Don Sesler, The Technology Whisperer: As the owner, I have the honor of leading a team of super-smart individuals who share my passion for helping entrepreneurs and business owners not fall victim to complex technology challenges that can kill productivity. We want to tame your technology so that it works for you and not the other way around. What technology problem is making your life more complicated than it should be? Reach out to me and tell me your story.

Do You Really Need A New Website?

Websites Still Matter. Here's Why.

Getting your message out to your potential clients has diversified a lot over the last few years. A decade ago, all you really needed was a good website to help your customers understand who you are and what you do.

Today, of course, you have more options. Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube all compete for customers, making many small business owners wonder whether or not it’s worth their time to keep their website up to date. While your clients’ attention has been divided, your website can still be a valuable marketing resource for your business.

Why Websites Are Still Relevant

A professional website serves several basic needs for any small business:

  • Credibility: Even if you don’t consider websites important, there are a lot of people that do. If you don’t have a solid website, potential customers are going to question your organization’s credibility.
  • Brand Awareness: Websites are different than social media in that they allow you the opportunity to clearly lay out who you are and what you stand for. 
  • Free Organic Traffic: You can spend a lot of money driving visitors to your website but, if your site is well designed, people will find you without the need to speed additional money on advertising.

How To Build A Modern Website

Website development has gotten a lot easier lately, and that’s a good thing because the criteria for what makes a good website have also gotten more challenging. These days, your website needs to look right not only on a desktop computer screen, but also on a laptop, tablet, and even a smartphone. Google reports that more customers use their smartphones to access websites than any other device, so your site needs to shine on any sized screen.

If you are thinking about building your next website yourself, there are several good tools out there to choose from. Here are some of our favorites:

  • WIX: WIX is very popular and with good reason. They make it very easy to build a website quickly, and they have lots of addons to ensure that you don’t outgrow the platform any time soon.
  • Squarespace: Squarespace has been around for a while, and they have tons of templates that you can start from when building your website. They do not offer a free version, but their costs are competitive and they are still one of the easier platforms to learn.
  • WordPress: There are two different versions of WordPress.
    • WordPress.com is a simple, all-in-one solution that compares well to WIX and Squarespace. There’s a free version of the site, and it’s easy to get started.
    • WordPress.org is the version most developers will choose to work with. This version is much more powerful, offers a ton of additional features, and is a site you are unlikely to outgrow anytime soon.

If you need a new website and don’t have the staff (or time) to do it on your own, book a free consultation with me. We can talk about your requirements and pull together a site that makes sense for your business.