The COVID-19 pandemic has touched virtually every small business. As we begin to emerge from it, many small business owners are finding that they must rebuild their businesses. The right small business web design can help your business grow.
Approaching small business web design in 2022
Get a website! We’re approaching 2022 and it’s hard to believe, but many small businesses don’t have a website. In fact, a report from Top Design Firms in February 2021 indicated that customers can’t find 28% of small businesses through a website.
If you’re among this shrinking pool, there are a few good reasons to change your mind about the World Wide Web. First, the web is how people find businesses. If you don’t have a website, your business isn’t nearly as visible as you hope.
Second, your business is already on the Web, just not in the way you may think. Search engines like Google publish user reviews. Other searchers use these reviews to make decisions about your business. In fact, 6 out of 10 people use Google reviews to find and evaluate businesses. Once they’ve found your business on Google, they want to visit your website. And half of people say they leave reviews on Google at least once per month! You should control the message about your business on the web. The best way to do that is by having a business website, and claiming your business listing on Google.
Five good reasons to redesign your website
Redesign your existing website. Websites should receive a comprehensive update about every two years, with periodic refreshes in between. There are five good reasons for doing this.
First, your business changes, and you should review your website every 3-6 months to ensure that your public information is correct and up to date.
Second, web design and web technologies change. The programming languages that drive the World Wide Web evolve constantly. Small business web design encompasses more than just colors, images, and text. Incorporating video, making your website accessible to people with disabilities, and making your website responsive to the multitude of mobile devices takes time and effort. Making sure your small business website design meets current security standards is also important, especially if you operate an e-commerce website.
Third, the search engines like to see a healthy mix of static and dynamic content. Changes to your permanent pages (even small ones) let the search engines know that your business is still very much alive and well.
Fourth, your customers like to see some variety in your site. New products and services, updated seasonal text (if your business is seasonal) and other changes can bring your customers back, just to see what’s happening. Studies show that 6 out of 10 people prefer well-designed, visually interesting websites over basic ones. If your website uses a basic design, you could be turning off the majority of customers who stop to visit.
Fifth, first impressions count. Nearly 95% of visitors to a website they’ve never seen form their impressions of the business from its website. Having an old, out-of-date, or difficult-to-use website can be deadly for your business.
Update your marketing plan, too!
Develop or update your marketing plan. Creating and implementing a post-COVID-19 marketing plan is an essential activity for small businesses. A new marketing plan will give you the opportunity to reconsider the way you market your business, and help you find new ways to reach customers. It can also help you make strategic decisions about your small business web design.
If you would like more information about small business web design, please contact our Creative Director, Dave Ramsell or give Dave a call at (330) 243-0651 to set up a consultation.
Photo Credit: Patrick Gaudin, via Flickr
