“Do I Need a Website?” is a question a lot of small businesses ask themselves. This article will help you make the right, website or no website, decision. This article is quite different than most you find online from website designers/marketers.

We will be looking at some advantages and disadvantages of a website that should help answer the question of “do I need a website?”

Getting a small business website is often motivated by both economic and personal reasons.

Larger to medium sized businesses may have an Information Technology (IT) department responsible for outsourcing web design and vendor selection. However, many small businesses rely on outside vendors, such as website/marketing service providers to act as their IT department and as consultants.

Working with a digital marketing service provider is highly influenced by economics, your industry, and your personality.

Below are some economic and physiological reasons that will help you answer the question of “Do I need a website?” Explore your own needs and learn why a new website is or is not right for you and your business.

It’s worth noting, your employees, investors, creditors, and clients are also operating with their own economic models. In addition they have their own personal schema references. How does the cultural ecosystem you work within feel about your website, or not having a website?

9 business reasons you may or may not want a new website.

7 tangible and 2 intangible reasons for getting a new website.

You’ll need some operational numbers to get a clear picture of the value a new marketing website can bring to your business. It’s helpful to know key customer acquisition information and value drivers for your business.

Nine things you need to consider when asking yourself “Do I Need A Website.”
It’s ideal to know these before investing in a new website.

What is the average lifetime value of a customer?
What is the average number of years a customer continues to do business with your organization? This is your year-to-year customer retention rate? I have read a very high average is 77%. 77% is Costco level customer retention. If your business does have a high retention rate of 77%, statistically there is a 92% turnover every four years.
What is the average number of purchases a customer makes per year?
How much is your average customer transaction?
What is the profit from a customer purchase?
What is the average annual income generated per customer per year?
How much does it cost to get a new customer? These are your customer acquisition costs. If you do have a high retention rate of 77%, how much can you afford to spend getting new customers to replace the 23%+ you lose each year and still remain profitable?
Does talent want to work with your business? Do you get qualified employment enquiries without posting on job boards?
How important do you think Brand Differentiation is for your business?

Now we get to the question – So What?

Once you know what it costs to get and keep customers, then we can figure out when a website will be profitable. This will give us a good idea of how long it will take to recoup the investment you made in the site. It will also let you see the long term profits you can expect.

Are you losing customers because of not having a website?
I know many businesses that don’t have a website rely on traditional marketing such as word of mouth, brochures, or flyers. Even if you primarily rely on traditional marketing the extra customers from a website can provide income during slow spells. I know, because in my other business I rely heavily on referrals and traditionally marketing. Yet my website is an invaluable asset without which I would have a hard time styling in business. It’s especially important for people who are referred to me by name only, in that I am easy to find online.

Infographic Nine Reasons to help answer the question do I Need a Website

Website marketing can also nudge the overall profits needed for business expansion. Sometimes to grow you don’t need a huge increase in business. Depending on the cost structure of your business, you might just need the extra profit margin of a few more customers. At this point it’s helpful to know what the sale cycle is. A lot of small businesses think they work on a fairly short sale cycle. However, I have worked for companies where it’s common for the sales cycle to be over a year.

Once you know the answers to the nine questions you’ll be in a good position to determine if a new website is for you. You will have real numbers to measure the ROI of the website. In addition you’ll have an idea of any intangible value the new website will have.

What economic model controls your decision to get a website?

We all conform to some economic model and the rules of game theory.
Working with an outside vendor isn’t the right choice for every business or professional. However, many businesses find vendor supported website/marketing services will actually free up their time and add real value (revenue) to the bottom-line.

Why would you want a new website?
Why would you want continuous website improvement, or marketing?

What quick cost benefit analysis do you fall back on when thinking of a new website?

I am sure you’re doing a quick cost benefit analysis of the value you can get from a new website and local marketing. You’re evaluating what the expected utility of website marketing is to your organization.

What economic reasons do you have for getting a new website?

