Without a website, people may question your legitimacy as a business. Having a website is an opportunity to make a great first impression and give people comfort that you’re a real business. Showcasing your brand to your prospective customers is one of the most important things that you can do.
A business’s online presence, regardless of industry, can have a massive impact on its success. In this day and age, some businesses still don’t realize that the majority of their customers will visit their website before making a purchase.
Having a strong online presence, particularly a website, can be make-or-break for generating more revenue. Yes, the quality of your website impacts results, but the purpose of this article is to stress the importance of making sure you have a website.
I’ve helped numerous companies of varying sizes create their digital presence. In some cases, organizations are hesitant to get online because they feel they are not tech-savvy enough and don’t understand how to manage a website. Other times, companies are concerned about the price. The good news is that there’s a solution out there that will work for you. If you still need convincing, here are the top reasons it’s important for your business to have a website:
Credibility
One of the main reasons you should have a website for your business is to increase your organization’s credibility. Chances are, there are several providers offering a similar service to yours. One way you can stand out is by having a website that looks good and clearly communicates quality information to your consumers. Without a website, people may question your legitimacy as a business. Having a website is an opportunity to make a great first impression and give people comfort that you’re a real business.
Brand
Showcasing your brand to your prospective customers is one of the most important things that you can do. By clearly establishing who you are, what you represent, and what you stand for, you increase the chances of your customers buying from you.
This is also something that can set you apart from your competitors. Without a website, it can be incredibly challenging to do this because people can’t easily find quality and reliable information about your business.
Leads
Perhaps one of the most intriguing reasons to have a website for your business is because it can increase your chances of getting leads.
Once people find you online, become interested in your product or service, and want to know more, they’ll know how to contact you thanks to the information on your website, which gives you the opportunity to increase your sales. Even though websites have a cost, when used correctly, they have a positive ROI.
Organic Traffic
Once you’re online and have an SEO-optimized website, you have a chance of showing up in Google search results. This means that when people are searching for a product or service, there is a chance your website will show up in the results. This gives you the opportunity to drastically increase your customer base.
Saving You Time + Customer Service
Many businesses get calls from prospects or existing customers asking simple questions about location and hours of operation. If you miss a call, the customer is left unhappy. Calls can also distract your staff from focusing on the most important parts of your business. A website can reduce these calls and increase internal productivity. At the same time, it helps customers find useful information without needing to call, which ultimately provides an all-around better user experience.
Updates and Announcements
Since your website is available 24/7, it’s easy to post updates and announcements for your customers. It’s a way to keep them up to date on everything that you’re doing. When something is particularly relevant to them, it increases the chance of you being able to upsell them.
Digital Marketing
If you plan on leveraging digital marketing to increase your leads and grow your business, you’ll likely want to drive traffic to a website or landing page. To do this effectively, leverage the historic traffic that has been going to your website so you can target the most qualified customers and get the best ROI on your ad spend. This is something that can’t be set up retroactively, so it is best to get your website running early, even if you’re not planning on running ads at the moment.
Websites have become essential to business today. I strongly recommend creating one if you haven’t done so already. You can improve it over time, but the key is to start.
Reasons why having a website is a must:
1. Having a website makes you look professional and increases trust.
Most people don’t trust a business without a good website. A clean, modern page that is regularly updated and pops up in search engines is an instant credibility boost. Potential customers will trust you more and have all the information they need in one place. In a digital age, we expect businesses to have a web presence. Even the smallest local business or organization needs a website, from a simple one-page site for a mom-and-pop shop to a full website for a local church congregation.
Anyone can easily create a Facebook page or an Instagram account with fake data and your name or handle, and the profiles may look identical to yours. So, a professional business website legitimizes your company in ways no other social media channel would.
And if you don’t have a business and you’re considering creating a place for your portfolio, to show off your work, or something that represents yourself to send to recruiters when looking for a job, there’s not a more professional way to stand out from the crowd than having a personal website.
2 . A business website will bring you more customers and increase conversions.
Well-optimized websites can pop up on the first page of Google searches, attracting new customers that weren’t looking specifically for you but were just researching a topic. There’s a much bigger chance of someone “stumbling upon” your website than a social media profile. Also, comparing you with any competing business or offer is easier when all the parties involved have a professional website.
If you invest in Google Ads or Facebook Ads, you can direct the traffic straight to your website. On the page, your leads will have all the details they need to make an informed purchase and a call-to-action to motivate them. Pages with built-in popup forms and web push notifications encourage website visitors to stay in touch and come back.
A website is available 24/7, every day of the year, from anywhere around the globe—that makes your business stay on customers’ minds even after business hours. Websites broaden your reach and promote you without a break.
3. Creating your own website is much easier and less expensive than you expect.
If you believe that to create a stunning website, you need to be a tech-savvy expert in web design or have a team of engineers and a professional web designer on speed dial, I’m happy to say that you’re wrong!
Creating websites has never been easier, and there’s no coding required. If you choose a website builder, like the one from Get Response, you can choose a domain (which will be registered and configured for you), pick a professionally designed, mobile-friendly, and device-optimized website template that suits your needs, and head to a drag-and-drop editor. All you need to have beforehand is a good copy.
But wait, there’s an even easier way. You can use AI to create an amazing website in an instant! You answer a few simple questions about your needs, and you have an AI-created personalized website. all for free.
