How to Create An Outstanding Website For Your Small Business
“How do you feel about your website?”
The question usually gets a look of horror followed by staring at and shuffling of one’s feet.
Website shame is a real thing. When we don’t love our websites (and most people don’t even come close), we justify our poor online presence with a string of excuses why websites are not important for our business.
But deep down, we know that websites are important. We know how important they are for us when we are looking for a particular product or to learn more about a company. We just don’t think that anyone would put our products or company through the same scrutiny.
And that would be costly. What is a lousy website costing you?
The Cost Of A Poor Performing Website
Every day, business owners and their employees are doing a heroic job of serving their customers. Without a doubt, in their mind, they know they could help more people if the opportunity to scale presented itself.
Here’s something that’s keeping them back: It’s their website.
The problem is that their website does not reflect the amazing work that they do. No matter the size of their business, they work hard to provide the highest levels of customer service and often at the expense of their online presence.
Here’s what’s happening online as you read this. Someone nearby has a need and will be searching on Google for a professional like you who can help them. The average Google search session lasts just under a minute. That means that if your website is not optimized, chances are, that this person won’t find you.
An optimized website can help take care of more customers, which can mean more revenue, business growth, and even more time off for your staff and yourself. How does more work mean more time off? It means you will have the profits to hire more people which frees you up to take that vacation you’ve wanted (and your family would appreciate it too!).
In this article, I want to go over five things an outstanding website can do for you and your business.
An outstanding website:
- Puts you on the map
- Converts the curious
- Saves you time
- Becomes your ‘virtual’ business card
- Convinces your referrals
Let me show you why these five points are more important now than ever.
1. A resourceful website puts you on the map
Google’s algorithm doesn’t always reward the best healthcare professionals. However, it does reward clinics that take the time to put good content on their website, and that reward is appearing on that highly sought-after first results page.
Having a website is essential if you want to show up on a local search. Having a website that adds value to people who are looking you up online is the next step to getting the recognition you deserve.
2. A clear website converts the curious
On average, when looking on Google, let’s say they look at four different company websites before making a decision. Does this mean that you have a 25% chance of getting the business if you are among the four? It doesn’t. Your chances can be much higher if you have two components often neglected by most websites today: Modern design and the right words.
Modern Design
Even in our modern, progressive society, people still judge books by their covers. And people still judge businesses by their websites.
Your website has to look good. I don’t mean “good” as in “ten years ago it was fine.” I mean “good” as in “this incorporates some modern design principles that please the modern eye”.
Having two consistent fonts, three brand colours, appropriate spacing (to avoid a cluttered look) and high-resolution images is important to creating a positive first impression.
The Right Words
It can be hard finding the right words to put on your website. The language should not only be easy to understand for customers, but it should also be customer-centric. What this means is that all the words on your site are there with the sole purpose of helping people get the information they need — not just what you want to tell them about yourself. Your words need to be empathetic and clear. Let people know that you understand what they’re struggling with and that you have a plan to help them.
This is not the time to impress others with how much insider language you know. Keep it simple and to the point. People need easy-to-understand, scannable language that is geared toward helping them take the right steps to get better.
3. An effective website saves You time
For most people, their website is a marketing investment. They’re right — but a great website is not only for your marketing. It’s also a time saver.
Do you find yourself using up precious energy and time saying the same things over and over again? Do you have a list of “Frequently Asked Questions” with responses you recite in your sleep? These are the questions you and your staff wish you never had to answer again. You could save yourself a ton of time by posting that information on your site.
A great website can also save you time if:
- You’re answering the same questions over and over again
- You’re losing precious time every day because patients are making the same mistakes over time
You or your administrators are constantly asked for directions to your location.
Your website can be the solution to these common time wasters. You’d be amazed how much time you can save with a well-placed FAQ section on your website to which you and your staff can refer.
Saving time and energy by leveraging your website’s resources is a reason why your website is not just for marketing anymore — it’s for your sanity.
4. An easy-to-find website becomes your business card
One of my friends who’s a chiropractor was talking to his new neighbor, who was coincidentally looking for a new chiropractor. He asked my friend if he could have his…Website address.
That’s right. People used to ask for a phone number or a business card. Not anymore. Nowadays, people go to your website to learn more about their potential healthcare professionals. Thankfully, because my friend had recently upgraded his website, the neighbor came back the next day and excitedly exclaimed that he booked an appointment through his site.
How awkward would it have been if my friend had a lousy website? It’s tough enough to be a good neighbour these days. It’s much tougher when you’re always carrying around the guilt that you lost a new patient because he judged your for your website.
That’s the honest truth about being in business today: A bad website hurts your reputation and could be costing you business you never even knew about.
There is one more benefit an outstanding website provides for you.
5. An attractive website convinces your referrals
What is the first thing you do when you get a referral from someone? You take your phone and check out their website. Potential customers do the same when someone refers them to you: they will look at your website and this will be their first point of contact with you and your business.
Even the best companies with raving fans could lose new customers because of a poor or lack of online presence.
6. An outstanding website makes your business more sellable.
You may not be thinking of selling your business today but you will be some day. When you’re thinking about selling, you better believe that a potential buyer is going to check out your website. Like mentioned, people judge businesses by the look of their website. If you don’t have a site that looks good, you’ll be costing your business a considerable percentage of the sale.
- You’ll lose money on the respect you lose.
- You’ll lose money on the cost that the new owner will have to pay to build a new website.
It’s no different than the house that doesn’t show well to potential buyers. It will lose market value if the kitchen is a dump or if the house is messy in all the pictures. Realtors know how to increase the value of a house by improving “how it shows”. When you’re trying to sell your business, improve your website to get a higher valuation is using the same principle.
Are you serious about growing your business today?
Having a good website is not complicated, but a poor online presence could be costing you more than you know. Not only could you lose precious referrals, but you and your team could also be wasting time repeating yourselves while going invisible to people you know you can help.
Don’t let this simple problem stop you from doing what you do best: helping people. We know you can help more. But to do so you have to show up and make a dynamic first impression.
Conclusion: It’s Time To Seize The Opportunity And Level Up Your Website
If you want to take your business to the next level, consider starting by improving your website.
When you’re thinking about your new website, I encourage you to connect with my team at Get Clear. We have options for every budget. The world of website may be foreign to you but to us, it’s the air we breathe. We’d love to have a complimentary chat with you to discuss your options and how you can leverage your website to grow your business.
Click here to schedule a call with the Get Clear team.
In doing so, you can join the businesses all around the world that are realizing that how you show up online matters, now more than ever. These businesses are seizing new opportunities to reach new people online. As a result, they’re growing their business with a steady stream of happy customers.
