7 Reasons Why Every Small Business Needs a Website!
“If it isn’t on Google, it doesn’t exist.”
Google processes over 3.8 billion searches per day. That’s 40,000 search queries per second. People are searching to find answers or to buy products and services.
You just used a search engine and found this blog post! What made you click on it? What answers are you seeking that you hope this blog post will address?
Let me know in the comments what you searched to get here.
Over the last two years, we’ve been holed up in our homes searching like never before! Did you know people are more honest about asking Google highly personal questions than their own mother?
Does your business come up on google, yandex or whichever search engine you use? If not, you’ve got work to do!
Mom may be better at diagnosing that odd-looking rashy patch but do you really want to show her? Besides Google doesn’t get all judgy and start asking about your former bf with the face tattoos.
Throughout this post, I will be using “Google” interchangeably for “search” even though it is not the only search engine. BUT it does dominate the market in all countries on any device (desktop, mobile, and tablet). Feel free to substitute in Bing, Baidu, Yandex, Ecosia, DuckDuckGo or whatever is your preferred search engine every time I mention Google.
I often say “Google it!” I’ve yet to say “Yandex it!” but maybe I’ll start!
Google (or Yandex) yourself and your competitors… I dare ya.
If you type into search the kind of work you do, does your business come up on pages one, two or is it way back … or not at all? If you answered way back or not at all, you got some work to do! It’s time to consider getting or refreshing your website and setting up a Google My Business page at the bare minimum!
If you have a website, and you’re still not getting found, you likely need a better website with industry-specific keyword-rich content, search engine optimization (SEO), and an expert website team to help get you.
Only 7% of Americans don’t use the internet now which means 93% do. Over half of those searches come from mobile devices. And if you’re under the age of 65 you rely on your smartphones for daily things like gathering information, connecting with friends and family, driving directions, and taking photos of every meal now that you’ve gone vegan. #goodforyou
Small businesses have to work extra hard at getting customers to find us online b/c we don’t have big budgets for digital marketing or a staff to produce content.
If you’re still not convinced you must launch a website for your business, make yourself a cuppa, get comfy, and read the 7 reasons why every business needs a website.
“For customers, a website is an ‘always open’ workplace of your business.”
1. Your business better have a website.
Up until about 10 years ago, you could have a business and not have a website. People might think you were “old school” but they wouldn’t question your credibility. Nowadays, if you don’t have a site, not only will you NOT get business online, people will actually question your business’ legitimacy and your personal integrity.
People search for services based on the problem they’re having that they need to solve, using keywords, location, questions or perhaps they’re searching specifically for your name or your business name. If all your competitors show up in search results, BUT you don’t even have a website there’s zero chance you’ll get clicked on. Your business needs those clicks!
First, let’s just get this out here right from the onset. People NEED your business to have a website b/c they want to be on their device, on their time and dream about how great their life will be after they have worked with you or bought your products.
Don’t be a dreamkillah! Give your visitors what they want, a better future!
That’s what this is about, the ability to see a better future. If you don’t have a website, they’ll look for their dreams somewhere else. #dreamkillah
People want to know if your business is the right fit for them and if they’re under the age of 35 they will NOT call you…ever. People NEED to have enough information to make an informed decision to buy and a website built right will do that. Social media is usually not enough for validation and if you’re solely relying on a social platform and it goes down, you’re screwed. Your website, like your broken-in, fuzzy UGG slippers, will always be there.
A website lets people know what you offer, why they should care, and gets them to take action. It communicates your business’ mission, WHY you do what you do, and what makes your business different. A website validates your expertise and makes you trustworthy. Accreditations, awards, and reviews double down on this.
A website saves time. They expect to see all the details, contact you through a form or schedule a time to talk with you right then and there, and when ready to easily be able to make a purchase with online payment through the site.
We have a client, ScrothDC, who had a simple website but it didn’t answer some basic questions concerning pricing, availability, and location directions. Our client spent an inordinate amount of time talking to potential patients on the phone to answer questions that could easily have been addressed on her website. Did I mention that she has twin babies? NOT the best use of her time answering the same questions over and over again. This was a very important part of what we considered when we designed her new site.
