And how to create a quality web site on a shoe string! 1.
A website is essential for your business credibility.
No matter what business you are running, even a business where you do not intend to sell online, a website is still essential for your business credibility.
Customers, business associates, partners, potential employees, or suppliers can very easily find out more about your business by looking at your website.
With some customers, this could be your only chance to make a good impression.
Having a website presence will definitely give your business a very powerful edge and with a very well planned although simple website you can present yourself with the top class big corporations and give the your business the same credible image.
2.
Your website reflects you as a quality and professional business owner.
If potential clients or suppliers visit your website and it looks good then you have already given them a good impression.
The public now expects any credible, worthwhile business to have a website.
These days it is as important as a phone number.
Just think! What impression does your business give to your potential clients if they search the internet for you, and you are not there? Not only that.
If they cannot find you, then they will still search and find one of your competitors! Most people, especially the growing mass of people with smartphones will just look online with the thought of the phone book or yellow pages not even crossing their mind! 3.
Your website can draw extra local business, even from new customers.
Today, with smartphones and Google Local searches.
Clients will visit you not necessarily just because of your content, but because you are where they are, and you offer what they are looking for.
Remember if they do a local search online and you are not there, then someone else will get your business.
4.
Your website can expand your business globally.
Local people from your own town will not be the only ones interested in your business.
With a website, your product or service can be viewed by the whole world - twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week without extra staff costs or overtime rates to pay! With a carefully designed website, it is now as easy for your small business to have the appearance and same apparent credibility as large corporations.
If you have compliments and testimonials from customers, suppliers or other clients, then put them on your website for extra credibility.
5.
Your website gives you an alternative outlet.
During the current global recession, your website gives you the edge over your struggling competitors with your extra source of customers and therefore income.
You also have a source of getting business from areas of the world where the austerity measures are not yet biting.
If you do not use this means of business then you will be left behind! You could put ads.
on your website from other local, non-competing businesses and with niche markets in abundance, new opportunities are now opening that either never previously existed, or were much too expensive to enter into.
6.
Your website gives you technology to easily compete with the biggest.
Before the Internet many small businesses lacked the vast resources of their larger competitors.
Now with websites available to all, even very small businesses have access the same technology as large corporations.
As a small business, just the same as the large corporations, you can use auto-responders, take orders on-line and accept on-line payments.
Even deliver products over the Internet - Yes there is a big demand for digital products! 7.
You can easily have a website on a very tiny budget.
Most larger companies will have an IT department who will have their own web master and team.
Smaller companies may have there own IT person as their web master.
What about the new-start business or beginner perhaps working from home, on their own as a one or two person band? How do you then create a website with a tiny budget.
Easy: Do it yourself...
Yes: Do it yourself! You are probably already thinking that you have enough problems understanding your computer, let alone making a website! Then you would be in the same position of many new business entrepreneurs, but what if you knew that there is a company out there that will teach you free, with a series of free tutorial showing how to build your own website.
You will never need to learn a programming language.
The only cost is £10 (about $16.
25 or €12.
51) for your first years registration of your website name, which includes a years free hosting.
Not only are you taught how to create a website with no prior knowledge or programming knowledge.
In fact you will never need to learn one word of programming.
Even the programmes that you use are supplied free, and are free to use! You are also taught how to take orders and payments on-line.
How to create your own email addresses for your website.
How to use auto-responders.
Even how to create and put online your own promotional video's.
The only prior experience required is that you can work Windows®.
You will obviously require internet access, ideally broadband.
If that includes you.
You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
The company's name is First Class Hut and many people have already successfully taken this route.
Please see the resource box for more.
James Tallett