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Websites are Cost-Effective Small Business Solutions
For the small business owner, having a URL on a business card is vital for establishing credibility with new clients and a low cost way to promote the company brand and products. Whether you have an alarm security business, pool cleaning, or lawn care services. Customers and new clients now expect to find in-depth information on a company website.
When starting a small business, website development must be part of the business plan. In fact, many businesses start as a website first to test the markets before investing in commercial real estate.
A Small Business Website Lends Credibility
Like a good business card, a professional-looking website creates a favourable impression of the company whose name is on it. A well designed website will give users the information they need to feel confidence in the company. For example, a website can offer company history or biographies of the owner and key employees in much more detail than could be conveyed in a conversation.
Small Business Advertising on the Web
There are over 250 million Internet users in North America alone and more than half of them use the Internet to research and makes purchases online. A website is lends itself to a national market that can allow a small business to expand beyond geographic boundaries that may not provide a big enough market in which to succeed.
A Small Business Strategy for Customer Service
A website is always open. Customers can visit the site any time of the day or night, any day of the year. A small business owner can use a website to answer customer questions instantly. By visiting the website, the customer can find out all the products and services offered that they may not have been aware of.
A Cost-Effective Business Idea
Setting up a small business website is easier than ever. For simple sites that give information and contact information only, a website can be maintained in-house for as low as $10 per month. There are many turn-key sites and applications where a business owner merely selects a design template and enters the content.
Even websites with simple e-commerce capabilities to allow customers to purchase goods online, can be set up inexpensively and quickly with minimum technical knowledge using any of several applications available.
More complex applications will no doubt require the services of a designer and programmer to set and maintain customized applications.
The internet is the business revolution. It is the means whereby more and more people and companies are doing business. If you want to get ahead in whatever business you are involved in, or just want to remain competitive, you are going to need a website.
Here are the top ten reasons you need a website.
- First, since you are in business to make money, it is convenient for customers to purchase products and services from you. All they have to do is go on the internet, look up your website, and start buying your products. No getting in the car for a long drive to your store.
- Second, you can advertise your business at a lower cost than any other method. Television advertising and radio advertising is not as inexpensive as advertising on the World Wide Web. You will have less cost with more traffic to your site.
- Third, a person can spend as much time at your site as they wish. Your site can sit on their computer screen for hours. That is a huge benefit and a great advertiser. Since it does not cost much to advertise on the web, and your site can be on a screen for literally hours, that is great advertising.
- Fourth, you will be able to say much more over the web than through a phone book ad or a billboard. There is more space to be had and it costs less money to purchase that ad space.
- Fifth, saving money on advertising saves you money on your bottom line. Your expenses include how much you are willing to spend to get the world to see your business. The less money spent here is more money spent somewhere else or saved.
- Sixth, since you have a website, you will be open all hours of the day and the week. Your business will never take a day off, even though you might. You will be able to take orders twenty four hours a day and seven days per week. Your store never closes.
- Seven, you have less staff to pay. You don’t have near the support staff that you would normally use in business now that you have your own website.
- Eight, there are no personality disorders when a customer uses your website to purchase products and services. Your site will have that same great demeanor with any customer.
- Nine, you save money on all your printing needs since you are using less paper due to advertising on the internet.
- Ten, you can give your customers a hard copy of your site, at no cost to you. All they have to do is print your web site information off to their computer, and they have an automatic brochure.
You can get a website made for you by a professional web site designer since you need the time to run your business. Just give a web site designer the specifications for your web site and allow them to create one to suit your needs. These are the top ten reasons why you need a website.
Having a company website is no longer an option. The small business owner must include a website in any marketing strategy proposed.
Many small business owners still can’t come to reasons for investing in a website. This article gives them 10.