Your site must be mobile responsive, have an attractive, easy-to-use interface, and provide value. Your potential clients are searching for you. Exceed their expectations and take the first step in owning your website today by scheduling a call with us.
“Your brand is a gateway to your true work. ”
2. Your business needs a brand voice.
A brand voice is your company's distinct personality, words, language, tone, and story used to make a memorable experience. It is used in all your marketing collateral including, email campaigns, social media posts, and your website!
Your website is your most vital marketing tool that communicates what you believe, why you believe it, your mission and values, the problems you solve, and how you’re going to do it. This is your chance to creatively express your unique persona and lead the way!
Through your brand voice, your visitors can get to know, like, trust, and understand your brand. Your website helps you build a relationship with your audience.
Messaging also helps people identify your brand. It’s the voice that represents your company. This is why it’s really important to hire a professional content writer or brand writer to help you craft your message.
Taglines are a perfect example of brand voice – they’re short, memorable, conceptual phrases that connect directly with your audience so they identify with your brand. Taglines are the written equivalent of a logo and when they’re made into a jingle they become even stronger (because they get stuck in your head!).
Your brand voice shapes people’s perceptions of your business, products, services, and people. If your website is a tool that enables you to have a conversation with your potential clients, it’s clear that a carefully crafted and considered brand voice is critical.
We’re about to start a website design for a well-known, local wine store. It has years of history, a sterling reputation, amazing products and a devoted customer following. Do you know what it doesn’t have? A website that reflects that. The owner doesn’t mince words either. “Our website sucks—it needs to tell a better story.” Indeed.
“In absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia.”
3. A website streamlines your business ops.
Streamlining biz ops means making strategic moves with your website to automate core functionalities!
When you use the right tools, it’s easier to run and grow your small business. One of the best tools to use for streamlining business operations is your website! Your site is your #1 communication platform. We love using the Squarespace platform for small businesses because it’s an all-in-one website solution with a lot of tools and features built-in.
Every small business owner or solopreneur needs to spend less time and energy on logistics and more time in your zone of genius. Your website enables you to easily manage your content with pages, portfolios, products, blogs, and more. It not only showcases your business’s services and products but also is home to the technology solutions that run the back-end of business to create a seamless experience for you and your clients.
On your site's pages, you can capture email addresses to help grow your email list for marketing purposes, schedule appointments for time management, and process payments for sales.
Email Marketing
Your website with its calls-to-action, lead magnets and subscriber form fields can help you start building an email list so you can communicate with your audience through email marketing. This is an affordable marketing strategy that helps you reach your audience in a personalized way.
Email campaigns (add-on feature) will allow you to create professional emails and send targeted messages. Automated emails also help you connect thereby increasing your click-through rates and sales.
Setting up and using the email marketing add-on within Squarespace is simple! You can create multiple lists, pull content directly from your website including styles, blog posts, products, send tests, and schedule campaigns.
We’ve debated using Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software and even set them up fully first with Active Campaign then with Kartra, but ultimately ended up back with Squarespace’s email marketing.
We’re a “less is more” kinda biz.
Scheduling Tool
Are you still doing the time-wasting, back-and-forth email dance to schedule appointments? If yes, it’s time you upgrade to an online scheduler tool. And if you use a scheduler, but it’s not integrated with your website, it’s time to unite your business tools under one roof (who doesn’t love one less login to remember).
There are many effective tools available that allow you to schedule meetings without the hassle of emailing and we love that Squarespace has scheduling built right into the platform (add-on feature).
Scheduling streamlines and free’s up your time to be reinvested into other business goals. It boosts efficiency by automating your calendar appointments, custom intake forms, auto emails, and payment processing.
You can create specific appointment types and sync them with your online calendar so you’ll never double-book. It integrates seamlessly with meeting tools such as Zoom. It sends automatic confirmation, reminder, and cancellation emails so you don’t have to.
Squarespace scheduling connects with Stripe, PayPal, and Square so you can accept online credit card payments for appointments and group classes—it’s safe, quick and a simpler way to get paid for your services.
