Are you starting a new business and need a website? Do you have an existing website that is outdated or hard to maintain? If so, this article is for you…
Are you wondering why you need a website at all? If so, keep reading…
Did you know that 8 out of 10 consumers find the company they’re eventually going to do business with online? That’s WHY you need a website – but there is so much more you need to know before you get started.
So, what do you need to know?
There are many things to consider before starting your new website. For instance, what features do you want or need on your website? Do you want…?
- To post News and Announcements about your company and/or industry?
- To schedule Events that your customers and/or prospects can register for online?
- The ability to post Jobs on your website for prospective employees?
- To advertise on your website – to help drive additional revenue for your company?
- A photo gallery to show visitors what your company is about?
- A secure method for employees or customers to login to view content only intended for them?
- To create a blog to regularly communicate with your customers and prospects (more about this later).
These are just a few examples of the types of features you may be looking for from your website – but it gives you an idea of what you need to consider up front.
At a higher level, you need to decide if you want to have someone make a custom design (“look and feel”) for your new website or use a template approach. The template will be much more cost effective for you, but it may not provide the “branding” experience you’re looking for because you’re limited with how much you can “customize” the look of your new site, though this may be Ok if you’re just starting out and want to “dip your toe in the water” before making a vast investment.
Another key consideration is how you will make your new website. Will you hire a Web Designer and Web Development firm to create a new website from scratch – or would you rather create a website yourself using a website builder tool?
You also need to consider what type of hosting plan is right for you – you don’t have to worry about buying, setting up and maintaining your own servers, you can pay hosting companies to provide this as a service to you. You do need to understand what you’re getting for your money. For instance, you can decide to go a free Google webpage – but that’s all you get (one page). There’s no customization available or functionality. So, the adage “you get what you pay for” is very true when it comes to website hosting. You need to be sure you understand what you’re getting when you sign up for a hosting account, for example:
- Is email hosting included? If so, does it include SPAM protection or does that cost more?
- What kinds of design tools exist for creating your new website – or will you have to hire someone to create the website for you?
- Are there tools you can use to maintain your content easily yourself without having to contract a programmer every time you want to change the content on your site?
- Will your website be found by the search engines once it’s launched and available to the public?
- What are the limits on disk space and data transfer – will you be charged if you exceed those limits?
- What website tracking statistics tools are available for you to track the effectiveness of your new website?
Another key consideration is whether or not you want to sell your products or services directly from your new site. This will have an impact on the design of your new website. You should find an e-commerce partner that can help you figure out the right way to setup your site to maximize your online sales. The team at Bitwise Logic, Inc. has the expertise to help you. We have worked with numerous clients and can help you succeed online as well
Now that you have a website – what do you need to do with it?
Once you’ve created a great looking website – and have created content that customers and prospects will find interesting about your company, you need to create an online marketing plan to drive traffic to your new site and then convert those visitors into customers.
Having a great website isn’t enough. If you’re website isn’t generating traffic or worse yet is generating lots of traffic but those visitors aren’t turning into customers you’re not going to achieve any kind of return on your investment.