Having a website for your business is not just a nice-to-have.
So many of us do the majority of our shopping online now, and before we spend our hard-earned dollars on a purchase, we want to know – who is this business, and can I trust them?
Without a website to provide a strong online presence, that question is harder to answer.
But we know, creating and running a website looks like a lot of work. Wouldn’t it be easier to just keep your online presence to Instagram or Facebook? But while social media may look like less work, there’s a reason only 13% of small businesses use it as their primary online presence – it doesn’t work in the long run!
Here’s why having a website is so important:
1. It makes you look more professional
A website is the official online presence of your business. Your digital shop-front, if you like. You own it completely, and all of the content on it, unlike the content on your social media pages. Now that online shopping is the norm, customers expect businesses to have a website, and those that don’t tend to come off as unprofessional and less trustworthy.
Your website is a snapshot into your business for customers, with all the information they need about the products/services you provide and a way to contact you directly. Having all this information available for them on your own website – not a social media page – with your branding is going to make your business look 100% more professional than businesses without one.
2. It adds credibility
According to a recent survey, 56% of consumers today do not trust a business that does not have a website. In our tech-driven society, if a potential customer cannot find credible information about you online, they are not going to trust you. Having a website will give your business credibility, and it gives you the option of having a branded email address, which comes off as much more professional.
Trust is a huge deal between businesses and their customers, especially nowadays when we do a lot of our purchasing online and we can’t get our hands on a product before we buy it. If your only online presence is a social media profile – or worse, nothing at all – you are missing a golden opportunity to give your potential customers reason to trust you or the products/services you provide.
3. You can take advantage of Google SEO
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is your best friend as a small business owner, because the more you cater to it, the higher your website will rank on Google. And the higher you rank, the more likely you are to be found when someone searches for businesses in your industry. You want to get new customers, and one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways of doing this is updating your website regularly with blog posts so that Google will keep your business as one of the top search options when people are looking.
You can even just link your Instagram account to your website, so that when you post on Instagram the post will feature on your website too and SEO counts this as fresh content – two birds, one stone!
4. You can clearly showcase your products/services
On your website you can have as many product/service pages as you like, with tons of details and photos. Everything can be set out well and super easy to navigate – which your customers will love you for because it makes purchasing a breeze. Social media does not offer this ability, and it can look really messy if you try. Facebook and Instagram are much better to use for highlighting products/services and really connecting with your audience. Your website should be doing the heavy lifting when it comes to providing information about your business and what you offer.
5. You’re invisible without a website
While some people are searching for businesses on Instagram or Facebook, most people are still doing an old-fashioned Google search. So if you don’t have a business website, you’re invisible. Your social media pages are not coming up in Google searches unless someone searches for you specifically, so the only people that will be finding you organically are those who stumble across you on social media. You’re robbing yourself of a huge demographic of new customers who are googling for businesses that do what you do. Without a website, they’re never going to find you.
6. Websites are not expensive or hard to run
Websites can be as simple or as complex as you need them to be. You can hire a website designer to set it up for you, but it’s also pretty simple to knock out a decent website over a weekend yourself. These are some great options:
- Wix – Wix is probably the most user-friendly option, which means it’s perfect for the less tech-savvy of us! You can get started with a basic business website for just under $30/month.
- Squarespace – Squarespace is much more focused on visuals and aesthetically pleasing websites. It’s not difficult to use, and it’s a really good option for small businesses with a lot of visual product imagery.
- WordPress – Wordpress has a whole range of plan options to suit most budgets. However, it is a little more complex to get started with if you haven’t used it before. It is super SEO friendly though and the site is 100% customisable.
If you’re creating your own website and struggling with what to write – we can help! Whether it’s product descriptions, a brilliant home page or the full works, our team of content creators are geniuses at writing website copy that sounds like you and tells your unique story.
Check out our services here: https://thesplendidword.com.au/services/
By Emma Beckenham
