It's no secret that the world around us is becoming more digitalized every day, so why shouldn't your business be part of it?
Sure, you have considered the services you want to offer and your desired audience, but have you stopped to consider how you are going to get those clients?
Introducing your partner to the road of success: A website.
Well, that sounds fancy. Does my small business need it? Write this, with capital letters: YES.
The most obvious reason lies in visibility, of course, having a website is the first step to gaining as much spotlight as possible. Let's think about Jules from Long Island. Jules has just opened her business consultancy company, the location is great and she has all the skills to succeed. However, aside from a couple of friends coming in to visit nobody seems interested. Why? Because nobody is aware of what Jules’ business is about, she doesn't have a website to help people find out what she's doing.
What if I have a social media presence?
That's great, putting your business on Facebook, Instagram or TikTok is a wonderful way to connect to your clients but here's the detail, at some point your content on social media might not be sufficient, there are things that a website can do a bit better.
Let's review them
Credibility
I don't know about you, but unless I'm going to a very rural area, my consumer habits always stick to reviewing websites before making a decision. It's not only a matter of having a lot of options, it's more of making sure you are buying from the right place. How does the website look? Is it user-friendly? Is it professionally designed? Who are the people behind it? Are the reviews good? Answering all these questions will show your clients that you are the real deal.
Customers Prefer it
And speaking about the sort of thoughts your possible clients have before deciding if your business is what they need, it's good to note that having a website will not only help you make an amazing first impression but also set the mood for the customer experience your brand offers. Think of your website as the best sales assistant you can find, as the place where you can go and quickly get the answer to what you are looking for with personalized attention.
Branding
It's a fact, that our attention span is constantly getting shorter, the more options we find, the more possible it is to forget them quickly. So how can your business stand out amidst an ocean full of competition? It all starts with defining your identity as a company, also known as your brand. The problems you are aiming to solve, the values you represent, and the way you communicate, among other aspects determine who you are as a brand. There's no better way to showcase this than with a website.
Traffic, Organic Traffic.
Sure, you can pay for a campaign on Facebook so your content gets some degree of visibility but search results work differently. It's hard to say this but Google won't care too much about how shiny your latest Instagram ad is, what matters here is how good your business is at what it is doing. To prove that, you need a website + optimized content, which can be said is the heart of SEO. Search Engine Optimization helps you to get basically free leads by improving the content on your website so it appears higher in search results. But you will need a website to benefit from this.
Now, if you are a small business owner you might be saying: Hmm, that sounds good and all but I'm a local business, people know me, do I really need a website?
Again, YES.
Stats show that 97% of people rely upon search results to find local businesses and 70% of users only visit a business after reviewing its website. So unless you are an alien with no interest in growing and making more profit, your local business needs a website.
Wouldn't it cost too much?
Having a website is less expensive than you think, and if you remember that once it's ready you'll have an effective lead-attracting companion for as long as you want, then the decision is almost made.