I used to have my “Reasons for Getting a Business Website” content below published on HubPages, but I deleted it from HubPages in July 2012. I then re-published it on our terryandtonyinsouthafrtica.co.za site, but recently cancelled that site, so am publishing the content here on TANT now. I first wrote and published this content on HubPages on the 11th of December 2011. During its time published on HubPages (nearly 7 months) it received 35 views and 2 comments.

Reasons for getting a website for your business

Being There if People are Trying to Find You

If you do not have a business website or your business is not on the Internet, and people are using the Internet to look for the services or products that you have, they’re not going to find you. They will find your competitors instead.

Millions of people use the Internet every month. Even if you don’t.

Perhaps the Internet has never interested you, or you’re not computer literate, but what about the millions of computer literate people who are interested in using the Internet? Don’t you want your business to be exposed to these people too? You don’t have to be computer literate yourself to expose your business to those who are computer literate.

People use the Internet for so many different things:

• staying up to date with friends and old friends on Facebook
• watching videos on YouTube
• research for school projects or student studies
• making money online
• searching for the information, service or product that they need

To be seen, be visible.

How Does Having a Business Website Help your Business?

Whether a visitor to your business website got there by:
a)
using the Internet and searching for information about a service or product they need, and finding a good natural search result, and from there, visiting your site
b)
using the Internet and searching for information about a service or product they need, and finding a page on another site that links through to your website
c)
using the Internet and searching for information about a service or product they need, and finding an advert that links through to your website
d)
typing your website address into their browser bar after seeing the website address on your business card, in your brochure, in a printed ad, on your car, or writing it down when you told them what your website address was

how does having a website actually help your business when a visitor is now on your website, reading the information you have there?

Save Time – instead of speaking to you over the phone or even in person, and then deciding not to use your services or products, a potential client or customer can get the same information, if not better and more detailed information, on your business website – be contacted by the people who are more likely to go through with using your services or buying your products.

Targetted – your “advert” is in front of those looking for what you do or sell, and is not lost amongst other adverts advertising other products or services.

An attractive “shop” or “office” – even though you have a good service or product, you could be working from your bathroom at home, but you can make your business website as attractive as you like.

Testimonials and awards – display or mention them on your website – how many people get to speak to your previous clients or customers? How many get to see the walls of your office or if they do, notice what is on your walls? On your website you can show people your experience and reputation, right in front of their faces.

But Getting a Website is Expensive

Is it? Perhaps a once-off business website design price and some money spent on a Search Engine Optimization service is a bit more expensive than your usual advertising in any given month, but the key word is once-off.

A good business website design with good Search Engine Optimization, coupled with some effort on your part at providing visitors to your site with detailed information and attractive photos doesn’t have to be the kind of advertising that you need to spend money on each month.

Once you’re set up with a website, the only costs are yearly domain registration renewals, and yearly hosting renewals, and possibly paying a website designer to make updates to your site once or twice a year to reflect new prices or news.

There’s even a cheaper option for a website that will still be your own website: A WordPress site – a wordpress.org site.

A free-theme WordPress site of your own just needs yearly domain registration and yearly hosting renewals – you also get to choose your own free theme from over 1 500 free WordPress themes and you get to add and edit your own content instead of having to pay a website designer to do it for you.

I’m Making Enough Money and Don’t Need a Business Website

Congratulations, but don’t you want to try making more money? Getting more work may mean that you need more staff to help you. So what? Jobs are scarce – help the unemployed by hiring them. Spoil your family more, or give the extra money to charities and organizations that need the money more than you do.

Conclusion
Save time, save money, make more money, and even, perhaps, help the world.
Get a business website.

© Copyright Teresa Schultz 2011, 2012, 2013