Scheduling is a crucial part of any online service-based business because it makes it easy for clients to book with you and recognize the value of your time. If you’re planning to streamline your daily operations, improve workflow, and eventually scale, get started with a website and scheduling.
We set up online scheduling with practically every client that we work with, it’s a baseline functionality in any professional services business website.
ECommerce
An online eCommerce store can help you expand your reach beyond your physical storefront. After you define your target audience, establish your online brand, and set up all the tech of eComm (products, taxes and shipping) you’re ready to sell physical and digital products.
Whether you need to monetize your video content or sell digital experiences with a membership (add-on feature) Squarespace’s tools allow you to do that.
Online stores can help grow your business. People are shopping online and e-retail isn’t slowing down. If you sell in-person Squarespace partners with Square to integrate cash or card payments with your online store.
There’s also the Squarespace iOS app to help you keep track of your sales when you’re away from your computer. Built-in analytics can track your store performance and see insights like site traffic, popular products, order averages, and sales which help you pivot, sell, and improve your store.
Email marketing, scheduling, and eCommerce are built-in features to your website that help run and grow your business.
“The principle of social proof says so: The greater the number of people who find any idea correct, the more the idea will be correct.”
☆☆☆☆☆
4. Your website shows your social proof.
Feature business awards on your site so that other people know your business rocks!
Social proof means a product or service has been purchased and found valuable. Other people then copy that behavior and also make a purchase based on the influence of others. Have you ever bought something online based solely on reviews? Or ordered a new dish at a restaurant because the table next to you said it was the best thing they ever tasted? That’s social proof. And it’s highly effective.
This is why influencer and affiliate marketing is so pervasive. People are psychologically hard-wired to trust (and buy) a product or service that’s been tested out and validated by someone else. When people shop, they look for recommendations. We trust reviews because they’ve already experienced the product or service and give us an explanation of what to expect. They’re also unbiased. (hopefully)
Social proof heavily influences buying decisions. A few types of social proof:
Experts: An industry expert recommends your product/service. This could be a direct referral, a collaboration, or a social media shoutout.
Celeb: When a celebrity endorses your product/service whether on social media or in a marketing campaign.
User: Every day people recommend your product/service based on direct experience.
Popularity: When you have a large number of followers using your product/service.
Certification: An official certification or stamp of approval from an authority figure or large entity.
On your website, you NEED to showcase reviews. And you need to get more than 10. Basically the more positive reviews, the more someone trusts your brand. We strive for five here.
You can showcase reviews in a few different ways:
Google Reviews: Google is the top destination for reviews. Good ratings build trust before someone even clicks on your website. You can use the Elfsight plugin to import these reviews directly onto pages on your website. Industry-specific review sites like Angie’s List, Health Grades or Yelp can help you diversify your marketing because they expand your reach.
Written testimonials: 95% of people read at least one review before making a purchase decision. Reviews equal credibility and when you don’t have any “cred” or have bad “cred” your sales will go down. Including a photo of the reviewer with the words makes the review even stronger and more believable. After all, there are a lot of fake reviews out there.
Video testimonials: Video content draws potential clients through the door. It’s easy to share and gets the most engagement. If you can get your clients to make you a stellar video testimonial, put it on YouTube, Vimeo, and share it on your site landing pages and social media you will garner interest.
Case studies: Explaining how the client and you worked successfully together to everyone’s satisfaction is a tried and true method that works. Written case studies and stories that clearly explain the process and experience of the work are deep-dive social proof. Add in a written and video testimonial and you’ve got yourself some strong social proof. Make a dedicated page(s) for this on your site. Check out our web design project case studies.
Existing customers and clients: Nothing says social proof more than featuring well-known brand logos (that people already know, like, and trust) on your homepage. Publicly sharing that you work with big-brands is common practice to validate your brand. Don’t work with big-brand companies? That’s ok. Use logos of accredited companies you have worked with. Feature logos front and center on your site of companies who use your services or you’ve collaborated with.
