In the World of Digital Marketing, too often Small Business Owner are fed lies. With a plethora of articles available online, it can be difficult to distinguish what is the truth.
So, we’ve decided to address 3 of the major lies surrounding the Website Industry to put your mind at ease!
Lie 1- Template Design is Ideal for Your Business
Template Design Websites are premade Websites where you simply insert the content into specific areas. They are the classic “insert image here” situation, where from a range of existing Templates you choose the one that you like best.
Businesses are lured in by Template Designs as they are quick to setup with minimal effort, however they end up becoming a cage. You cannot customise these Templates at all, which means as your Business grows you are stuck with a Website that no longer truly represents your Brand.
Not only that, but Template Designed Businesses often come with lock in contracts for lengthy periods. If you suddenly need to customise part of the Website as your Business grows, your 3 year contract suddenly seems a long time to have the same Website.
Additionally, if that Template appealed to you, then you can naturally assume it appealed to other Business Owners. This means that your Website is a carbon copy, being exactly the same as hundreds if not thousands of other Websites. There is nothing unique about it and there is nothing that stands out.
If someone is attempting to convince you that a Template Design Website is the best option for you, then proceed with caution. Question them to find out why, because chances are that it’s not true.
Lie 2 - Your Website is all You Need
Many Business Owners have the impression that a Website is like a business card, where it is there to represent your Business Online and that is all… Wrong!
As a Small Business Owner, you should understand that your Website is working hard to sell your products 24 hours a day. Your Website is the leading representation of your Business in the Digital Marketing World and needs to be carefully monitored and contributed to constantly.
Additionally, you need to practice strong Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) strategies to work towards the best ranking on Google possible. This is an absolute must and is a long-term investment that will work towards getting more traffic to your Website.
And, if your Website is to perform to the best of its potential, it needs to have a functioning blog with regularly posted content. Regular blog posts are rewarded by Google and can be imbedded with keywords to help with your rankings, so having a Blog on your Website is an absolute must.
On top of all these critical things are services such as Pay Per Click, Email Marketing and Social Media that a Small Business will need to practice to maximise success. If someone tells you that all you need is a Website to get more customers then be wary, as it is not entirely true.
Lie 3 - You Can Easily Outsource Hosting to Other Countries
While it is possible to host your Website in another country, this does not come without its complications. The first and foremost is page load speed, which can be significantly impacted when hosting overseas.
The distance between where your Website is hosted, and where the page is loading will take extra time, sometimes in surplus of 5 seconds! More often than not, a customer will click back if a Website takes longer than 5 seconds to load, which means valuable customers are lost when you host overseas.
Not only that, Google and Search Engines punish Websites with slow load speeds, ranking them lower. Statistically, 50% of people searching on Google don’t go past the first page, so if you’re Website’s punished and pushed to the third or fourth page you’ve lost half of your potential buyers!
Additionally, when hosted locally within Australia, you’re covered by Australian Legislation and Consumer Law. You are protected for any breach of contract that may occur, as you may not be when hosted in other countries.
And of course, customer service must also be considered. Due to different time zones, customer service can often be limited, leaving you frustrated when all you need is a little helping hand. The company can have the very best in customer service available, but if they’re all asleep when you need them it’s as good as them not being there at all.
What You Should Do
In light of these 3 lies, it is important to find the Website option that best suits your Small Business. Ultimately, Custom Designed Websites are the ideal way to represent your Business and Brand to the best of its ability. Custom Design enables you to have complete flexibility over what the Website looks like, with the added bonus of the Website being able to grow alongside your Business.
Make sure that your Website is not left abandoned. Invest in additional Digital Marketing strategies, such as Social Media, SEO and PPC, or hire a professional Copywriter to maintain and update your blog. Keeping your Website updated and in its best shape will help with customer usability and improve your Website in the eyes of Google.
And keep it local! Hiring the services of a Web Provider in Australia will improve your page speed and keep your customers happy!