Let’s just start off by saying that having a website for your business is just as important as having a name for your business. In this day in age, people are information hungry. Not only hungry, but they want information at the snap of a finger or “quick as a click”. Even if you are a small local business that has been operating for years and everyone in town knows who you are and what you do, a website is still a must. Let’s dive on into the reasons you need a website.
Accessibility
If the only reason you have a website is to provide information about your business as well as location and hours of operation this can still go a long way. Let’s think about that. Giving your customers or prospective customers the ability to look up your business on your website 24/7 will have a major advantage to those who don’t provide this. Majority of people nowadays will pull out their phones, do a quick search for a specific product or service, and look at what businesses are close by as well as look at their website to read a little about them. Let’s say someone from out of town stops for the night and would like a good breakfast first thing in the morning. Very unlikely they will wait until the morning to go drive around to see if there are any good local breakfast restaurants. They will whip out their phone that night and do a search of local breakfast restaurants. They will go to different restaurant websites to see what time they are open, exact location, and take a look at their menu. If you didn’t have a website in this situation, there is a good chance you would lose the business.
Market Expansion
If your business provides a product or service, there is a good chance it can be sold online. This means at any hour of the day, someone can hop onto your website, find the product or service they are needing and buy it without ever having to step into your store or calling you. Not only is this good for giving your customers the options to shop at any time, but if you sell something that is not available in a specific area, you are able to add a lot of value by providing this to them. By having the ability to tap into the market outside of your local area, you can grow your business without the large investment of opening a new location.
Competition
Business is all about competition. Knowing that your competitors have a website and you don’t should be enough to make you take action. So kind of piggybacking off of the last sentence of the Accessibility section, If you don’t provide your customers the ability to have this access, then there is a good chance your competitors will get the business.
Sometimes, only having a website is not good enough either. You want to have a website that is up to date and looks good. Appearance goes a long way. If you and your biggest competitor both have a website and your site is way out of date and looks horrible, it is a good chance you will lose customers on that alone.
Branding
Think of your website as a digital version of your business that shows what it stands for and your companies culture. By branding your business with a website, you’re making it that much easier to provide your customers with a feeling of trust which is what every business wants their customers to feel. Having one more tool in your bag to help brand your business can be a great asset. Don’t take any shortcuts with this either. The more effort you put into your website, to show what your business is all about, the more you will get out of it.
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