When you launch a new business, you’ll be plate spinning. Depending on your company, you’ll have everything from the legal and financial side of setting up to inventory and branding to think about. Due to this, many start up entrepreneurs put off building a website, hoping that a Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn presence will make do for now. As we’ll get into, however, a website is an essential tool for businesses of all shapes and sizes. In this article, we’ll discuss just a few of the ways a business website can help you. But first, we answer a few common questions about what it takes to create we website — and bust a few myths along the way…
How much does it cost to set up a small business website?
If you use a website builder product, you can build a bespoke website for a set up fee of less than £10 and maintain it for less than £10 a month after that.
How long does it take to build a small business website?
Using the tailorable templates provided by a website builder product, you can set up a simple website with elements like an attractive homepage, About Us page, Our Work page, a blog, and more in a few hours.
If you want to build an ecommerce site – aka a site through which you can sell things – it can take a little longer, but you can still get something live in a day and perfect it as you go along.
Can an entrepreneur with no tech experience build their own website?
Absolutely. Website builder products let you build a site with no knowledge of code. You simply choose a template you like for your site, tweak it by changing colours and easy to add page elements, add content like copy, images and videos and you’re ready to go.
What are the benefits of having a small business website?
✔ You’ll look more professional
There are said to be 2.95 billion active monthly users of Facebook, while there are only 200 million business pages on the site. Compare these figures and it indicates that Facebook is still mainly used as an informal, casual platform. Business websites, meanwhile, are official, with their format created to be taken seriously.
✔ You get your own domain name
A domain name is more than just a web address. It gives your business a professional and credible image, making it easier for customers to remember and find you. Unlike social media or marketplace profiles, where your name is buried under their branding, a domain name stands out and can be tailored to your business. With your own domain, you signal to your customers that you’re serious and invested in providing a direct, trustworthy experience.
See also: Names That Click: How to Choose the Right Domain Name?
✔ You’ll look more trustworthy
A business website will inherently feels more trustworthy than a social media profile. It’s a dedicated space that shows commitment and professionalism, where you can present detailed information about your products, services, and company ethos. Customers tend to perceive a website as a sign of a well-established and reliable business. Your customers will also feel safer in knowing they’re data is protected with an SSL Certificate.
Recent research has revealed that eight in 10 UK consumers trust a business website more than social media. It’s not surprising, really. UK newspapers have recently reported that social media sites like Facebook and Instagram are a ‘Wild West for shopping fraud’ with one Guardian article revealing: “UK consumers are losing more than £27m a year through purchase scams originating from the two platforms.”
✔ You can set up your own professional email address to match
The added bonus of having a website with your own domain is that it allows you to set up a professional email address to match your brand name. This looks so much more professional and trustworthy than a generic email address and helps people to remember the brand every and every time you get in touch. It’s easier to trust an email that comes from a business-branded address. Plus, it keeps your work and personal messages separate and tidy, making sure you always look sharp and focused when dealing with customers.
See also: How to Create a Free Business Email Address?
✔ You have full control over your visual branding
Yes, you can add your logo and header images and branded content to the likes of Facebook and Instagram business pages, but the pages will still predominantly feature the branding of the social media sites themselves. Having your own website gives you the freedom to build and customise everything about your online presence, without the limitations or rules. Facebook business pages, for example, still feature blue call to action buttons, blue text, and blue navigation menus. Every business page on this platform, also has an identikit layout. With a website, there’s no dual branding. You can do it your way: your colours, your tone, and you dictate the layout of your webpages to the maximum.
✔ Showcase the quality of your business
A stylish and lovingly-crafted site shows that the website owner is prepared to put time, effort and care into their business, and this reflects on the rest of a company’s offerings. Just like a real shop front, it shows customers what you’re all about.
✔ Develop a mailing list
Websites are great tools for capturing email addresses. You simply have to add a newsletter sign up form to your site or create a pop up that offers a discount code in return for an email address. Recent research reveals that email is still one of the most effective channels for driving sales in the UK, with research from one study by Marigold revealing that 51% of consumers have purchased a product as a direct result of an email they received in the last 12 months.
✔ Show expertise with your own blog
With your own website, you can host a blog that’s all yours — your own platform to share valuable insights, news, and updates about your business or field. A blog is a fantastic way to connect with your customers, offering them useful information while showcasing your expertise and passion for what you do. Regularly updated content not only keeps your audience engaged but also helps improve your site’s SEO, making your business more visible online. It’s a space to speak directly to your customers, tell your brand’s story, and build a community around your products or services.
Checkout our guide, Blogging A-Z: Your Glossary Guide for Success
✔ Improve your customer service
When you run your own business, you can’t always answer every message you get through the likes of Facebook Messenger the minute you get it. This is where a comprehensive FAQ page on a website steps in. It can fill in as your front line for customer service during the times you can’t get right back to a customer query.
Fill such pages with the questions your customers ask you most often – on topics from average delivery times to opening hours – and your customers won’t necessarily have to wait for your response to their enquiries.
✔ Show off your portfolio and achievements in all their glory
Of course, you can create posts on social media business sites that show off your work, testimonials, case studies and happy customers, but these posts eventually get hidden away in your feed and post gallery. On a website, you can create a dedicated case portfolio or page that will always be there and will always be easy for your customers to find.
Ready to set up your new business website?
Everything’s made simple with the 123 Reg Website Builder. Choose from a huge variety of professional templates to get your site going. After you’ve chosen a professional design suited to your business, make it your own by tweaking the layout, switching up the colours, and adding your own text, images, blog content, customer testimonials, videos, and more. Whether you’re aiming for simple and informative website or a full-fledged e-commerce store, there are plans tailored to each, featuring all the tools you could need from inventory management to the ability to offer customers discount codes. Each plan is designed to grow with your needs — so your website can expand and evolve as your business does.
For more, checkout 123 Reg’s 2024 Guide to Starting an Online Business
