Should all small businesses have website?

Editor | November 15, 2020

A lot of entrepreneurs starting businesses on a small scale that caters to a smaller geographical area like a small town for example most times tend to always pay very little or even absolutely no attention to their web presence. Considering the increased popularity and continued evolution of the internet, is this really a wise decision? Does this place them at a disadvantage especially when their direct competitors do otherwise?

Even though this is starting to sound really cliché, it is indeed very true. The world is a global village and the information age is real. People get a whole lot of their information nowadays from the internet, social media is becoming a huge part of the way we all live our lives now and rather than from word of mouth and traditional media, people now source for information on virtually anything from the internet.
The benefits of having an effective and efficient web presence do not need to be argued in the case of big businesses and businesses that are not location targeted and have a potential global customer reach. But a lot of entrepreneurs are still very much undecided in the case of small businesses that are location based.

Half of internet usage globally now come from mobile devices and this statistic can only keep improving in favor of mobile devices. What this means is that people now take their internet around and the internet is now closer and more relied upon. Unlike in the not too distant past when all you had to do when in need of a particular service in your locality is to ask around or better still get hold of the yellow pages. People now just google everything and this is where the key is.

If you do not have an all-round effective web presence (not just through your website but also on popular social media), you will be totally shutting your door on this kind of persons who may need your service on the go and rely on the internet to give them addresses of for example “cool places to dock and dine in fort Lauderdale, Miami”. And this kind of people could be people who live a couple of miles away or total strangers who are in town temporarily.

Having a website is simply like opening online arm of your business that can be accessed 24/7 even when your physical shop is closed. Your website help communicate in exact terms what you offer as a business and why you are the better choice to potential customers. And if you are really doing things right, you could place reviews of your services by satisfied customers on your website to also point out the quality of your service.

Your website is not only useful in advertising your services to potential clients/customers but it can also serve as a resource that allows your customers have access to you all the time. This alone helps you rectify problems before they become problems and can also help you identify new trends in your business.