Research indicates that less than 2/3 of small businesses have a business website. The rest either don’t think that they need one, believe that they can’t afford it or come up with some other reason not to build one. Here are 3 reasons why you wouldn’t need a website for your small business:
- You already have more than enough business/revenue
- You don’t plan on growing or changing anything about your business
- You are certain that your current revenue channels will stay the same indefinitely
Building a website does not need to take a long time and it does not need to be expensive. You can do it using one of the web builder tools like Wix or Squarespace for a few hundred bucks. Anything is better than nothing.
1. Show your customers that you’re real
If I’m doing an online search for a service, I need to see that they have a website. If they don’t, I assume that they are not established, reliable or worth reaching out to. Having a website is a sign of legitimacy and your potential customers will be more likely to reach out to you. Make it a weekend project and just build one.
It is pretty easy these days to create a good looking responsive website. Make sure to consider any future needs before you dive in. Web builder tools like Wix and Squarespace can be somewhat limiting. If you end up needing to add options that these services don’t provide, you might have to rebuild the whole site somewhere else. This could end up costing you extra.
2. Don’t let your competitors win
Just because you have a website, it doesn’t mean that you’re getting much from it. It might be better than nothing but is it actually helping your business in a significant way?
If I do an online search for a service and your site does not work on my smartphone or is slow, I will move on to another company because there are plenty out there competing for my business. Their website loads fast and works on my smartphone.
You can’t bring a knife to a gunfight, as they say.
A business website is meant to guide your visitors and convert them to customers. If your website is older than 3 years it probably needs work. If it was built as an informational site with no focus on converting your visitors to customers, there is a lot of opportunity just waiting there.
I use WordPress because it is more flexible that Wix or Squarespace. I can add any option I might need in the future. Using WordPress is more complex than Wix or Squarespace but you can get so much more out of it. To clarify, I use the open source, free WordPress software and host it on SiteGround. I do not use WordPress.com which is a hosted platform similar to Wix and Squarespace.
3. Build a business website to grow your revenue
Rebuilding your current website the right way will lead to revenue growth. I know what you’re thinking. The person that built your original website said the same thing and built it “the right way”. Building and running a website is an ongoing process. If you want to get the most out of it, you have to constantly tweak it.
A website is a key marketing tool that when combined with other marketing efforts (landing pages, visitor tracking, leads, videos, up-selling, cross-promotions, etc.), should be bringing you new visitors, new opportunities and more sales.
4. Customers are looking for you on their smartphones
More than 50% of all web traffic comes from mobile devices. If your website doesn’t play well with smartphones, you’re losing business.
Your website has to be mobile friendly. That means that it has to work flawlessly on a mobile device. It has to be clear, fast and easy to use, otherwise, that potential customer is gone.
Google prioritizes mobile friendly websites. This means that your competitors with mobile friendly sites will rank higher than you in Google search results. Most people click on one of the top 5 links on a search results page. I know I do.
Having a mobile friendly website helps you get to that first page.
5. Your business image
Your website should be clean and current with clear signs of activity. You want to send your visitors a message. That message should say that your business is successful. You want to show that with fresh content, audience engagement, testimonials, etc.
A stale, old website that was last updated 3 years ago will most likely not instill confidence in your business. That said, I’m sure that there are businesses out there that would prove me wrong. If your business is one if those, congrats on finding a great niche and an amazing, loyal audience.
Conclusion
Most small businesses should not have to shell out $10,000 up-front to get a better website. You need to make sure to ask the right questions so you can get what you need since there a many different ways to build a website.
There are plenty of capable people out there that can build a business website for you at a reasonable cost. For most small businesses I would estimate the cost to be between $2,000 – $5,000. If you are paying less than that, you are probably not getting a website that will bring you customers.
Fill out my free web design estimate form to see what it would cost you to get a new website.
