Let's face it, running a small business is hard enough having to worry about the day-to-day operations, but what about getting discovered by new customers? In today's digital world, having an online presence is more important than ever, especially for smaller businesses looking to become established in their local area.
Customers are increasingly turning to local shops and restaurants to find products and services they need or want, which means that if you don't have a presence online, you could be missing out on a lot of potential business, especially a website.
If you don't have one, potential customers may view your business as being out of touch or behind the times.
How Much does it Matter?
It's a big turn-off if you don't have a website, especially for younger demographics. It's a big issue if that's your target audience, but the importance declines with age. However, it's a huge plus to have one, according to all demographics.
Regardless, your business will automatically be deemed as less attractive than others if you're not with the times.
Build Trust with Potential Customers
If you're in business, you know that trust is important. In the digital age, one of the best ways to build trust is to have a strong online presence - and that starts with a website.
When people are searching for businesses like yours, one of the first things they'll do is go online (mainly Google) to conduct a search. If they can only find your Google Business Profile but not your website, it's going to be harder for them to trust that you're a credible business.
A professionally-designed website can turn that doubt into trust. When people can't see your store or meet you face-to-face, they have to know at least a few key things about you before taking steps forward.
Show Off Your Brand
A website gives you the opportunity to present your brand in the best possible light and tell visitors what sets you apart from your competitors. Think of your website as an extension of your brick-and-mortar store. Just as you would take care to create a warm and inviting atmosphere in your physical store, you should put effort into creating a website that reflects your brand identity and tells your brand story.
24/7 Marketing Tool
When you think about it, your website is one of your biggest assets and best marketing tools. It's available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. That means people can visit your site and learn about your business at any time, from anywhere in the world. Having a presence online also allows you to reach more people than you ever could through old practices like bench ads, billboards, and printed flyers.
How Can I get people to my website?
There's not a single solution to this question. Rather, you should be looking at multiple ways to get more website visitors.
Just know that "If you build it, they will come" is not a marketing plan.
Promote it on Social Media
One simple way to do this is to include links to your website on your social media pages. Another method is to share links to your latest blog post or video and be sure to include a call to action so that people know where to go to find out more.
Quality SEO Work
You can't create a website and expect people to magically show up. You can use other free methods, but they can only produce so much for you and you can't rely on paid ads forever because of the diminishing return over time.
SEO is extensive work that can take months to show results. However, it's still one of the best organic ways to grow your business.
Some experts even say it's the heart of omnichannel marketing.
You can optimize your website to target keywords that relate to the products or services you offer and the right people will find you when they need you.
These are just two ways to drive website traffic, but you can discover way more through different sources.
What Industries Absolutely Need a Website?
Online Services
This is an absolute no-brainer. Where's the sense of providing online services with no website? That being said, the combination of a well-designed, easy-to-navigate website and search engine optimization is a killer combo if you want your business to succeed in the long haul.
Now, the fact that SEO takes months to give you relatively good results shouldn't [deter] you. It's a marathon, not a sprint. It's a steady race that you can succeed in given the right SEO strategies.
Food industry
Why would anyone want to gamble on your doors being open if they can't get any information on your restaurant? Yes, Yelp is also an option but it's full of information from the customer's perspective. Don't get me wrong, it's helpful to know what people usually experience in an establishment so you know what to expect, but don't you as a business owner want to control the information people see?
That's what a website can offer you - a chance to showcase everything about your restaurant in your own words.
As a restaurant owner, you may think people can just waltz in off the street and order their food. But that's usually not the case anymore. A website gives you a platform to showcase your menu, your story, and feed customers important information, and most importantly - to people who might not otherwise know about your restaurant.
With so many benefits, there's no reason not to have a website for your restaurant. So get started today and see the difference it can make!
Niche
Social media can only do so much for you, especially if you're in a niche business. Your website has to explain who you are and what you can offer to visitors.
E-commerce
If you plan to sell anything in a brick-and-mortar store, you should also be selling it online if you have the opportunity. E-commerce is booming especially on social media! Platforms like Instagram are encouraging businesses and creators to post items for sale on the app.
Consumers are driven by the ease of shopping on an app they're already scrolling through (they don't have to leave the app to an external website. Doing this also benefits the platform that they're using, such as Instagram, because they don't leave its platform and still shop for items they discover.
In today's digital world, having a website is essential for any small business that wants to have lasting success. A website gives you the opportunity to reach more potential customers, build trust with them, and collect leads for future marketing campaigns. If you don't have a website yet, now is the time to start one!