Thousands of traditional businesses still don’t have their own website. Or, even worse, they’re still using an outdated website made years ago. As technology evolves, so do the expectations of customers when they look for products and companies. Many entrepreneurs may not even know how much businesses they’re missing out on.
Here are four reasons why it’s time to invest in a professional business website in 2023
1) People search online first
Potential customers do online research before hitting the streets to find a new product. If you don’t have a website and an online presence, how will customers know you have what they need?
As early as 2018, 87% of all shoppers began their product searches digitally. The ability of potential customers to do on-the-spot checks for price and availability is the new normal. If you don’t have a website, you don’t exist in this space.
Yelp, Google Maps, and social media platforms have hundreds of millions of users. Without a professional website, you’re leaving traffic, interested customers, and money on the table.
2) It’s your customer’s first impression of your business
Consider your website your digital business card. Your website is the foundation of your business online. If it’s looking outdated, broken, or if it doesn’t exist, you’re not inspiring a lot of confidence in your business.
You don’t have to go far to find examples of bad websites. This often results from brands failing to update their design, or from struggling to put together a website alone. This impacts customer traffic.
A survey in 2019 found that 68% of restaurant goers were discouraged from dining because of low-quality websites.
An outdated website doesn’t just affect customer experience, it makes it harder for them to find you in the first place. Additionally, search engines punish pages without mobile optimization or quick load times.
Does your website fail to stand out? Most small business websites today run on a handful of large players in the industry like Shopify, SquareSpace, and WordPress. The content on these sites relies on templates that all function and look the same.
A company’s website isn’t for the owner, but for the customer. Creating a site that is visually distinct, memorable, fast, and easy to use can be difficult. This is especially true if you’re doing it alone while running your business. Because of those limitations, a professional designer is often the secret to building a profitable web presence.
3) Websites are cost-effective advertising
A website is a marketing investment with impactful returns. Many small businesses who don’t sell online may think that they’re doing fine without a strong website.
It’s not about your current traffic, it’s about how many potential customers you’re missing out on without a web presence. Good websites drive foot traffic because they make information available. For example, L2 Daily, a benchmarking service, noted in a survey that, “73 percent of respondents said they would be likely to go into a store if relevant products were shown as available online.”
Search engines, review sites, user testimonials, and social media can all be linked back to your website to generate attention. The more positive attention you receive, the more likely customers are to visit your business or brand. Product info, menus, and location information all underpin purchasing decisions for customers.
A professional website builds validation, inspires trust, and puts you above and beyond other similar businesses who haven’t put forth the effort.
4) A Facebook Page, Google Maps, or Amazon sellers account alone isn’t enough
Facebook, Google Maps, and Amazon all cater to their users at that specific time. A professional website caters to everyone on the entire internet. It’s completely owned by you.
Social media and business pages are a part of a digital marketing strategy. The core of your web presence will always be your brand’s website. This is where you get to show customers what makes you stand out. It’s where you don’t have to conform to the whims of any particular changing platform. You can always highlight the best aspects of your business and products.
Conclusion
Every brand should have a strong digital presence. Your website is the foundation because it’s the one thing that every other platform will link to. It’s in your best interest to invest in a professionally designed website. This asset will allow you to raise customer trust, increase sales, and stand out from the competition.
Interested in getting a professionally designed website for FREE? Reach out to the designers at PageHoot today.