deal of time to start showing up higher in search engine rankings, but it is still crucial to your website's (and business') success. It's never a bad idea to call upon the experts to help you make sure your website is, and will continue to be, search engine optimized.
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