If you browse the web frequently for your queries related to websites, you must have observed that the most frequently asked question of the online business age is: “does my startup business really need a website?”
With the advent of the World Wide Web and its convenience, fewer individuals seek products and service through phone book or yellow pages. In fact the days of brick and mortar stores have long gone, replaced with the convenient search and click days. Well above 20 million shoppers are now using search and click convenience to purchase everything from garments to books and food items to properties.
Google tells us that there are nearly four billion published websites, forming this amazing world of the internet. This means that almost a website for every individual living on this planet. And now you are contemplating joining the league, and taking the count of the websites beyond four billion.
Are you confident that, “If I publish a website, they will come?” Are you sure about it? No you cannot be! To be honest, no one can be so sure of the website traffic. To put it in plain English, it isn’t going to happen unless you distinguish yourself from the crowd.
When one of my colleagues started with her first business a few years ago, the first thing I asked her to consider was “Does she really need a website? And, why does she need a website? I presented my friend with a sort of questionnaire to answer a few basic questions about why she, a startup, actually needed an online presence. The questionnaire elicited following reasons to go for a website:
- Helps in Figuring Out Business Goals
Yes, you got it right! When you are required to write the website content you are compelled to revisit everything about your business. This helps you discover important business goals you may have skipped earlier.
- Business Credibility
Did you ever find it difficult to convince one of your potential customers that yours is the real deal? By having a professional website you can garner instant credibility for your business. Your website is the ultimate proof of your business existence.
- Exposure to More Customers
Google tells that more than 2.5 billion individuals use the web on a daily basis for both professional as well as personal reasons. By deciding not to have a website, you run the danger of missing out on a serious online opportunity as these are the individuals who make purchases or contact an organization online.
- No Barriers to Entry
Getting traffic for your offerings and starting a business is relatively easy with online convenience. With the advent of World Wide Web, there are no barriers to entry for businesses at all unlike for a business with pure brick and mortar presence.
- 24*7 Online Presence
With your business website live, you have a whole new avenue of opportunities opened up, and you can run your business 24/7. Your website will always be there for your valuable customers, which is otherwise not possible.
- Connect with Your Customers
With functionalities like a feed (RSS or Atom) on your website, you can update your customers on real time basis. You can update your website visitors on offers, promotions and product launches etc.
- Online Marketing Channel
The World Wide Web has equipped the marketers with a very powerful weapon called online marketing. With online marketing at your disposal, your website can win more business by utilizing simple and low cost marketing techniques.
- Customer Support Opportunities
By having a website you can considerably cut the cost of customer service. This can be achieved by having terms of usage, FAQs or a ticketing system on your website to address customer complaints.
- Email on Your Domain
Isn’t it more professional and easy to remember? Moreover, chances are that your email on your domain will resonate more with your customers.
- Beating the Already Existing Big Guys
With a well-thought-out, user-friendly and beautiful website you can make inroads into the big guys’ audience. This is very difficult otherwise with usual brick and mortar establishments.
- Connect with other Businesses as a Webmaster
If you own a business website you can earn new business and make personal connections with other website owners. This can expose you to a whole new world of opportunities!
So, now you are sure that you actually need a website for your startup. However, simply having a website won’t work. You need to make sure that your business website is professional, or chances are bleak that you will be taken seriously as a business. More often than not customers research online today, prior to making a purchase. As such, it’s essential that you make sure that your website is credible.
Why Online Website Builders are the Future of Website Creation?
Online website builders are very simple to use and help you build conventional websites on a template. Don’t like the idea of a template based website with set pattern and theme? Well, let me tell you that convention is not a bad thing as far as website creation is concerned.
Consider a hotel website for an example. Hotel websites need to have at least three things, i.e., menu, locations and contact form. And, do you really think that it is required to research and reinvented the three things every time a particular hotel needs a website?