As for the costs, if you choose Get Response, you can have a website along with essential email marketing features, all completely free. Plus, you get limited-time access to our premium features such as automation, autoresponders, funnels, chats, and more for as little as $15 a month.
4. A website gives you full control over the medium.
There are two sides to this reason. The first is your freedom of expression on a website. You can’t customize your social media presence to the same extent. All your assets have to be in the same format as everybody else’s. If you really want to stand out, a website is an answer.
Absolute design freedom gives you an opportunity to present your brand in a unique way and showcase its voice and personality.
The control you have over your image on a webpage isn’t only about the graphics and layout. You decide what to put out there, so if you have any cool online reviews, customer testimonials, videos, etc., they can all share the space on your site.
If you have a gallery or a portfolio, this is also a chance to display it in a creative way. You can redesign and change anything on a website at any time you want.
The other side of “full control” is that a webpage is your own media. You don’t have to follow the ever-changing rules of social platforms, and while the platforms themselves come and go (remember Myspace?) your website can stay in business forever. Also, any Internet user can engage with your website without creating an account.
5. Websites are the center of all marketing efforts.
A website can be the first place where potential customers interact with you and learn about your business.
It can also be where they land last, to make a purchase, because they were redirected from an email, a Facebook ad, or an Instagram post.
Maybe they want to receive your emails, and that’s why they visit your site—to sign up.
Someone driving by your facilities clicks the pin on Google Maps, which directs them to your website with pricing or a menu.
They might have typed your URL into their browser from a physical business card. Or, after watching your YouTube video, they “clicked the link in the description below” to get a coupon code for your new online course.
All your marketing efforts, no matter if your business is operating online or offline, should sprout from and lead to your own stunning and informative webpage.
Campaigns are also easier to manage when everything is interconnected and the common denominator is a website. So, having a website is a priority and the first step to success.
Advantages of Websites for Business
1. Cost
The expense of setting up a business website is not as high as it seems to be. Although there is a small amount of cost involved, it is nothing compared to the long-term cost savings. The user only needs to spend money on the domain name and web hosting. It is similar to the way of expenditure in advertising.
2. Reach
Before purchasing a product, most customers tend to do research on the internet. So, all these customers have the tendency to reach your business if you own a related website. Using websites, businesses have the potential to reach a wide range of audiences. Even overseas customers can be easily targeted with the help of websites. This provides the opportunity for local businesses to expand according to the international market.
3. Accessibility
Product information is easily available to the customer while using a business website. They will be able to find information regarding the product, its price, and the delivery method. And most business websites provide information about their business through the “About Us” page. From this page, customers will get to know more details about your company.
4. Availability
The internet is a medium that is open 24/7. A business website can be accessed any time of the day and regardless of the location. So even if the business isn’t operating, the customers can still continue doing transactions with your website. And also, if the customers need to contact the business, the requirement is fulfilled through the “Contact Us” page.
5. Securing Your Brand Online
Having a website for your business is not just an advantage; it’s an essential way to protect your brand online. Stake your business claim on the internet, or someone else will! There is a risk that if you don’t have a business website and secure a domain name relevant to your business, someone else will do it for you. The act of cybersquatting is now less prevalent since the introduction of new laws to combat it, but there is still a risk of someone innocently taking your preferred domain name. Others with a grudge against your business might use a website or social media accounts to damage your business’ reputation. Getting there first will allow you to protect and secure your business brand online.
Disadvantages of a Business Website
There are a few disadvantages to having a website for your business. Generally, though, they are outweighed by numerous advantages.
Reliability
The information on your website might be unreliable if it is not updated on a regular basis. You need to ensure that changes are made when necessary and have a disclaimer with regard to the reliability of the information contained therein.
Crashes and uptime
A website that crashes is no good to anyone. This is a serious disadvantage for a business. If your website is constantly crashing or unavailable, then people will not be able to find information about your business, and you could miss out on potential sales. An unreliable connection could also mean a plummet in a website’s search engine ranking. This is the reason why you need good web hosting for your business.
Difficultly Reaching The Right People
Because of the nature of the internet and the sheer number of businesses already on the World Wide Web, you may find it difficult to reach the right target audience with your website. Competition within your market may be strong, and the battle for the illusive No. 1 spot on Google may be a difficult one against a wealth of other businesses in your sector. This is not always the case, and there are ways around it, such as by taking advantage of our SEO services for small businesses. While our managed social media solutions can help improve your ranking and put your business on the right footing,
SPAM
We all hate spam. The internet equivalent of junk mail This is one of the disadvantages of a website that can cause you some grief. With a contact form or your e-mail address published on your website, you’ll soon find your inbox filling up with spam e-mails unless you use Form Guard or a captcha tool.
Bad Publicity
Having a website means risking bad publicity. If a customer is unhappy with your service or products, they may feel the need to vent their frustrations online and reference your website in their review or comment. This could be potentially damaging, hurting both your reputation and your search engine ranking. Of course, not having a website won’t prevent such things from happening, but it might allow you to monitor them and be aware of them. Providing the best possible customer care and learning from your clients’ feedback is the best possible course of action to combat this problem.
The final words
Having a website is important for business success. Web design backed by a solid strategy is imperative. It is the basis of your online marketing activity. The main purpose of a web site’s design is to engage the visitor and then convert them into customers.