Marinelle Adams
Does your small business need a website? Sure, it does. With the emergence of the digital era, consumer behavior has changed, and so does retail technologies. Internet use has dominated the marketplace literally for every retail product.
A recent survey conducted by the Research firm Clutch indicated that more than 97 percent of U.S consumers conduct an online search on products before they can go ahead to make purchases. However, despite over-reliance on the internet from household to the organization level, a measly 51% of small businesses don’t have websites for their company.
The same statistic is papered in Canada, too. Data from the Canadian Internet Registration Authority indicates that a dismal 42% of Canadian small businesses own websites. Globally, over 60% of small-scale retailers don’t have websites. Your business needs a website because long are the days when we relied on brick and mortar operations. But if you want to capture overly internet-reliant customers, you have to create a business website. Herein is a compilation of the reasons why your small business needs a website. Before we continue we would like to highlight that you can find more information about why your business needs a website on Utopia.
Potential customers get information from the internet
It doesn’t matter how local or what brand or niche your deal in. Internet use is over the roof, and for this reason, almost everyone consults the internet for information about goods and services.
The customers you are expecting to shop at your local store are often glued on their smartphones and tablets, looking for a place to go shopping. What a shocking conundrum if you don’t have a business website they can access online? And if that is the case, then your competitors with sites will be found at your expense.
Potential customers expect you to have a website
Over 60% of consumers globally expect brands to provide online content about products and services on offer. The retail mentality has shifted for good. And that is why over 50% of these consumers will visit websites for product information first and foremost.
A website gives credibility to your business
The world over, millions of people have the means to access the internet. Furthermore, customers have become internet-savvy, which means that you don’t have to shy away from creating a website.
And whether yours is a local or international market, you should have a professional business website if you want people to take your brand seriously. Today, over 60% of smartphone users have access to the internet, and they take an average of 30 minutes per day scrolling through web pages. Therefore, having a business website is imperative to have any chances of engaging with online users.
A business website offers an alternative marketing channel
Websites give the business an automatic presence on online platforms. This acts as a billboard where you showcase your products and services to people. At the same time, it will give information on how to find you. So, if your website’s SEO is optimized, then you will be primed to attract many customers to your business.
A website helps you to showcase your goods and services
A business website has limitless possibilities. It can help you offset up to half of your marketing budget. That said, you can use your website to display your products in detail, outline your services, and even take advantage of colorful images to make them attractive.
Besides, a website acts as an initial interaction interface of your brand with prospective customers. Also, clients who want to reach out to you already have a clue from your website. And because of the control, you have over your website, you decide on what to showcase. And that depends on what you have for your target audience.
Your brand competitors already have websites
Research shows that consumers have an idea of what they want before they can start researching online. Of that number, 72% head straight to the product website to find educational material and reviews before they can make up their minds.
That is why it is imperative to stay competitive in the line of your brand and niche. Furthermore, data obtained by SEOTribunal indicated that over 6 billion searches are done on Google every daily. That number of searchers won’t do your business any good if you stick to your brick-and-mortar operations. It would be best to get a business website if you are looking to compete favorably.
Websites offer a 24/7 business presence
With a business website, you will never close shop again. People enjoy it if you make your business more accessible and time-independent. And whereas your competitors would be shutting their physical stores during the day, you will enjoy the privilege of being open only if you have a business website.
A 24/7 online presence means that you can sell your products or enable your customers to book in at any time of the day. Moreover, customers love the convenience of reaching out for products and services. This is what a business website can offer your business.
A business website allows you to do targeted marketing
With a business website, you can analyze performance metrics and Google analytics to establish how certain aspects of your business are doing. This way, you can monitor how much traffic and leads are coming through your website. With such information in mind, you can make necessary adjustments to help market your products efficiently. Other metrics you can monitor using a business website include but are not limited to:
- The number of users who have visited your site.
- The average time site visitors spend per session when they visit your website.
- The number of times your site pages have been visited.
With the metrics mentioned above, you can figure out the people to target in your marketing strategies in order to boost your business performance.
The bottom line
Over 90% of consumers search up online for products and services before making purchases. These are the people who expect you to have a business website already. The business environment has changed over time, and a website has become a necessity. Therefore, if you want to keep up with your competitors’ competition, it is vital that you create a website for your business, regardless of its size.