Business Marketing

Top 8 Reasons Why Your Small Business Needs a Website (and SEO)

Editor

As recent as 2016, surveys have found that half of all small businesses still don’t have a website. Among those with fewer than five employees, the percentage of non-website users jumps to 60%. Many small business owners think that they don’t need a website at all, but the truth is they do. Of course, if you have a website, you may also benefit from professional SEO services.

Why do you need a business website? Here are some compelling reasons:

  1. Your competitors are also online. The fact that your business rivals are all online—and you aren’t—should actually alarm you. Actually, the fact that just about every industry has an online presence means that your own niche isn’t an exception to this rule that if you own a business, you need a website.
  2. Customers expect you to have one. Many customers even distrust businesses that don’t have a website. If you don’t have one, it feels to some people like you’re a scam artist that can’t be trusted. “Real businesses” have websites. Without a website, your business lacks credibility.
  3. A website displays crucial information about your business. The information you can provide include your location. In fact, you can offer a simple map to your place so customers can find your shop more easily. This means that even if your real world location is out of the way and almost invisible, you can still attract customers off the street because of your online visibility.
  4. You show potential customers ways of contacting you. Even showing these Internet surfers your phone number can really boost your business. Website professionals can even arrange smartphone users to just tap on your phone number so that they can call you right away.
  5. More and more people are using smartphones to do online shopping research. You have to accommodate the needs of smartphone Internet users, and your website must compensate for the small screens and navigational requirements. But doing this will enable you to reach more people on the go. Even older people are using the Internet through smartphones.
  6. Your site can feature reviews from potential customers. In addition, these reviews can appear on Google listings as well. Many potential customers trust online reviews, and you can make use of them when you consistently offer superior service to your customers. It takes “word of mouth” to a whole new level.
  7. Starting and maintaining a website is actually affordable. You don’t need thousands of dollars to have a website for your business. Actually, you only need about $200 or so for a website, and that’s for a whole year of running it. It’s a great investment, because the resulting increase in profits from getting a website will almost certainly be greater than the $200 you spent.
  8. With a website, you can define your brand identity. You can do this with the colors and fonts you use on your website, the tone of your articles, and the kind of information you offer. You can also interact with potential customers through your website, which can develop greater loyalty to your brand.

So it’s obvious why there’s a need for a website to promote your small business. But why do you need expert SEO services? The answer is similar to the old riddle regarding when a door isn’t a door (when it’s ajar). The same goes with websites—they’re useless if people can’t find them through search engines like Google. That’s why you need professionals to deal with your website SEO, while you devote your time to dealing with your actually business.