A recent study has shown that over 87% of individuals living in the U.S. use the Internet. With this many people online, having a website to promote your business would definitely make for a smart business decision.
Recently, a survey was done to determine the cities with the highest rates of people online. Out of a total of 271 cities, Nashville ranked 171 with 78.5% of people using the Internet on a regular basis. Based on these stats, it would seem a business in Nashville could benefit greatly from having a presence online.
Outside of the above statistics, here are an additional 10 great reasons to have a website –
1. THE ABILIY TO ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS THROUGH AN ONLINE BROCHURE
Did you know many companies spend enormous amounts of money on TV advertisements, paper brochures, and other printed material to promote their business? By having a website online for your business you alleviate all of these costs. Plus, your customers that are busy and may not have time to watch TV or read brochures, they can easily browse your website at their leisure and when it is convenient for them.
2. 24/7 IMPROVE CUSTOMER SERVICE SINCE YOUR WEBSITE WILL BE AVAILABLE 24/7
Your website will be available for your customer 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week/ 365 days a year. It never closes unlike a typical store or brick and mortar business. If your customer only has time to shop at 3am because of their job or lifestyle, your website will be there to serve them. You can make the promise to your customer that they are #1 and your business will always be available to serve their needs.
3. LAUNCHING A NEW BUSINESS ONLINE FIRST WITH VERY MINIMAL RISK
Would you like to start a new business but worried about the risk and space costs? Cost of an office/ store space with plenty of shelves? Cost of advertising? Cost of promoting your new business? Launching a brand new website to announce your business takes very little cost and you can put those previous 3 concerns to rest. The web has unlimited space/ shelves to house your business and all of it’s unique and great product. You can easily promote your business through email marketing and social media. Truly one of the most cost effective ways to launch a new business is to do it online first.
4. KEEP CUSTOMERS INFORMED AND UP TO DATE ON NEW PRODDUCT, UPOMING EVENTS, NEW SERVICES, AND SPECIAL PROMOTIONS
By having a website, you can easily let your customers know of the latest and greatest product launches, any key upcoming events, and any new services your business may now support. Customers can see all of this information as soon as it’s added to the site.
5. TARGET A WIDER MARKET OUTSIDE OF NASHVILLE
Maybe a large amount of individuals are familiar with your business in Nashville and you know your business would thrive outside of the city. Websites are global. This means someone in California could see your site and realize they have a need for your services or product. Right now there are more than 2.4 billion people who use the Internet every day, and around 90% of those individuals have purchased something, or reached out to a company, online in the last 12 months. Wouldn’t you want your business to be part of those compelling numbers?
6. MAKE CHANGES QUICKLY/ TIMELY ANNOUNCEMENTS
With your own website, you can easily go on the site and make any last minute changes or announcements if needed. If you would like the world to know your business has just been named Nashville’s top Architect Company, for example, you can add that announcement to your site and it will be displayed immediately. Or, if you would like your customers to know that your business is moving to a new location in a few days, you can add that information to the site and the update will be visible the minute you add it. Having your own website really allows you the power to change and announce anything virtually immediately.
7. TRACK VISITORS SHOPPING AND BROWSING HABITS, WHO VISIT YOUR SITE, THROUGH WEB ANALYTICS
Through tools called Web Analytics, you can track your customers shopping patterns and browsing habits. You may wonder why your customers are not purchasing a hot item like you thought they would. Through Web Analytics you can track their click through and see where they are going, on your site, prior to viewing the item or after viewing the item. You can measure the success of a key promotion by the amount of click throughs. You may think a promotion is very compelling, but your customers could think differently if they are not clicking on it. Web Analytics is a great tool to manage the successes of your online business.
8. COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS AND KEEP THEM INFORMED
One of the great things of having your own website is customers have the ability to provide feedback either through testimonials or a “contact us” option. Based on the feedback, you can adjust your online presentation or product or display the positive testimonials, which is just additional promotion for your business. Customers can also ask questions through the “contact us” option, which allows for their questions to be answered almost immediately and aid in their decisions about your products or services.
9. SHOW OFF PRODUCT OR SERVICES THROUGH PICTURES AND VIDEO
Many different products or services are difficult to explain through words. By having the ability to add pictures or explanatory videos to your site, you are educating the customer and allowing them to make a more informed purchase. Pictures and videos typically always assist in any confusion a customer may have about a specific product/ service.
10. REACH A SPECIALIZED MARKET
Do you offer a very unique service that you can only find in a handful of cities outside of Nashville? Do you sell specialized product that can only be found in Nashville? Think about how many people, outside of the Nashville area, who could benefit from your services or would desire your products. Let the world know what your company is all about and you could easily expand your customer base within a very short period of time.
