Does Your Business Need a Website?
Today all businesses, both large and small, local, national or international see the need to have a website.Businesses like bed and breakfast, guest Houses, hotels, restaurants, tradesmen e.g. plumbers, real estate agents, lawyers, dentists, consultants etc, can all benefit by having an Internet presence in the form of a website.
Why Build Your Own Business Web Site?
Although it involves time and effort to master web building tools, techniques and technologies, there are many benefits:
- It is much cheaper than using a professional web designer.
- It means that you can make changes quickly without having to wait for outside help
- You have an understanding of what needs doing, and what doesn't.
The last point is particularly important as there are many small business owners who have had a site built by a web designer, and the site isn't getting any traffic after months of being online.
Simply because the business owner didn't understand the process of getting the site listed in the search engines, and how a site gets optimised.
They for some reason thought the designer would do it all.
So if you are considering getting your site designed by a professional designer then I still recommend you learn the basics of how to build your own site as it will give you a huge advantage when talking to your designer.
Even today many small businesses still don't have an Internet presence i.e. a website.
Most small business owners don't see the need for a websites as their customers are local, and they already know them, and they don't appreciate what a website can really do for their business.
It maybe true that some businesses can, and will thrive without a website, but there are many that won't, and there are probably even many more that will thrive because of their Internet presence!
Why Your Business Needs a Website
If you have a small business where do you get new customers from ? For most businesses it will probably be local advertising and/or the local yellow pages.
If this is you then you will eventually need your own website- and here is Why?
- A website is cheaper than the Yellow Pages (typically around$100/month for a 1" space ad) and you can change it when you want.
- It is cheaper than local advertising.( typically-$10-$30 per column inch per insertion)
- You can use it to interact with your customers.
- You can supply much more information to your customers than through either other methods.
- You can use it to accept email orders.
- Reduced running costs- If your business needs to produce brochures or any kind of sales literature it is cheaper to have the customer download it to his
machine and print it then you to produce a brochure which you then send to him/her.
As an example I do a few road races each year and the running club would have to send application forms by post to all entrants ( 500 * 30 pence for a stamp= £15) plus the time of a person to do it all for one race-they organise several per year.
Now you connect to their website print it, then send it to them. It is only a matter of time before I fill it out online, and then save my own stamp. - You can use it to attract customers from outside you local area.
Comparing this to the cost of running a website (typically $100-$300) per year then it is by far the cheapest option available besides being the most flexible.
Small Business and The Search Engines
Currently people search for local businesses using the yellow pages or the classifieds in their regional paper. All major search engines are currently adding local search facilities, and it is only a matter of time before they become extensively used for finding small local businesses.
It is very difficult to say with any degree of accuracy when local search via the Internet will overtake the yellow pages and classifieds, but it is almost inevitable that it will.
Search engines can provide two type of traffic- organic and paid. SEO Basics for Small Business Website Owners introduces search engine optimization for free/organic traffic and Advertising on Google- Adwords For Small Business Owners introduces you to ppc (pay per click) advertising with Google adwords.
Small Businesses and Email Marketing
Many small businesses are missing out completely on email marketing, unaware that it is probably the most inexpensive and effective form of marketing available.
Although it is possible to use email marketing without a website it is far more effective when used in conjunction with one.
Ecommerce/Shops
These are different from standard sites and there are many different options depending on how many products you intend to sell. You can get an overview of what is involved in understanding ecommerce/shop websites
- Website Hosting and Domain Names
- Website Setup -7 Checks For Business Website Owners
- Website Promotion -overview of the main methods.