Why Startup business needs an online presence
In the digital age, it is absolutely essential for your business to have an online presence. Whether it’s a simple website, an e-commerce platform, a social media page or a combination of all three, getting your company online will reap major benefits.
Here are just a few of the many reasons why your business needs to establish its online presence:
- Makes it easier for potential customers to come to you
Today, if someone wants more information about a company, they’re most likely to do their research online. Whether they’re specifically looking for your company, or they just want to find any company that offers the products or services that your company offers, having an online presence will give you a competitive edge. Potential customers will not put a lot of effort into finding you, and they should not have to. A simple Google search should provide them with all the information they seek.
2. Make it easier to showcase your products and services
The internet gives businesses an effective platform for showcasing what they have to offer. Whether it’s a portfolio and testimonials from clients on a website or an album on a Facebook page with photos of your newest products, It has never been easier to let the world know what you have to offer. With a few simple clicks, your customers can see what you’re all about. They can even do this outside of business hours. An online presence is an extension of your brand that never sleeps.
3. Make it easier to build relationships with customers and potential customers
Social media is all about building relationships. This is true for both individuals and businesses. Social media gives your brand a voice- it makes your company more “human” and relatable. Customers and potential customers can interact with your brand on a more personal level. It also gives you the opportunity to truly get to know your customers. If everyone is on social media except you, you are missing out on an invaluable opportunity to connect and communicate with your target audience. Social media is one of the simplest, yet most effective way to get persons interested in your company and to form real relationships with real people.
4. Make it easier to market your brand.
Websites and social media platforms are excellent marketing tools. They are also some of the most cost-effective methods of sending out information to thousands of people. Online marketing is extremely important for all businesses because it has a huge influence on the way consumers make purchasing decisions. Moderns consumers have even indicated that they look at companies in a negative light if they cannot find them online. Using the internet for marketing purposes allows you to overcome distance barriers. People who are thousand miles away can be learning all about your business with just a few keystrokes. The “shareability” of social media allows your customers to easily spread the word about your business to all their friends. Ultimately, online marketing gives you the opportunity to market your brand in creative and exciting ways.
5. Online marketing is cheaper, more targeted and can be measured.
One of the greatest benefits of going online is that any online marketing is far cheaper and is able to be more targeted than the traditional method, and has the added advantage of being able to be more precisely measured. You are able to see exactly where your money is going and the results because of it.
6. Low advertising and marketing costs
Did you know the one time cost of designing a website and annual fees you spend on renewals (domain & hosting), website maintenance is just the smallest fraction of the cost you spend a year on printing out brochures, billboards, flyers, and many others? And yet with you having a website, whatever is printed out or shown in adverts can be in the website and you are guaranteed of wide market coverage.
7. Your online presence adds confidence, trust, belief, and hope into your clients
This shows how your business is a step ahead of the others and how your products are easily understood. Customers always want to purchase a product or service they have understood. No one wants to buy something they’re ignorant about.
8. Contact information
With a website, your contact details are accessed by a click away. This makes it easy to be located by anyone, anywhere which actually is the hardest thing in business (reaching you)
9. Credibility
If you have ever had difficulty making a sale or convincing someone that you are legit, having a well-structured website with great content will grant you instant credibility with anyone you sell your business to. These days, when you tell someone about your business, the first thing they do is look you up on Google or try to load your website to confirm that you are indeed the real deal. Having no concrete online presence other than business pages on social media does not cut it for most customers any more. You need to own a website to give you the much-needed credibility you need.
10. Show off your pedigrees
Your business may have achieved a lot of milestones but if nobody knows about it, how will they know that you are a pro in your field? Your website gives you an avenue to show off your awards, client testimonials, achievements/milestones. This greatly influences the decisions of potential clients.
Modern businesses must ensure that they are not left behind. An online presence is one of the most important investments that a business can make. The benefits are endless
