Small Business Saturday: Why Your Small Business Still Needs A Site

“Like it or not, the internet isn’t going anywhere.”

Over the course of the last 15 years or so, how many times have you heard that sentence?

Those nine words have and will continue to ring true. But what has changed now is that not only must we all get to grips with the internet and technology as consumers, but also as business owners – not matter how big or small.

Gone are the days of the online business world being reserved for multinational corporations like McDonalds, Microsoft or Nike. In 2019, every man and his dog (literally) wants a slice of the online pie, and as an SME, it’s vital that you position yourself in the middle of the madness to make sure you aren’t left for dust.

As this Saturday (7^th December) marks Small Business Saturday, we thought now would be a good time to offer up a few of the key reasons for you to invest in a website, and in essence your business’ future:

Supporting your customers

You might be a director who prides yourself on being the friendliest, most approachable, ultra-responsive Managing Director that any business has ever seen – nevertheless, the fact remains that you can’t physically be ready to respond to a customer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A website is a base for your business to provide a constant source of support and information for any potential customer, and that’s an invaluable asset when it comes to nurturing and gaining new business.

Reaching new audiences

SMEs often fall into the trap of relying on much of their business to come from word of mouth marketing, from local print or mail marketing, or even from the same client base they’ve been dealing with for several years. A website allows for far greater exposure of the business to people in the local area, or to people even further out than that (how does ‘the world’ sound?). It makes no sense in this modern world to pay extortionate fees to have a few thousand leaflets printed for people who most likely won’t pay any attention to them, when you can have a website which has been purpose-built built to target visitors looking for a service or product exactly like yours.

Keeping up with (or beating) the competition

Doesn’t any business want every advantage possible over its competitors? Your first port of call should be your website.

Let’s say for example you’re a plumber without a website – if a potential customer is looking for a plumber, are they going to go with:

• Plumber 1 (you): No website, little-to-no business information available online.
• Plumber 2 (your competition): Has a website with company details, contact information, a selection of reviews and photos of previous jobs carried out.

?…

We rest our case.

If you’re a small business or SME and you’d like some advice on how you can take your organisation to the next level, please feel free to contact us today and our experienced web team will be able to assist with any query you may have.