In today’s world, many people turn to social media to search for new products and services, (as
social media is an extremely viable form of marketing for small businesses) however, websites and search engines (such as Google) still play a vital role for businesses.
For a list of 20 things you need to keep in mind when building your website, download our free guide Website Must Haves for Small Business.
As we move more into the online and digital space at what seems to be an increasingly fast pace, it’s time to consider building a website for your business and here's a few reasons why:
It’s your first impression.
Think of your website as the “welcome mat” to your business or a digital brochure — this is your first impression for potential customers or clients. And you do not get a second chance to make a first impression.
A website is a great way to further grow interest in your business (especially with engaging content), provide quick access to useful information for potential customers and clients, build community, connection and brand loyalty.
Increases brand awareness.
Having your own website means that you can increase brand awareness (especially through your own domain name), and through using various social media platforms.
In addition, a website that is optimized for search engines (SEO) will increase the chance of showing up in Google search results, and many people turn to Google to search for anything and everything, which means this gives you the opportunity to drastically increase your chances of reaching new people.
Establishes your authority.
As more and more businesses move to the online and digital space, having a website will establish your authority and build trust with the people searching for your specific products or services. Think about it, when you go to Google to search for something, whether that be a product or a service, you more than likely click on one of the top search results or at least a result somewhere on the first few pages.
Unless you have a website or a domain name to rank in search results, it will be quite difficult to get your Instagram account or other social media platforms to show up as one of the top search results. And even then, the top three search results are typically paid advertisements rather than organic results.
It saves time and helps convert.
Having a website for your business can easily save time for both you and your customers/clients. There will often be times when a potential customer/client will want to inquire for further information and will go to your website to find the answer.
With a website, you are able to provide answers to frequently asked questions, and other information, that you may not want to have to schedule a call to answer. Furthermore, by not including information on your website, it's possible that a potential customer/client will leave and go somewhere else, simply because they couldn't find the answer to their question. This can easily be avoided by creating a high-quality and well-optimized website.
Builds credibility.
Having your own website helps to build credibility, especially when you own the domain name (and email), as it shows visitors that you are an established business. For example, www.vznayres.com and/or hello@vznayres.com
In addition, it helps visitors to build trust with a business when they can easily search for your website and have their questions immediately answered, for example, hours of operation, directions, menu options, products, services, etc.
Finally, with a website, you can help to build credibility through a blog.
Think about it this way, your blog is a great place for you to attract people to your work, and through this, you can then begin to enhance your credibility with your audience and establish authority within your industry.
You can also use your blog to start to build equity and increase traffic to your website over time. Because the more you post helpful content, and the more that you utilize keywords and phrases, the more that your website will be enriched in the eyes of a search engine (like Google).
Furthermore, your blog is a great resource for your business and social media marketing strategy because not only can you do things like provide value for your community, but you can then take information within your blog and repurpose it through different mediums (social media, podcasts, go Live, etc.,).
Use your blog to do things like:
Target your audience’s pain points
Add value
Help your community
Share tips + teach
Showcase your experience
Showcase your expertise
And if people are genuinely attracted to your blog, they will more than likely want to then subscribe to your newsletter which will help you to turn visitors on your website into paying customers and clients of your business. Enhances professionalism.
Having your own website and email creates additional legitimacy or professionalism with potential customers or clients. For example, if you send an email from a personal email address, such as, exampleofanemail@gmail.com, potential customers or clients may not take you or your business as seriously versus if you use something such as hello@vznayres.com.
Next, with your own website and email, you can create a newsletter for email marketing purposes.
However, your newsletter can serve several purposes. For instance, you can use your newsletter to increase and maintain awareness or to provide information and value to your community, beyond trying to sell them something.
Your newsletter is the perfect way to get personal with your people. Keep in mind that 'people don't buy products and services, they buy relations, stories, and magic.' Meaning, many people buy into your business simply because of the story behind the brand. This means that people buy from people they trust, and your newsletter gives you the perfect opportunity to allow your community to get to know, like, and trust you.
Use your newsletter to do things like:
Build trust
Connect with your community
Show them BTS (behind-the-scenes) of your business
Give them updates within your business
Provide exclusive resources + content
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Note: reminder - these things take time. Building your website, blog, and newsletter and overall online presence can be overwhelming, especially when you're first starting out as a business owner (and that's why we're here to help!). It’s vital during a pandemic.
If we have all learned anything within the past few years, it’s certainly that our lives and businesses can be completely upended and changed in a mere moment. And having an online presence may possibly be the only way that your customers will find you.
If you’ve been considering your own website, check out our website services and our carefully curated portfolio of past projects for ideas on how we can help you to bring your conceptual ideas to digital life.
written by:
Adriana Leos
Chief Creative Officer
vznayres