Awards and accolades: Won any business awards or have you been ranked on a top-industry list? Feature those logos on your site so that other people know your business is excellent! Display top-rated badges in the website footer or on your homepage. This is your time to show off your hard work. When we won the 2020 Best Home-Based Business of the Year Award by the Arlington Chamber of Commerce we shared it loud and proud. The badge is still in the footer of our website.
User-generated content (UGC): Re-sharing content from users is perfect social proof and works really well across social media platforms. You can take screenshots of posts or comment sections and put those images on your website as reviews. You can also re-share these posts on your social accounts and connect your social to your website. This one is definitely easier for product-based businesses because they are easier photographed, but featured comments or branded hashtags also give service-based businesses a chance to use this strategy.
“Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent, and not enough time on what is important.”
5. 24/7 Customer Service Representative.
Your website doesn’t replace you but it’s the next best thing…a 24/7 Customer Service Representative.
One of the main purposes of your website is to encourage people to contact you. Your site is available 24/7 to answer questions and provide information for your potential clients and customers, and allow people to book a call, or submit an order. Having these processes and automation set up is key to growing your business.
But what if you’re getting too many phone calls or email inquiries and can’t answer them all? You don’t have to worry about that if the information is clearly listed out on your website.
How to make your website an on-demand 24/7 CSR:
Create an effective FAQ so potential clients can get the specific, detailed information they need before they contact you.
For product FAQs put pertinent info and prices directly on the product page so visitor doesn’t click away in search of more details before hitting the add to cart button.
Put time-sensitive announcements in the hello/announcement bar at the top of your site with a link to the landing page that provides more info.
Link your social media accounts by adding a social block to the footer or embed your profile.
If your business has a physical location create a location page and/or add your address in the footer.
Create a short intake form in your scheduler for appointments. Bonus Points if you charge for appointments-make it easy for the client to pay then schedule at the same time!
Use your website to save you time and make visitors happy by posting ALL the information they would need to make an informed decision. You want to make it as easy as possible for people to buy from or work with you.
“If you want people to accept that you are an authority on where they should go, you must first demonstrate that you understand where they are at.”
6. Build your online authority.
Online authority is a person who is trusted by its users, industry, other websites, and search engines. Someone who is an authority has expertise, skills, and shares insights with others. Your website is the best place to hone and build your online authority—using your content, writing, images, and more—it’s the platform for you to shape the story of your company.
As a result of building authority online, you’ll rank higher and get more business, but how do you get there? Here are a few things you can do to build authority:
Niche your audience: You don’t need a big audience to build authority. Smaller, specific audiences (including small email lists) can make a big profit and generate more action because like-minded individuals are more likely to be engaged.
When your target audience is niche, your website is designed to connect and convert with those people and you can become a strong voice in a smaller community.
Brand your business: You may be an industry leader but do other people know it? One of the best ways to build online authority is with written content, but sounding expert is only half the battle. You must look expert too. And that’s where visual branding comes in.
Visual brand identity communicates your brand story to your audience and the elements that encompass your identity include: logo, photography, and graphic elements (colors, type, illustration).
Partnering with a great design team will help you up level the look of your business and personal brand so you visually communicate that you are the authority.
Create a user-friendly website: Your website is a core piece of your brand. It’s a valuable resource that connects with your clients. Your audience forms their first opinion of your company from your site branding.
The website sets the tone for the entire brand experience: colors, shapes, symbols all incite feelings that the audience will either ignore or gravitate towards.
You want your website to be extremely easy to use and navigate. Limit the number of clicks to contact you or check out. Keep it simple and accessible. And make it look and feel good. Your site is an experience.
While visual branding can’t define the entire narrative (content always comes first!) it does carry the conceptual meaning and weight of the words with visual elements that stick in the client’s minds.
Consistency is key so the message stays strong and people don’t get confused, so once you have your branding done, stick with it on every platform and point of contact to increase your conversion rates.
Write informational long-form content: Knowledge is power. When you provide helpful information to readers, people share it and search engines take notice. You can convert more readers into clients by creating purposeful content. Invest in a content marketing strategy, be consistent, grow your reach, and engage your audience. This will help establish your brand as influential and authoritative in your industry.
