When it comes to marketing one of the major items we include in our marketing expenses is our website. You already know how important it is to claim your online real estate so that you can be taken seriously as a business. If your business doesn’t have a website people will wonder if you are even for real. No one searches through the yellow pages anymore. Don’t believe me? When was the last time you picked up that big heavy book to look for something you needed.
But is it really important to have a website?
The answer to this is yes and no. No because if your website is not working for you the way it should then it’s just taking up wasted space. Have ever done some major cleaning and orgainzation in your home and found something that you have used in years. That happened to me the other day. We moved about a year ago and I went in the basement looking from something and found something completely different. I realized that item really wasn’t doing it’s job and therefore was no longer a necessity for me. In fact, I started to use another product that did the same thing better. Well the same goes for your website. If you are not using it to it’s full potential then it might as well be sitting in your basement collecting dust.
What’s your site’s purpose?
To find out if your site is doing it’s job you have to first know what’s the purpose. Why did you decide to build this fancy (or not so fancy) website? What was it going to do for you? There are a few reasons why someone would build a website. Below are just a few:
- Because I was told I needed one
- To make more money
- To look bigger than what I really am
- To increase my exposure
Now these are all good reasons, and they are probably all the the reasons why you built your sight, but is your site really doing what you set out to do. Have you made any more money since putting up your site? If so, are the sales coming directly from your marketing efforts used on your website? Maybe you really just wanted people to be able to purchase what the needed easily online and complicate the purchasing process. Which is completely fine, but make sure your site is doing that.
What about increasing your exposure? Did you get more visibility or customer inquiries this year because you put up your site. Are people saying “WOW! I found your website and just had to call”. To be honest it’s going to take a bit more work than putting up a website in order to increase your visibility.
What I want you to realize this month is what are all the things you need fixed in order for you to have a successful year. Your Website is a tool that people will use to decide if they want to work with you or not. Are you putting your best foot forward when it comes to your business site?
Share your website below and I will pick one site to do a website audit.
As an Online Business Manager, Felicia Pratt supports women entrepreneurs who run their business online. She helps them streamline, automate, and build their online presence so they can increase their visibility and provide consistency in their branding and marketing efforts. Through various entrepreneurial endeavors including Real Estate, and the travel industry, Felicia has finally found her niche empowering women by helping them manage their time effectively and creating a work-life balance that works for them.
