Does My Business Need a Website?

A staple marketing tool for business around the globe, a corporate website serves as a company's online profile, showcasing their products and services, offering different means of contact, detailing their history and future goals, and so on.

Websites come in all different shapes and sizes, from a single, static HTML page to a full communication package complete with Flash and an integrated content management system.

There is no hard and fast rule about what businesses should have by way of a website except this:

You need one.

Believe it or not, there are still businesses out there without a website. And for every one that has chosen not to use this rather effective and inexpensive marketing tool, there are two more that have unwisely chosen to have their website designed by:

• their nephew (because he went to art school)
• their IT guy (because he knows "web stuff")
• the guy from the warehouse (because he took an illustration course in 2004)
• the owner (because he knew exactly what he wanted and no one else was capable of understanding his vision)
• the web designer down the road (because he was the cheapest around)
• that online directory company (because it was free)
• Microsoft Word (because it comes with a nice clip art library of cat images)

First thing's first.

This is 2011. There is no excuse not to have a website.

We've moved past the stage of delivering mail by donkey, communicating by carrier pigeon, and sending instructions by fax. We've also moved past the stage of "The Internet is just a fad - it doesn't benefit my business in any way". The fact is, if your business isn't online, your business might as well not exist.

Second, get it done right.

The most common objection we come across when quoting on a website is:

It's too expensive - I'll do it myself.

Our question in return is two-fold:

1. What is a new customer worth to your business; and,
2. What is the value in keeping existing customers?

Crunch the numbers. Is a new customer worth $10? $1,000? $100,000? If one of your customers left now, how much would your bottom line suffer? This is what a website does for your business - it attracts new business and new sources of revenue and it keeps existing clients and customers happy. In other words, if your aim is to be successful, a website is invaluable.

The real question then becomes, can your business afford NOT to have a website?

Don't worry, a professionally designed website won't break your marketing budget. For less than a thousand dollars, you could be:

• telling your customers, and potential customers, all about who you are
• why they should be buying from you and not your competitors
• how to find and contact your business
• providing helpful trouble-shooting instructions
• giving access to your whole library of marketing material

There are few, if any, other marketing materials that have the same kind of longevity and impact for such a low cost as a website.

Still not convinced you need a professionally designed website? Your competitors have one, don’t they?

Call us now or fill out our quote request form and get started on improving your online image today.