Seven Reasons to Build a Website for Your Small Business

Like most small business owners, you probably burn the candle at both ends to keep your company plugging along. As it is, keeping up with everything is a Herculean task; how are you supposed to maintain a website too? Besides, your company is doing pretty well. Won’t building a website be more trouble–and money–than it’s worth?

Put simply, the answer is no. If your company is among the nearly half of small businesses that don’t have websites, it’s time to get moving. It costs less than you think, and the return on your investment will be substantial not just from an economic standpoint but in terms of growing your business and keeping your customers happy too.

According to a survey of more than 350 small businesses by Clutch.co, 46 percent of small businesses don’t have a website. Of that total, 24 percent don’t plan to ever have one, 12 percent are unlikely to build one and 10 percent are unsure.

The owners of those businesses obviously haven’t considered these seven top advantages of having a website for your small business:

1. Maintain a Competitive Edge

No matter what the nature of your business may be, you can be sure that many of your competitors have websites. When people go online for the goods and services that your company provides, you won’t stand a chance of earning their business–your competitors will, though.

2. Establish Credibility

These days, customers expect businesses to have websites. It is much more difficult for companies without them to establish credibility. Without a website, customers may assume that your company is brand new–even if it isn’t. They may also think that your company is struggling and may not be able to meet their needs.

3. Cast a Wider Net

A website allows you to reach a much larger audience than similarly priced marketing techniques. Instead of just focusing on prospects in your immediate vicinity, you can reach out to potential customers around the globe. Even if you offer services that can only be supplied within a small geographic region, a website helps local customers find you.

4. Enhance Your Customer Service

How many times a week are you asked the same handful of questions by customers? A website allows you to relay crucial information quickly and easily. You can also include a FAQ and other support information to allow customers to find the answers that they need.

5. Centralize Your Marketing Efforts

In many ways, a well-designed website serves as ground zero for all of your marketing efforts. That’s true not just about online marketing techniques like email marketing and social media marketing but about more traditional techniques like direct mail and television advertising too. Once your website is up and running, you can include its address on marketing materials and refer customers to it in person as well.

6. Spend Less and Get More

One of the top reasons cited by small business owners for not building a website is that it is too expensive. However, developing a new website is more affordable than you probably think. Also, you have to consider the return that you’ll get from your investment. If your efforts garner even a small uptick in business for you, they will be more than worth it. Also, you’ll able to provide better customer service and will enhance your marketing efforts in one fell swoop.

7. Advertise Your Business Around the Clock

Finally, unlike most marketing techniques and mediums, a website is up and running on a 24/7/365 basis. In a way, you can always be there for your customers and potential customers by maintaining an online presence in this way. If a prospective customer searches for your goods and services in the middle of the night, over the weekend or on a major holiday, they can track them down with a few clicks through your website. Unless you can magically be there for your prospects and existing customers all of the time, you simply can’t afford not to have a professionally designed website.

By not having a website for your small business, you are missing out on all of the above benefits and many more. While your initial investment may be a bit more than you’d prefer to spend, the ongoing costs are manageable–and you will be paid back again and again through the incredible ROI that you derive from it.