In this day and age, more and more people seem to be building businesses off social media alone. In this post, I am going to break down why having a killer Instagram just isn’t enough when it comes to business growth and longevity. Your small business needs a website, here’s why:
1. People Expect It
If you don’t have a website, you are 10 steps behind the rest of the world. According to a study, more than half of surveyed people (52%) said that they go directly to a company’s website for product information, while 25% turn to social media, 22% go to third-party sites and 8% read company blogs. If you don’t have a website, you could be missing out on over half of your market.
Let me ask you, when was the last time you purchased something through an Instagram account alone? Chances are, you don’t do it too often, if at all.
2. It Creates Credibility
Having a website instantly shows your customers that your company is legit. With so many scam and spam accounts out there, people on social media are becoming harder and harder to trust. Look at it this way, if you are looking for someone to design a logo for you and you come across two accounts with the EXACT same amount of followers, posts, and offerings, but one had a website and one did not… who would you go with?
For me, it’s a no-brainer. I would go with the person who has a website, because it seems more credible. Wouldn’t you?
3. You Control the Narrative
On social media, you can’t control what people say, but on your website you can control how you want your business perceived to the public. YOU are in control, especially through a blog.
A blog helps small business owners get their message, mission, and personality in front of their target audience more effectively than through a short Instagram post where comments can be skewed and perceptions misguided.
4. You Own It
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, YOU DO NOT OWN YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWERS. Social media CEOs can decide to pull the plug on their businesses right now, and all of your posts and followers will be lost. To be fair, this probably won’t happen, but what if it did?
Having a website allows you to have your own little corner of the internet where YOU control what happens, and when.
5. You Can Collect Customer Info
If you don’t have a website, you probably don’t have a mailing list. If you aren’t utilizing email marketing in your business, I would highly consider looking into it.
According to a study, 80% of retail professionals indicate that email marketing is their greatest driver of customer retention. You could be missing out on a huge revenue channel if you aren’t using email marketing via your website.
6. You Have a Place to Send People
Social media is just a handshake and invitation to something bigger. The goal is to get your social media followers to take action within your business, right? If the only place you are able to send them is to your social media, you’re missing out on huge potential.
You should want to invite them to YOUR website, not just a few posts here and there. Having a place to send people with your products, services, FAQ page, contact page, etc. invites them to then make an investment in your business, not just a “like” here and there on your post.
7. You Will be Able to Showcase Your Work
If you look at my Instagram, you won’t see a lot of my work on there. That’s because my work doesn’t necessarily sell me. People usually make purchases based on the person behind the work, not just the work alone. If I didn’t have a place to send people to preview my work, like my portfolio, how would they ever know what I can do?
8. You Will Save Time
How many times have people DM’d you on Instagram just to ask you the same thing that 10 other people asked you? Chances are, a lot! Instead of having to reply each time to the same question, you can direct them to your website or FAQ page, where you’ve already answered the question, amongst many others they may have.
Having a website streamlines your efforts. Generally speaking, your website is usually the first contact you have with your potential clients. If you can answer their questions before they contact you, you are doing both them AND yourself a favor.
The Bottom Line
If you are still contemplating whether your small businesses need a website, I hope you have gotten a little push into the right direction. Here’s the kicker: it’s not enough to have a website if that website is not professional or it doesn’t have a good design. Your website needs to reflect your brand, have ease-of-use, and ooze professionalism.
Your business’s website should be designed for the needs of your ideal customer. If you aren’t building your website with your customer in mind, you may as well not have a site at all!
I hope you can see from this post how important it is to have website designed with strategy in mind, so it can support your marketing efforts and goals of your business!
