Building a website is tedious. It is expensive. Well, what is the use? My customers don’t shop online.
If you have been relying on any of these excuses or something else to stop yourself from building a business website, you are making a mistake.
There are millions of websites on the Internet. Each website is like a home, a gateway or a source through which its owner achieves a purpose.
In most cases, it is to attract more customers or to sell online.
Whatever be the reason, in today’s smartphone and Internet dominated world, it is not sensible to run a business without having a website.
In today’s post we are going to list out the reasons why your business needs a professional website. A ‘Professional website’ because, a do-it-yourself static website is worse than not having a website at all.
It Makes you Look Credible
80% of online traffic today originates from an online search. Customers rely on online searches, website’s reviews and official website information before deciding to transact with a business or not.
An official website of your own that charts out every single information about your product, its features, pricing and existing customer testimonials is definitely a positive step forward.
It is a Hub for all Business Information
An official website of your own can act as a hub for all business information. It prevents all misleading information that could be floating around in the Internet.
Right from the business location to delivery location, founder information and even product information, your website can act as the official source for your business information that cannot be wrong. The website can also be used to broadcast special product releases, press releases and public announcements directly to customers and stakeholders.
It Helps to Collect Payments Online
In the earlier days, before 90s, collecting payments through online was literally unheard of. Then PayPal entered the scene and changed the business equation once and for all. PayPal and online payment integrations made it possible for website owners, especially eCommerce business owners to conduct money transactions online with the help of Internet.
Take for instance, Amazon. Amazon or its employees do not face customers face to face. The customer places an order online and wires the money online. The package is delivered at their doorstep by a delivery personnel. All this is possible because Amazon’s website has payment integrations that can receive payments online.
It Shows you Care for your Customer’s Safety
Do you know? There are many fake websites which trick customers into making online transactions. They are fraudulent websites which use the cover of genuine businesses to run scam campaigns.
However, those businesses which have a secure and encrypted website of their own can show their customers that they are the legitimate owners of the business. Extended Validation SSL certificates like Comodo EV SSL helps to display business name in browser through the SSL certificate. Also, the HTTPS ensures that any information that customers share online is not intercepted using Main-In-The-Middle or other data interception attacks.
It Acts as a Sales Funnel
With inbound marketing gaining momentum across the Internet, a professional website is the best way to convert your visitors into paying customers.
Strategic placement of CTAs, use of forms to collect user emails ids of contact information, etc. can help in lead generation. If used in the right way, the website turns into a sales funnel that costs literally zero dollars compared to outbound marketing.
Read Also: 5 Craft Businesses That Are Most Profitable
It Helps to Explore New Markets
Thanks to subdomains and localization techniques, you can have a single website and use it to target multiple locations or language speaking customers. For instance, you can have a single website that has content in English for USA and a German sub-domain for treating customers in Germany and Europe.
Having a professional website of your own with multiple subdomains helps to explore new markets across the globe even if your website does not have a physical presence in such markets.
It is Up & Running 24/7/365
A physical store needs to shut down at night or at weekends or at least during weekends. Your employees may not work round the clock, but a business website can.
Web hosting providers assure 99.99% uptime for websites. That means your website will rarely ever go down giving your business all time web presence.
Your customers can check for your products at midnight too or whenever at their convenience. That is such a strategic advantage that a business can have in today’s digital world. The good news is that, it costs a fraction of what you will have to spend on a call center or on night duty staff.
It Makes Customer Service Easier
Customer service is hectic. Even the slightest mistake in treating your customers right can turn them into loyal customers for your competitors.
Thankfully, your website can be a savior. It can act as a helpdesk or double up as a customer service portal where customers can raise tickets for complaints or issues that they are facing with your products.
You can also consider integrating chatbots that offer live chat support. Facebook introduced chatbots for Facebook business pages long ago and they have revolutionized customer service permanently.
By having a live chat support on your website, it is like you are virtually available all the time to attend to your customer queries. If the queries get too technical or need personal assistance they can be transferred to a call where you can convert the lead into a deal.
Wrapping It Up
Gone are the days when building and maintaining a website was a difficult task. Today, eve individual service providers, freelancers and work from home professionals need a website of their own.
It is like a window to the ever-growing Internet world. If you are running a business you need to have your window wide open so that people can look in and find something that would be interested to pay and buy. Even if they cannot buy, at least it would be a one-stop destination for all official information about your business.
