9 reasons why having a website is crucial for your business
Having a website has become one of the necessities when starting any business. According to the World Internet Users and 2016 Population Stats, half of the world’s population uses the internet. This number is rapidly increasing every year! Having a website is no longer optional, as people expect it from every serious business.
For the vast majority of people, the first step in gathering information will be via Google or a similar search engine. 88% of consumers start their buying decision with an online search. When it comes to B2B, 94% of people will first do their research online before taking any action.
purplenote: If your business is not on the Internet, then your business will be out of business.
– Bill Gates
If you still ask yourself “Why do I need to invest in a good website?” below are 9 strong reasons why an online presence is vital for your business.
Visibility
Having a website increases visibility.
Whether your potential customers want to research more about your company before making a business decision, or they want to check directions to your office or marketplace before visiting you, they will look for your company’s website.
If you optimize your website well for the keywords relevant to your target audience, you can increase brand awareness and acquire new customers simply with your online presence.
Accessibility
Your website is accessible at all times, in any part of the world.
Your website will work for you 24/7, during the night, weekends and holidays, when your office is closed. More importantly, it will be the first result for all company-related queries, which means you are in charge of your visitors’ experience! You can decide which information you’d like them to find about your company, and what kind of impression you wish to make.
If you don’t have a website, potential customers will still look for information, but you may not like what they might find from secondary sources.
Cost-Effective
Having a website is a highly cost-effective way of promotion.
Although the cost of designing and launching a website varies, once it’s up and running, maintaining a website requires a negligible monthly amount to keep everything in its place.
Compared to the cost of advertisements in newspapers, on billboards or television, and taking into consideration the potential market you can reach, a website is the most inexpensive promotion tool.
Credibility
Having a professional looking website helps your business establish credibility.
With over 3 billion people using the internet, it is safe to say that the majority of potential customers will search online for information about your company/the business that you do. Without a website, you are missing out on potential customers and clients who may turn instead to your competitors.
A well-designed and easy to navigate website, with clear information, will provide your business with a professional image, and inspire trust in your visitors.
Marketing
Once you have a website, a whole new world of marketing opportunities opens up.
The best part is that online marketing strategies are measurable, and proven to be effective. Choose to invest in SEO, email marketing, social media, AdWords or multi-channels. You can easily track all activities and measure ROI.
Sales
A website can easily become one of your marketplaces.
You can sell products and services online, directly to your customers at any time without the restriction of business hours or location. You can engage with them to build a two-way relationship, and use this relationship not only to improve your products and services, but to convert prospects to customers, and recurring customers to brand advocates.
Lasting Value
Once you invest in building a quality website, it will only bring you more value with time.
Having a website brings new and exciting opportunities, and potential growth over time. There is no other, not even similar, promotion method. When you invest in any advertisements, benefits decrease with time, and if you want to hold it, you have to pay over and over again.
Customer Support
Your website can improve customer service.
More and more customers prefer self-service help, phone-based assistance or email support. Having a website allows you to offer better customer service for the majority of customers.
You can have a simple page with answers to frequent questions (FAQ), create a knowledge base, establish a troubleshooting forum or even extend online customer support via specialized helpdesk software, like MindTouch or Freshdesk.
Statistics
Add a few lines of code and say goodbye to guessing.
You can gather valuable insights from your website’s visitors, and use them to improve your business. By placing a simple tracking code, you can find out exactly how many people visited your website, which search terms they used, where they came from, which pages they visited, and much more.
You can even use a heatmap tool like CrazyEgg to visualize where your visitors click, or an advanced recording tool like LuckyOrange to study their behaviour in detail.
Up to around a decade or so ago, having a website was still a bit of novelty, and the advantages of online business were hardly understood. Today, you will find even flower shops with incredible websites, order forms and online scheduled deliveries. Having a website is an essential tool in your overall business practices that you cannot possibly ignore anymore if you wish to stay on top of the game!
