A business website is your calling card

Don’t underestimate its power to attract or repel clients

In starting I want to draw your attention to some interesting facts: –

  • According to Researchers from New York University Graduate School of Business it takes us seven seconds to make our mind up about a person.
  • Yet based on eye tracking research undertaken at Missouri University of Science and Technology, it only takes users less than two-tenths of a second to form a first impression of a website.

It seems that it takes us longer to make up our minds about someone when we meet them in person than when we check out their website. What does this mean in practical terms?

According to various studies word of mouth generates between 85 – 92% of business in the SMB segment. So, you have a great reputation and your clients just can’t stop raving about you.

What is the first thing they will do after the great word of mouth recommendation? What would you do?

You got it. 85% of B2B customers search the web before making a purchase decision and you have less than two-tenths of a second to form a first impression. NO PRESSURE!!!

When was it that you even checked your website? Is your content still relevant? Does it look tired?

Mmmm have I got you thinking?

But of course, you don’t have time for that sort of stuff. You need to work on the areas that bring in the revenue.

Have you ever wondered what the opportunity cost is of that decision?

The fact remains no matter how hard you work, there will be natural attrition (churn) of existing clients/business for a variety of reasons. As SMBs, you may not have the extensive resources to bring in new business. It is important to make every communication tool count. Make your website work for you, not against you.

You are not going to be in the office at 9 pm but the right website could be working for you while you are away from the office.

There is no need to make it complicated. The major things that people are looking for when they come to a website: –

  1. Details about the business such as
    • a bit about how your business came about
    • the products or services you provide
  2. Your location
  3. Easy to contact either telephone or contact form
  4. The design of your website – does it reflect your expertise, business area.
  5. Solutions – you cannot be everything to everyone but what are the solutions you provide to your customers.
  6. Testimonials – an area where you need to tread carefully in my opinion. Best to have nothing than to come across fake. Sometimes a success story or case study may be more effective and reveals more about your business sense.
  7. Blogs (if relevant to your business) – remember if you start a blog you must remain committed to it. What sort of impression do you think it makes if the last blog you have written was 2010?

Make sure that the information is current, check for errors and make sure it reflects your business’ ethos. If your business is suit and tie, then that is what your website should reflect. If your work requires creativity then the website should reflect it. You don’t want to have a website that gives the wrong message, attracting clients that are not suited to your business or vice versa.

Remember the design of the website is analogous to the outer wrapping, it makes the first impression. The content is what happens when the package is opened and generally that is what makes them take the next step.

Most importantly, if you are not going to be spending time updating the website keep the information simple so that it does not look outdated.

With potential clients, the purpose of your website is to reassure them that you are reputable and worthy of their time to contact you.

Request for permission to reproduce content should be directed to Planning Results