Why it is essential for a small business to have its own website or webshop?

In the age of the internet, it is an increasingly common misconception that all a small business needs is a Facebook page or other social media platform. While these platforms are undoubtedly important and useful for businesses, they are no substitute for the benefits and functionality of having your own website or webshop. In this article we will look at why it is essential for a small business to have its own website or webshop.

1. Professional appearance and credibility

Customers and clients need and are looking for the website!

Having your own website or webshop gives your business the opportunity to project a professional and reliable image to your customers. While Facebook pages and other social media platforms can help build and possibly strengthen customer relationships, a well-designed website or webshop represents a different level of business credibility. Having your own domain name, a company email address and a customised design will allow your business to stand out from the crowd and gain a good position among your competitors. A website conveys the necessary seriousness and credibility in the same way that a company email address does for a gmail address.

2. Total control and flexibility

You don't own the Facebook interface, so you don't decide what appears on it!

Owning your own website or webshop gives you full control over your online presence. This means they can set their own rules and regulations, as opposed to the limits and conditions imposed by social media platforms. You can't create your own image because you can't edit anything other than a cover image and a profile picture. Unfortunately, we have experienced first hand how some social media shutdowns can threaten the survival of our business, our relationship with our customers and, unfortunately, the revenue of our small company. In addition, a website or webshop also gives us the opportunity to customize our communication and sales process with our customers, which can increase customer satisfaction and sales.

3. Greater autonomy and independence

Decreasing reach!

A small business with its own website or online shop allows it to be independent from third-party platforms such as Facebook or Instagram. This means greater security for the business, as it is not solely reliant on a single platform to maintain its online presence. Unfortunately, Facebook is increasingly taking back impressions and ads are becoming more expensive. Another huge advantage is that you can have complete freedom with a website, because you do not have to deal with dozens, sometimes hundreds, of messages a day, but people can find all the information they need about a product on your website and buy it without having to engage in any correspondence with the owners. This leaves us much more time to develop our business and our products. In addition, having your own website or webshop can also give your business more protection from a privacy and legal point of view.

4. Expanded business opportunities

So many people and businesses are not on Facebook!

Having your own website or webshop can help your small business discover new business opportunities. Being present in the online space allows the business to reach customers who do not have a social media account or who prefer to use search engines to find what they are looking for. Surveys show that people with higher wealth are avoiding Facebook and even teenagers are now staying away. In addition, an online shop gives the opportunity to sell online, which can expand the revenue streams of a business.

5. Content and brand building

It is difficult to retrieve information on Facebook!

The lifespan of a post on Facebook is very short and if you don't update the post daily, it will quickly get lost and fall behind. It's also not easy to find, because Facebook's search engine will only find the content you're looking for if you search for the exact same word or pair of words as you originally wrote in the post.A dedicated website gives small businesses the opportunity to share more content with customers. Blog posts, product descriptions, testimonials and other information can help your business increase its online visibility and credibility. There is also the opportunity to build branding and highlight the personality, values and expertise of the business.

To sum up,

that while social media platforms play an important role in the online presence of small businesses, having a website or webshop is an essential tool for the long-term success of a business. A professional look and feel, complete control and flexibility, greater autonomy and independence, expanded business opportunities, as well as content and branding are all benefits that only a website or webshop can offer small businesses. We cannot afford to stand on one foot. We have had examples in history of community sites going out of business, let's not wait until we might lose everything in a similar event and have to start all over again to launch our business.

If you decide that you want to take your business to the next level, we can help you. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us for a free quote at Contact on one of our contact details on our website!