Lately, a lot of people lately have been telling me they don’t need a website.
“I’ve got a Facebook page and Instagram page and they’re free. Why do I need a website?” they ask.
Well, yeah…but mostly no.
It’s true, social media has exploded over the past few years. Businesses, brands, groups, artists, even average people, AKA ‘the Influencer’ have been harnessing the seemingly cost-free power of social to connect with others and grow their online presence - some have even cracked the secret formula to make a heap of cash!
And because social media is awesome, many people are shelving their web presence entirely. Not a wise move.
Websites are extremely important and as relevant as they’ve ever been. Unless you have a website as part of your online presence, you cannot expect to thrive.
Enter the website…your online showroom.
Imagine standing across the road from your office/workshop/warehouse – wherever you conduct your business - and admiring it in all its glory. Now picture a great big funnel hovering above your showroom. That funnel is your social media presence - Facebook, Instagram, twitter, Pinterest, the lot - all in one container capturing leads for your business. The photos of you in front of your latest project, the informative posts to remind people to be proactive about the upkeep of their homes, the Friday funnies to give people a laugh heading into the weekend all designed to advertise you, your business and what your business has to offer.
When people are engaged enough to learn more, the social media funnel spits them out conveniently onto the front steps of your showroom. That lead is red hot, now it’s up to you to convert! And still today that conversion is done best via your website, especially if you don’t have a showroom.
Four reasons why you absolutely need a website.
In addition to being your showroom, there are four reasons why you absolutely need a website:
1. You have the control!
Your website means your messaging, your pictures, your style - you’re in charge. You’re not limited by any rules around content type, length, functionality etc. (try adding hyperlinks on Instagram for example) and you’re able to portray your business in the way you want to, embrace your creativity and make it your own. What makes you better than the next person?
To make the point even more: remember earlier this year when Facebook shut down a lot of pages so no one could see their content? Social channels are not yours; they are on loan while the provider deems to allow you to use them.
2. You have insight over what people are doing on your site
Once people are in the front door, you can see what they’re interested in, what brought them to your site and be there to help them learn more.
There are great online tools available to you like Google Analytics that will provide an amazing level of detail about the people that visit your site. These tools will tell you where your visitor has come from, how they found your site, which information or pages they visited, how long they stayed on your site and so much more.
They say that knowledge is power and what you’re able to learn from how people interact with your site will help you focus your marketing efforts into the future.
3. Social media can only do so much for you
There is no other communication medium that gives you as much control over your content and message as a website. While apps and social media might work for niche groups or price-points, the relatively small investment in your own website pays off immediately.
Your website is available 24/7/365 (give or take). Visitors are able to engage with your entire showroom at any time of the day, week, month or year. Your website acts as a direct marketing communication channel.
4. Get found online
When we want to know something, we ask. We ask our friends, we ask our co-workers, but most of all we ask Google. And if you don’t have a website, Google doesn’t know you exist.
- What are the symptoms of Coronavirus?
- What is the weather going to be on Friday?
- Where can I find a reliable plumber?
On average, Google processes over 63,000 search queries every second. This translates into approximately 3.8 million searches per minute, 228 million searches per hour, and 5.5 billion searches per day. *
For all the mathematicians out there, that’s two trillion searches per year!
Google can help…A LOT!
So, get yourself a website and give yourself a fighting chance!
Keep an eye out in our next edition on how to build a website.
* https://gs.statcounter.com/
