I was asked the question the other day, “What will a website do for my business?”. I was taken by surprise with the question, it was a genuine question, he uses computers for the things he needs to but doesn’t do much online. This business is in a rural part of eastern Iowa where the bulk of their business comes by word of mouth (still, by far, the BEST way to generate business). They provide the rural communities in the area with a very specific service and product. There is not much interest to grow since new business comes organically. Here’s my response:
Different businesses have different needs, some people want to sell stuff online, others just want to show who and where they are. A website, or online presence, helps you to do online what your reputation does for you in person. If someone has no idea who you are, or has just started out in the business, they’re going to talk to someone and get a you as a reference. If they don’t know anyone though, and are figuring it out on their own, a lot of people now a-days will look online, they’ll “Google it”. To me, and possibly to you, it makes sense that this is what you do, but it doesn’t to everyone.
I grew up in a world where to do a report you needed to look stuff up in an encyclopedia. You went to the library looking for a book that would answer your question. I learned how to look for things on the internet before google “understood” your question; you had to type in words that you hoped would show up on a website somewhere
In my next post I’ll talk about the different types of websites a business might want to set up. It won’t be exhaustive, but it will cover a few of the basics. For now, the simplest reason to have a website is to give your business credibility. It tells people who you are, along with where you are. Maybe even in some cases what your business stands for or why you went into business in the first place. It speaks for you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 ¼ days a year. It tells the story about your business that you want it to. Plus, it’s the first thing someone sees about your business when they look you up on the internet.
What do you want your customers to see about your business when they look for you?