Denton Concepts wants to “Change the way the world sees you”. We believe now more than ever it’s important to present yourself through your website. Think of it as a digital business card on steroids. With the evolution of smart phones, anyone at anytime can look up your business information online. Because of this it’s very important to represent yourself the best way you can and this is where Denton Concepts can help.
Surveys conducted¹ have ascertained people logging onto the Internet do so primarily for information, communication and research. Entertainment is the last check-box to be ticked. If you can create a website which fulfills these criteria, then you are on your way to creating a marketing tool which will potentially service your business and customers much more efficiently and cost-effectively than any conventional marketing campaign ever could.
Some Very Good Reasons to Have a Website:
Accessibility:
Your business will no longer be restricted to your office hours and will be available to the world 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Differing time zones will no longer present an obstacle. Your site can educate, inform and generate new customers while you sleep! And the best reason to have a website is to generate extra revenue for your business or with a blog.
Establishing a Presence:
With today’s pad & phone technology becoming less and less expensive, over 1.3 Billion people worldwide have access to the Internet. Chances are your competitors have already realized this and have established themselves on the internet. In todays world, a website IS your business card. Can you afford to ignore potential customers??
Affordability:
The information on your site can save you time and money by, for example, resulting in a reduction in printed promotional literature. Websites are also affordable and cost effective in terms of longevity.
Improved Customer Service:
By providing answers to frequently asked questions on your website, information requests can be processed automatically and immediately, freeing up your staff to focus in their assigned tasks. Online forms can be utilized to allow customers to request information or ask for further information.
Reach Specialized Markets:
As the Web has several very efficent search engines, interest groups will be able to find you especially if your service is a specialized one.
Make Picture, Sound and Film Files Available:
With today’s faster connection speeds, your website can provide an opportunity to significantly improve the essence of your marketing material by the inclusion of sound and film files, no brochure can accomplish this. Your site will also be easier, cheaper and faster to update than any printed material.
Present a Professional Image:
For a small business, a well-designed website is a terrific way of instilling confidence and looking bigger than you actually are. If your primary competitor is bigger than you, creating a website which outshines theirs could be a good way of keeping up with them.
To Network:
Doing business today is nothing more than creating connections with other people. Consider your website as a digital dynamic business card, with the ability to reach a far wider group of people at considerably less cost.
Provide Instant Gratification:
In this busy day and age, people don’t like to wait for information or services. With all the technology at our fingertips, we have become a society who is always looking for instant gratification. By allowing visitors to your site to post questions or find information assisting them instantaneously provides a service valuable to your business.
Make your Business Information Available:
Any Yellow Pages ad has the same basic information. This usually includes your business hours, what services you offer, contact details, your location etc. On the web, this information becomes readily available worldwide, at no extra cost. Studies over the last few years reveal the internet has already surpassed newspapers and yellow pages for information and research regarding companies, products, and services.
If you build it, will they come?
Yes. Like most things in life, however, it will require some initial effort on your part. Problems arise when websites are designed without a clear goal in mind.
Establish a plan for your website by considering what it is you want your website to do:
- To inform?
- To reach a broad audience with a message?
- To find leads?
- To provide support and customer service?
- To conduct e-commerce?
- To reduce printing and mailing costs?
- To brand your company?
These are just a few suggestions. It is important to think of the web as not just a marketing tool, but as a business tool as well.
It is also vital to identify your target audience. Consider what information they would like to see, or what services they require. In other words, why are they visiting your site?
There are a lot of factors which affect the performance and results of a website:
- The general appearance and image of your website
- Load time – does it take ages for your page or content to become visible?
- Is your website easy to navigate?
- Is your website smart phone compatible?
- Cross browser / platform compatibility – does every visitor have the same experience no matter which browser they are using?
Perhaps you already have a website, but find it’s not providing the results or traffic you desire? Then perhaps it is time to re-look at why you created the website in the first place and maybe do some internet marketing research on your website topic to figure out what people are actually looking for. This will bring you traffic thus more possibilities to make a profit off the information you provide to the world. There are many tools out there to help you focus your information, one I use is Market Samurai.
Market Samurai is a great tool to help you analyze the market using key words. They also provide great tutorials on how to use the tool which also helps you understand how the internet really works behind the scenes concerning Search Engine Optimization.
There can be no denying the fact of having a successful and professional website presence is vital to any business owner. Having a website will give your business credibility. It’s all about keeping up with technology and making it a part of the success of your business.
¹Source: DIANE F. WITMER AND CHUTATIP TAWEESUK: Department of Communications, California State University, Fullerton, USA
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