You can write blog posts, a book, or ebook, guides, and repurpose that content in your social media and emails.
Create video content: You can capture the hearts and minds of your readers with informational or entertaining videos. We’re all watching more than reading nowadays so video content can really pull people in. Creating a YouTube channel can grow your audience because YouTube is the second largest search engine (Google is #1).
Host community events: Creating real relationships and associating yourself with other industry professionals can expand your community network. This could look like co-hosting a webinar, collaborating on an ebook, guest blogging, podcast interviews, speaking engagements, or going live on social media. Good business relationships often lead to referrals too.
“Google only loves you when everyone else loves you first.”
7. Get found in search engine results.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a long game but worth it. We use best practices when building our client’s sites and recommend adding blog content every month to build authority and increase search.
Search engine optimization (SEO) strategy and marketing efforts help your website appear higher in search rankings and increase your website visibility.
The higher your website ranks, the more people will click on your site, and just by getting more site traffic, you’ll have a larger pool of eyes on your brand and more people are likely to do business with you.
Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools to help get your site listed in search engines faster. Re-submitting your sitemap is also recommended when you do a big update on your site so search engines are listing the most up-to-date pages.
Your website must have basic SEO included to get results. This includes:
Page titles: Also known as the title tag, is a short description of a webpage and appears at the top of the SERPs (search engine results pages). The page title should include the page’s keyword.
Meta descriptions: The information about your page that appears below the page title. The description doesn’t directly influence ranking but it does influence whether a user clicks the page title and in Google search, words that you searched are bolded within the meta description, making your description visually stand out.
Image alt-tagging: ALT attributes are descriptive text to an image that can be accessed by screen readers (browsers used by people with a visual impairment). This text not only improves the accessibility of your pages but also strengthens image search results.
Written on-page content: The words on your website pages and how you format headings can influence your page ranking. The minimum word count to aim for is 1,500 words. Headlines should include keyword-rich phrases because search engines (and people) scan the headings to understand what the content is about.
Know your audience and write the copy for them. Chunking your content makes it easier to read. Use visual elements to support the content.
Linking to other sites: Linking out to high-quality sites tells search engines that your site is connected to other sites that offer valuable content. Getting a link back to your site from a high-quality site is even better for your SEO. You can get backlinks by sharing really high-quality content on your site or guest posting on more popular websites.
Add fresh content: Your website is never really done. You need to regularly add new quality written content and update old content, for example, page updates and blog posts. We know creating content AND adding it to your site can be challenging for small businesses, but you must do it to increase your organic search. We’re making it simple to manage content updates for our website clients with our monthly membership.
Google My Business page (GMB): At a bare minimum, you need to sign up (and verify) a GMB page for your small business. Fill out your profile with as much information as possible. Put in your logo, add photos, add descriptions, make a post, and get reviews. You need to page this so that when people search for your business and services (on Google or Google Maps) you show up in the listings. The majority of our site traffic comes from Google and we get our clients to set up and build out this page with every site we build. It’s that important.
You can take it further with industry-specific keywords and geo-location keywords or hire an SEO expert to get a customized strategy.
Search is really important for every business but absolutely critical for local in-person businesses because people search with proximity in mind and search for places close to them, for example, “liquor store near me”.
Typed searches are of course very common, especially on mobile—nearly half of all website traffic is on a mobile device. Voice search will continue to increase as well with more and more people using voice-assistant tech devices.
These SEO strategies and basic tactics will increase your organic site traffic (versus paid traffic) and attract new clients to your website. Having your website optimized for search is a smart marketing strategy. Here’s our blog post on how to get your SEO started in 5 easy steps.
Need help building a website for your business?
We love our clients so that Google will love them too!
Websites are essential to increase your leads and grow your business. We’ve helped many small businesses create their online presence and incorporate functionalities to streamline their business.
We strongly recommend you create a website if you haven’t done so already or upgrade your website if it’s outdated.
If you need help, we’d love to discuss your website needs and share our expertise. Check out our services and schedule a quick call with us.
