Not Having A Website For Your Business Could Result In Missed Opportunities.

Believe it or not there are still many companies in the US that operate without a website. The shame is that these companies do not realize how much of a leveler the Internet actually is when it comes to comparing both large and small companies. I am not saying you have to have the glitziest looking web site, but not having any kind of web presence not only will penalize you now, but as technology advances you will find yourself falling further behind the competition unless you act now.

Let’s start by outlining the reasons why a legitimate business wouldn’t want to have a web site. I can really only think of one - cost! Even that isn’t a barrier these days, even if you cannot afford to pay a web designer to design and build a website for you, there are many services that will host your website and provide a simple to use site-builder that will give you something more than half decent within a few hours of you setting up the account. This should cost you anything up to $10 per month. Yes, there may be limits on what you can do to it while you are building, but once it is up you now have an online brochure that you can send people to so they can read up about your company, your products and services and they have a way of contacting you…24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

So now we have got the negatives of owning a business website out of the way, let’s discuss why you should have a website. A lot of businesses have no desire to market outside of their local area, and therefore feel that owning a website that attracts people that they would never sell to would be a waste of time and money. Not true! A website isn’t just used to sell a product and/or service. These days a website also legitimizes a company. Most people when they are considering buying from a company for the first reach for the Internet. This is the place they start their research. If your business doesn’t have a website and your competitors do, then guess what? You may have just pushed this prospective customer into the hands of a competitor.

What if you want to reach more customers nationally and internationally? What plans do you have to meet this goal? Using the Internet really is the most cost effective and quickest way to do this. Optimizing your website so that it can be found by anybody, anywhere, will bring more potential buyers to your storefront. Even if you choose to use paid ads, such as Google’s Adwords, you can choose which parts of the world you want your ads to be seen, so having no website means you are closing off this potential avenue of revenue.

Almost 70% of people turn to the Internet to find contact details of businesses. When was the last time your first choice for this action was to dig out your Yellow Pages? Even if a prospective company knows your company name and your location, the likelihood is that it is going to go and type in the information in Google in order to find your website. Once they do that not only will they find your business website (if you own one) but they will probably find links to the websites of your competitors. Try it, go to Google and type in your business name and location, and you will probably find either direct links to your competitors, or links to directories that hold the same information. If they don’t find a link to your website, guess what? They will probably click through to one of your competitor’s sites.

As time goes by, technology evolves and usually things get smaller and smaller. Well these days people have the ability to carry the whole Internet in their pocket. Products like the iPhone and other 3G cell phones means people are able to search the Internet pretty much wherever they are. So if I land in Alburquerque and find that the airline has lost my luggage then I am going online to find details of the nearest clothes store so I can replace the bare essentials quickly. If I can’t find your store online then the only way I am going to be shopping there is if I drive by the front doors. You get the picture I am sure.

These days the most savvy businesses don’t wait for customers to come to them. They take their business to their existing and prospective customers in the form of Internet marketing (e.g. newsletters). A website is great vehicle to use to build up an opt-in list for your database. A simple form will give visitors to your website the opportunity to insert their details so you can send them details of special offers and other news about you and your company.

So owning a website is tantamount to opening the doors to your business 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Remember if your store is closed then the likelihood is that customers will go looking for a store that is open. So do yourself, and your business, a big favor and get a website today if you don’t already own one.