Do you still need a website in 2019?
If you’re a business owner and are unsure about you really need a website, I’ll save you some time—yes, yes you do you need one. Not just any old website, you need a good one. A professionally designed, lead-catching, sales-increasing, brand-differentiating website.
Think of your website as an autonomous sales employee that is out there 24/7, providing information to customers and generating leads for your business. Only difference being is that your website does not have a family to feed and doesn’t require a hefty salary or take a cut of your sales on commission.
Of course as a Website developer I would say this but the reason I wrote this article is because I questioned this myself I have seen a few companies that solely rely on having a Facebook page to promote their business as opposed to a website. I carried out a bunch of research, read a tonne of articles to form my own opinion and here are 6 reasons why you still need a website in 2019
1. A third of your customers will not consider a business without a website
Your website is your number one marketing asset because we live in a digital age. People spend, on average 23.6 hours online per week and are on their mobile devices for up to five hours per day. By now, consumers expect companies to have an online presence (including a website) and will consider a company that DOES NOT have one as less professional.
2. People are searching for your services/product online
One of the benefits of having a website is to be where your consumers are. There’s a reason so many companies invest in a website with search engine optimization (SEO): 97 percent of people go online to find a local business, and 93 percent of online experiences begin with a search engine. Believe it or not, there are 3.5 billion searches on Google per day, and at this very moment, there is someone in your area online and searching for your exact service. Guess who’s getting their business?
3. A website builds credibility and trust
Not having a website makes consumers trust you less. In 2018, 75 percent of people admit to making judgments on a company’s credibility based on website design. People are more likely to do business with a company they trust, and a website is the first place they go to check for credentials, reviews, and awards.
Warnging — if you have a bad website design, it won’t help you at all. You have 10 seconds to leave an impression on website visitors and tell them what they’ll get out of your website and company. After this time (and oftentimes before), they’ll leave.
4. Business value
Have you tried getting a business loan recently? It’s not easy, but if you try and the bank manager asks to see your website, you better have a pretty good one. It doesn’t just stop with the bank, the perceived value of your business will be lower in everyone’s eyes – especially your customers.
5. Having a website will end up saving you time
Whether you’re trading emails, taking calls, or sending out proposals – communicating with potential customers takes time. Your website can save you that time by providing answers to common customer questions and inquiries. What does this mean for you? You can spend your time doing more valuable things.
6. It’s not as expensive, or as hard, as you might think
It can be very cost effective. Websites offer a better return on investment than any other form of advertising. If you’re planning to market your business, a website should be your first priority.
You don’t need to be tech savvy to get a website. Many web development companies have very simple signup processes which make the process quick and painless for you.
Over time the relatively low investment of getting a business website will pay dividends by driving you new customers and building your brand. Plus, it’s a legitimate business expense and a tax write off.
To summarize… You need a website, and it’s easier than ever to get one.
There you have some reasons why every business needs a website. There’s a small and cost barrier to invest in your companies website but there is massive opportunity to help grow your business.
If you’re going to do one thing today to help your business be more successful, it’s to make getting a website your top priority.