Got A Biz? Benefits Of Having A Website
Social media platforms like Instagram or YouTube are offering direct sales to buyers. Is having a website for my business still important?
On Instagram the requirements to set up a shop are, besides the country location, that you have to have a physical product. Apart from this, you also need an e-commerce site as an eligibility requirement (Source: hotsuite.com, April 22)*.
If you are a coach and want to provide evergreen course modules, would customers buy it from a random link in DMs or from an individual website or a newsletter? Imagine yourself as a customer, what would you prefer?
If you have a physical shop but no website – is posting on social media enough to draw attention to your offering?
Putting all your biz eggs into one basket aka on a social platform can be risky. There can be outages as we’ve seen with Instagram in October 2021 or people move on to the next platform. Also, depending on your audience not everyone is on social media or specifically Instagram either.
Benefits of having a professional website
Increase Profits
A website is part of your brand experience. When people are on your website you can lead them to this experience. They will be able to get to know much more about who you are, your story, benefits, testimonials etc in one place.
When your audience believes in your brand, it converts. (Read more about branding here)
Open 24/7
Granted social media can be accessed around the clock as well. If you have a physical shop, a website can enhance your business because people love to browse in their own time at home. This way your audience can go beyond local as well. For example, based in the UK, you browse the bicycle website from Roetz who are based in the Netherlands and they show stockists in your country.
Local Reach
If you have your business listed e.g. with Google business and you have a website link attached, it highly increases the chance of people visiting your website than not having one.
Actually, 81% of retail shoppers conduct online research before buying. The overwhelming majority of retail consumers start their journey with online research (Source: GE Capital Retail Bank, 19 Jul 2021). The same goes for having your website among Google search results which is the SEO site and an entirely big topic for itself.
Customer Insights
By tracking user behaviour on your website you can see whether your audience is reaching out organically through search engine results i.e. are your website visitors genuinely interested in your content, brand, or products and services? Are they using mainly mobile or desktop? How long are they staying on the website?
Google Analytics is a popular and slightly complex free data provider for your website traffic. It’s just really helpful to make informed decisions e.g. which pages need updating because they might not not show a clear user journey, so people don’t click on the action button.
Added Sales Tool through Email Marketing
Whether sending out a blog update, making aware of special campaigns or sending more information for a subscription box, you need a website for that. The links in the email newsletter typically link back to topics on your website with a chance to inform and convert.
Microsites for Greater Awareness
Microsites (one page within your website) could get you more leads. E.g. You set up a special campaign and the goal is to get subscribers to a program with worksheets and live calls. Creating a one page site gives you the opportunity to feature everything about this campaign on your website.
Summary:
A website is one touchpoint of your brand. Having one for your business also gives you added marketing tools through email marketing and microsites. Customers can go on your website at their convenience. Therefore, even as small as a 3 page website shows more trust and professionalism when selling products or offering a service with a view towards long term growth.
Get in touch for a free consultation call to see if I can help you with your branding.
References
*How to set up an Instagram shop (with or without Shopify) | Instagram Shopping PART 1
Disclaimer
Please note any direct links are affiliate programs with Amazon or Redbubble which means I get a small commission if you decide to purchase anything or sign up to services. You won’t pay a penny more but it helps me out!
