Running a small business is no mean feat. Ask any small business owner, and they will tell you how they are always struggling with increasing competition, employee troubles, statutory compliances, and diminishing marketing budgets.
While a majority of small business owners agree that having a website will help them open a new channel for leads and sales, they fear technical complications and agencies that are willing to take them for a ride at the drop of a hat!
If you are a small business owner, understanding the technical programming of mumbo-jumbo can be a nerve-wracking experience. You have heard so many stories of agencies missing timelines and inflating bills that you are too scared to test out online waters.
To be honest, in 2022, it does not have to be so tough or complicated for you. There are ways and means by which you can cut through the clutter and create a website for your small business you can be truly proud of. This is what this article is all about.
The Elements of a Perfect Small Business Website
The first question you would be asking yourself is what should I get on my small business website. Fret not; we have got you covered. Let us look to discuss this in the following points-
- Your website’s first essential element is going to be your domain name. The best domain names are yourbusinessname.com. Try to avoid using newer domains and stick to .com, .org, and .net. The simpler the domain name, the more recall it will have.
- The next strong element of your small business website will be your home page. You can break up the home page into sections discussing a brief overview, listing hero products, providing contact details, adding a form, client testimonials, and blog links.
- If you are a small business selling products and services, you should have a category and product page on your website. Try to put the best imagery and as comprehensive a description as possible to help your customers. This will clear all their doubts.
- No one said that small business websites should not have a storytelling narrative. If you have s story that you feel is worth sharing with everyone, mention it on the ‘About Us’ page. Customers love to engage with businesses that have a strong back story.
- Having a solid blog section on your business website is a must for every small business owner. This is what establishes your credibility as a business in front of your customers and search engines. Additionally, this helps you drive organic traffic to your website.
While the above-mentioned elements are critical to the success of your small business website, there are others that you should not forget-
- SEO optimization
- Mobile responsiveness
- Reliable hosting
- Fast loading web pages
- Original content
- Clean and minimal design
- Call-To-Actions (CTAs)
- Contact forms (for customers to make queries)
- Address, Phone, and Email details
- Social media links and integration
Once you have all these elements on your small business website, you have a decent starting point. All you now need is to build on this with digital marketing strategies.
Building a Small Business Website: Can You Use a Website Builder?
In the opening sections of the article, we mentioned how web design and development agencies might not be a confident choice for small business owners. In most cases, this is the major barrier that prevents them from going ahead with building their website.
We have some good news. Recent years have seen the website building process become easier in nature. A simple website builder like Zyro has come to the aid of thousands of small businesses allowing them to create their own website affordably and quickly!
The good thing about using good website builders is that you get all the elements that we mentioned in the last section. In other words, you do not have to go around looking for separate hosting services or worrying about mobile responsiveness for your small business website.
The following are some of the major benefits of using website builders-
- Zero Coding Skills required– First and foremost, you do not need a programming degree to be an ace when it comes to building your website. Here everything is arranged in template form. You simply use the drag-and-drop functions to arrange the various sections and pages for your website. Nothing to do with codes whatsoever.
- Don’t need Design Experience– You might be worried about your website not being attractive enough for the visitors. This is where the numerous templates that are offered come into play. They are well-designed, rich in terms of color compositions, have perfect layouts, and are created basis the best UI and UX that online visitors love.
- Fast Creation and Launch– When you work with agencies, you can rest assured that they will be overshooting timelines and delaying the website launch. Not so with website builders. Since everything just requires minimal touches here and there, you can launch faster. Because you are doing everything on your own, you can create faster.
- Affordable and Cost-Efficient– If you are worried about handing over your resources o agencies and blowing it all up, then stop. With website builders, you get the small business website you always wanted, but at a fraction of the costs. The money you save can be better utilized for digital marketing strategies or to create better content.
- Great 24×7 Support at all times– Even if you run into some troubles, you should not be worried about support. The best website builders have dedicated customer support teams that can help you whenever you reach out to them. You get direction, and your issues are resolved in no time. This is a great convenience for small business owners.
The Bottom Line
While it is true that small business owners have the potential that online presence brings, dealing with agencies becomes a deal-breaker for them. With website builders, you have complete freedom and control over what you want to do.
Using a website builder might be just the solution that small business owners were looking for. To be honest, these platforms have become quite advanced in terms of the features, support, and technical help that they have started offering.
We hope that this article has been helpful in understanding how small businesses can get a perfect website built for them. If you have any additional questions, then feel free to list them in the comments section below.