It seems that pretty much every business in existence now has a website. The World Wide Web is the most crowded it’s ever been — and it just keeps growing.
But if you think websites aren’t necessary anymore, your business is likely suffering for it. As more and more people consume media and find information by searching the Internet — leaving phone books and directories by the wayside — it’s more important than ever to have your own piece of digital real estate for your business.
If you’re hesitating about getting your website started, here’s just a small sampling of what a website can do for you.
It Can Provide Information
When your customers try to find you on the internet — and they will — you can make it easier for customers to find out how to give you money.
On your website, you can list important information where it’s easy to find. Things like your business’s address, your phone number, and a contact email can all lend legitimacy to your business and help customers find you in the meantime.
With a few well-selected photographs, customers can browse your store before ever coming in — giving them a compelling reason to drive out to you. After all, aren’t you more likely to go to a restaurant if you can see pictures of the food beforehand?
Also, integrated eCommerce (or, simply put, selling things through your website) has never been easier. If your business is set up for it, you have the opportunity for people to buy your wares online, an increasingly popular way of people selling their goods.
How else can you pull customers in through the doors? Copywriters, marketers, infomercials, and businesses alike know that there’s nothing like a good testimonial to inspire confidence, bring in more customers, and drive up revenue.
Your showcase can have a page dedicated just to customer testimonials, called “What People Are Saying” or “Rave Reviews.” Then, you can publish reviews from social media, Google, or TrustPilot on your website, increasing your business’s legitimacy in your customer’s mind.
Seeing other testimonials also increases the chance of other customers leaving testimonials, hopefully creating a good feedback loop where people feel the need to share their positive experiences.
This technique is powerful because of the human need to belong to a group or tribe. If you can cultivate a tribe around your business or brand, you have a very powerful army of people who want to buy from you.
Bolster your customer base! A website can make it easy to capture a customer base and have them buy over and over again.
By offering an email coupon on sign up, you can put them on your email list, then periodically send them coupons, updates, and offers whenever you want to drive more business your way.
If you have other employees, it’s important to train them on accepting the coupons so the process is frictionless.
Many website hosting services — or email list services — provide easy-to-use templates for capturing and building your email list It’s worth the time and knowledge investment, as a good list can create a continuous crop of people willing to buy. While there are many ways of creating an effective email list, just sending out biweekly coupons is a good, low-risk start.
Your website can be as big a part of your business as you want it to be — or as small. Many small business do just fine with a simple website listing some information about them, their business, their address, and phone number.
Others take it a step further, and create a living, breathing website that helps them sell their products, either online or by bringing more people into the store.
However, you choose to do it, having your own patch of virtual real estate can give your business more credibility, help customers find you, and create the exciting potential for new customers as well.
Want to see what we can do for you? Moving Targets has years of experience building beautiful websites that convert visitors into customers. Put your best foot forward on the internet — contact us today!
