Websites are the best way for customers to find your business and connect with your products and services.
Most companies today have a website with information for their products and services that customers need.
However, is having a website enough to get customers?
The short answer is no it isn’t. Below are five questions every small business owner should be asking themselves when regarding their website.
- Does having a responsive website matter?
- Does your design match your marketing needs?
- Is your website keeping up with the times?
- Are you worried people are not finding you?
- Is your competition stealing your customers?
DOES HAVING A RESPONSIVE WEBSITE MATTER?
Responsive is a buzzword that means a website that can go from desktop to tablet to phone seamlessly.
Being responsive is a must in today’s world. More than 80% of websites are accessed by mobile devices (tablets or phones).
Since that is the case it is important to understand that your customers will have a different experience with a mobile site compared to the regular version.
There are many factors to consider when designing a website for mobile devices. A few examples are:
loading speed
touch versus point and click
data visualizations (i.e. charts and graphs).
Let’s use the loading speed as an example, 53% of website visits are abandoned if a website needs more than three seconds to load.
With that in mind, it shows how overlooking even one area can cause a dramatic impact on the website.
DOES YOUR DESIGN MATCH YOUR MARKETING NEEDS?
Not only does a website need to work well, but it needs to look good too. Designers are not marketers and marketers are not designers.
The design of a website is meant to be pleasing to the eyes and be set up to properly convert a visitor into a customer. This may seem a bit harsh, but it makes sense.
Let’s imagine a scenario where two businesses are offering the same services for the same price. The only difference is one site is sleek and professional while the other is complicated and stale.
Visitors would most likely go with the professional site. The reason for this is because even though they both offer the same information one site made it easier to find the information.
If a site is convoluted making it difficult to find what the visitor seeks the conversion rate of visitors into consumers will take a nosedive.
That is why it is crucial to the success of a business that a website is designed with marketing goals in mind.
IS YOUR WEBSITE KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES?
As time passes your business and brand grow to a level beyond what it was before. When that happens logos could change, brand colors might be altered, or even a shift in target demographics.
In any of those scenarios, the website needs to reflect your new reality. When the website does not match the company there are going to be missed opportunities.
A few examples are:
Target Customers
Business Identity Clarity
Trust from customers
Professionalism and Authority
Internal Direction
Simplicity
ARE YOU WORRIED PEOPLE ARE NOT FINDING YOU?
For customers to find a website online, it needs to be optimized to make it easier for search engines to find it. This is a process called Search Engine Optimization or SEO for short comes into play.
When a website remains stagnant, over time the SEO of a website drops. This causes the site to fall further down the results page on Google and maybe even end up on the dreaded second page.
When only 6% of users go beyond the first page that could spell death for a website or even a company.
If this is the case, a simple SEO update will allow a website to climb higher on the search results page allowing for more people to find you and your business.
IS YOUR COMPETITION STEALING YOUR CUSTOMERS?
This is the biggest reason to improve your website. The main purpose of a website is to convert visitors into consumers.
With an optimized website, it will cause more returning consumers, more people to share your website with others and even help you.
With a better conversion rate, you will better understand your customer’s needs. Allowing for even more growth and even more customers for your company.
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