Depending on your personality, you’re referencing this opportunity as what you could gain or what you could lose. I imagine it’s based on the projected profit you expect to make minus what you think it will cost to build and maintain the system. It will include the pros and cons, the profits and advantages, as well as any perceived risks.

One question is, would working with a web designer and marketing vendor be just another cost of doing business, or will it bring in new business as well as keep old clients from leaving. Perhaps your business has larger overarching reasons and objectives for building out a robust online presence.

How does New Technology affect your business?

New technologies can increase efficiencies to both the inputs and output of the business process. On the other hand, new tech can also be the cause of new challenges and inefficiencies.

“New ways of buying require new ways of selling” (from the book “The Challenger Sale.”)

New technology frequently demands new types of customer acquisition and often influences production.

Change is often the driver that pushes us to do business in new ways. Heaven knows, we’ve seen more than our fair share of change since the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020.

Risk Aversion and Loss Aversion

There is another kind of value that can take presidents over increased profits. I have done industrial sales where the probability of risk was the greatest concern and increased profits from a purchase secondary.

Risk aversion and management is one of the primary concerns of many doctors I have worked with. Most of these transitions were sales-related, not website-centric. They want to do all they can to minimize risk while also providing additional benefits to their clientele.

Other professions, such as those in real estate, have very little concern with risk, but they are very price sensitive. Many of my transactions with real estate professionals have been marketing, video production, and website-centric.

The risks or cons of having a website.

There are some risks to having a website.

There are national laws such as accessibility laws.
There are state laws, such as the requirement in California for a website privacy page.
There is international law such as the European GDPR. I always think Americans who believe wearing a mask is US government mind control haven’t yet had to deal with the cost of mind control from foreign governments. Yes, I’m talking about the cookie law. But they need to conform to it when online.

If you have concerns about any risks of a website design, I would be happy to talk with you.

Do you think web design is a commodity and one website is the same as the next?
An optimized website involves more than throwing up a website with a pretty design.
Just as marketing is more than simple social media postings.

When answering the question of “do I need a website” consider that a new marketing website strategy involves change and some of the same challenges as starting a business.

Just like starting a new business you should plan on having some cash reserves dedicated to your new website. It often takes time for a website to gain traction. Especially in today’s search engine ecosystem.

You need to plan on not getting a lot of traffic in the beginning unless you have marketing in place to drive traffic. This could be a substantial email list or a large social media following.

If needed I can help you put a plan in place to start getting more traffic to your new website.

I have experience in more areas than just digital marketing.
I have business experience in multiple fields. It‘s often useful for a website designer to have experience in a business other than web design.

In addition to working with websites and media I have experience in the pet industry, working with authors, property redevelopment/investment projects, commercial real estate marketing, home improvement promotions, engagement marketing, and industrial sales. I come with fresh new ideas. Cross pollination of ideas from outside of an industry often produces wonderful results.

You say you’re already doing marketing. That’s great,

because:

I Will Complement The Marketing You Are Now Doing.

Value proposition

I help increase revenue and raise the value of small businesses through web design and continuous website improvement/marketing. With more online and community exposure you gain top-of-mind-awareness in the thoughts of consumers and professionals in the local market and surrounding communities. Being top-of-mind will give your business an edge when positioning for increased market share, a buyout, or for owners who are looking to increase their professional fame.

To get a better understanding of what I do and how I do it, continue exploring this website. See if you think I might be a little different than other website designers. Then decide if I’m what you’re looking for.

If you are still asking “do I need a website” fill out the form on the web design page or give me a call.

What You Get.
I have been making websites since the early days of the modern web, starting in 1997 and doing video longer still. I have had three public access TV shows. While it’s much easier to do video today than in days past, it can still be helpful to outsource video production.

As time passes, working with me could provide ancillary benefits that far exceed the initial value proposition. This may be in the form of future revenue from attracting talent, investors, or your exit strategy for selling.

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