If you’re a large company or organisation, then the answer is most definitely ‘yes’.
However, if you’re a small business or start up company then the answer is ‘hell, yes’.
It’s estimated that only half of small businesses have a web presence and the reasons most often given are:
- They consider their business too small to require a website
- They think their business does well enough through word of mouth and regular advertising channels
- They are not particularly good with computers and don’t believe they would know how to manage a website
All valid reasons. Until you do a little research that is, or even just think about it logically. Think about your friends, your children, your colleagues… what do they do when they’re looking for the answer to a question?
These days, more often that not, the answer will be ‘they look it up on the internet’. And if you consider needing a product or service to be the same as having a question that needs an answer, the same applies.
From a personal point of view, if I need a tradesman or a taxi, a dress or a DVD, a printer or a phone number, I go to the internet. I can’t remember the last time I looked in the phonebook or at the cards in a newsagent’s window (if they even still have them). Yes, I still ask for recommendations from friends, but I will always, always follow that up with a quick search on Google.
There are three reasons why I and everyone else do this:
- Speed. Web-searching phones and laptops are never far away and by typing in a few words we can get results that could take us days using the phonebook and word-of-mouth method. And let’s face it, by blind-phoning a number in the book you could end up with ANYONE on your doorstep the next day. Which brings me to point 2…
- Psychology. A clean and functional website speaks volumes to a potential customer, even before they’ve read the content. It says that your company is professional. It says that if you can afford a website, you must be doing well and if the business is doing well, customers must be happy with your work. It’s a quick and easy way to give potential clients the confidence to contact you.
- Information. While a brochure can provide you with information that a name and number can’t, people don’t go out looking for your brochure. Your leaflet may have popped through the door 3 months ago but they didn’t need you then so it went straight in the bin. However, when someone finds you on Google, they’ll click through to your site and read all about your services, your products, your prices and your people, and the beauty of it is, if the client changes their mind, that information will still be there 6 months from now, ready for when they change it back.
Makes sense doesn’t it? And look at what you’re up against. The first web-dependent generation are all grown-up, and the internet is how they find what they need. Can you afford not be where they’re looking?
