Many business owners, and start-ups alike, simply do not take their website seriously enough. They use free builders or free blogging application to build their websites.
Or worse, some people think they can use only a Facebook page, or get away with just a LinkedIn account, and not even have a website, yet they want to get great results. Even if you have a website, but you do not add some functionality to it, or don’t think about your audience when you select your content for your site, it is obvious that you do not take your website seriously.
If you are committing any of these “sins”, please think about it, and know that your website is a serious tool that can bring real business to you.
* Your Website Is Open 24/7 – Using the right technology, you can bring people to your website who will read your content, and sign up for your newsletter/email list. They might even land on specialized landing pages that encourage them to buy something that you are offering, or you could provide a coupon to help get your foot in the door.
* People Use Google First – If you have not faced it, you will have to soon enough. Most people use Google Search to find what they need, before anything else. If you filled your website with the right, relevant content, that content will help people searching for certain terms to find you, and your business.
* It is an Effective Branding Mechanism – You can use your website as a way to further brand your business. Today, it is expected that you have a website for your business. It is more than a brochure, and more than a place to get information. It is the storefront for your business on the world-wide web. For some people with solely an online business, it is their only storefront.
* You will Get More Customers – By having a website that has the things it needs, a great looking home page, an about page that tells your story, and an email sign-up form, you will be able to get information to your audience faster than ever before.
* You will Earn More Revenue – It is a fact (according to the SBA), that business owners who also have good websites earn more money. In fact, if you make sales online, over 50 percent come from new customers attracted to your website.
* Your Competitors Have One – Even if you do not want to do it, you are forced to, because your competition is has a website. Otherwise, when someone does a search for a business like yours, they will find the competition’s site, and not yours.
* It is a Marketing Machine – Your website is a genuine marketing machine, because it draws in interested people, teaches them about your offerings, and tells your story, and then convinces them to try your products or services, all without your continued monitoring. Once it is set up, it works for you 24/7.
* Your Website Is the Center of All Your Marketing and Branding Efforts – The truth is, your website should be considered the hub of all your online activities. Every social media post should lead back to your website. Content that your audience wants to read, and engage with, then share with social media, should be put on your website.
Having an effective website proves that you not only take your business seriously, but you also embrace modern technology. Websites give confidence to consumers that you are a real business, that you take your business seriously, and that you have some sort of expertise, or skill, as explained by the content on your website.
Because people like buying from those that they feel comfortable with, like and trust, a website is the first step to building that reputation.
