As a small business owner myself, I know how important it is to make sure I’m spending money and saving money in all the right places. Taking care of small business finances is crucial to growth and survival – small business owners understand that budgeting is one of the most important things we need to do to ensure success.
Nowadays, some of the more traditional small businesses may think of a website/online presence is just another cost they need to incur to keep up with the competition, instead of thinking of a website as a potential profit-center. When we think of such business expenses as costs instead of opportunities, our natural thought process leads us to want to save as much money as possible for this business expense. Of course, we all want to save as much as we can, but when it comes to investing into a website we need to be smart about our investment – understand that your website is a reflection of your business. When we hunt to find the cheapest available option, we often end up with a product that mirrors the investment. The worst thing we can do is accept a product that doesn’t knock our socks off. Instead, we need to make sure our website is at least as presentable as our competition.
Let’s do a comparison to relate the look of our websites. Picture your business as a store in a shopping mall, with your competitors’ stores right next to yours. You all sell the same products at the same price – the only thing that differentiates you from your competitors is your signage. Whereas your competitors have invested $5000 into their signage that features bright colors and lettering that stand out and catch your eye, you have chose to save some money and invest $1500 into signage that a carpenter has cut out and painted, and nailed to the wall of your store. Yes, you are $3500 richer than your competitors, but what is the long term cost? Do you honestly think people are going to frequent your store over your competitors? Of course not. Image is everything. Your presentation is a reflection of who you are and how you deliver your product. A professional image reflects a professional shopping experience. A cost-cutting image reflects sub-par shopping experience. Just put yourself in the shopping mall patron’s shoes – which store would you shop at?
Of course, finding a good price for a website design is integral. However, once you find a designer you are willing to invest in, do not try and compromise on website features for the sake of a few more hundred bucks in your pocket. That lack of investment will result in lost business, costing you exponentially more. A good idea would be to consult an SEO professional to help you analyze the different elements of website design you are looking to invest in. An SEO professional will ensure you get the product you’re looking for, while at the same time ensuring you have a website that can be marketed effectively to bring traffic to it.