Small Businesses Need More Than Social Media
This post may contain Affiliate Links
As someone who writes for a living, mostly via my blog, it’s pretty easy for me to wax lyrical about the benefits of having your own website as part of your business strategy.
Many small businesses can often be put off setting up a website for lots of reasons – lack of knowledge, cost and worries about the general maintenance and upkeep are just some of them. However, having a website is a must for any small business.
Small Businesses Need More Than Social Media
My Facebook feed is often filled with small businesses set up by friends, many of whom are attempting to find a balance between work, raising children and avoiding exorbitant childcare costs.
When you have a small business it can seem as though social media provides the perfect place to advertise completely free of charge. But having a website should be an essential part of any small business marketing plan, here are some of the reasons why.
1. Not Everyone Has Social Media
While it may seem as though everyone and their dog has a social media account these days, there are a lot of people eschewing social media completely too. Having a website that can be found by search engines means anyone can find you and your business with ease.
While your preferred platform may be Facebook, there are thousands of people on Twitter and Instagram that may never look at Facebook.
However, pretty much everyone uses search engines to find what they’re looking for online. People are far more likely to click on a website for the information they need rather than a social media page
2. Better Visibility
Social media can be incredibly fast-paced. The average life of a tweet is a meagre 24 minutes before its lost into the Twittersphere forever. Very few of us see every single update from friends and family let alone every page, group and business we follow on Facebook.
While those who may use low cost franchises don’t have to worry about social media (as corporate takes care of it), what’s vital is still getting visibility.
Having a website gives you a space that is entirely yours without all the noise of social media drowning you out. It can be the perfect place to showcase all your best work in one place as well as an easy place for potential customers to find your contact details.
3. Longevity
Websites do seem to have a better rate of staying power than some social platforms. While Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are huge at the moment, there are plenty of social networks that didn’t quite make it.
Remember Myspace? MSN messenger? These used to be hugely popular and you never know what new platform is going to pop up take over.
4. Increased Potential Earnings
There are lots of ways having your own websites could increase your earnings. As well as the potential to reach lots of new customers, websites can use affiliate links which earn a small commission when a user clicks the link and makes a purchase.
Having a fun blog about your day to day to life running your business is a great to place start. For example, if you run a small business making coats for dogs, you could link to other pet accessories such as collars and leads on Amazon and earn a commission.
5. It’s Easier Than You Think
Most of us are very familiar with social media – we know how it works and what we need to do to find our target audience. Websites are a completely different ball game and it might seem like yet another thing to add to that never-ending to-do list.
However, setting up your first website doesn’t need to be difficult or complicated. There are lots of companies that can assist you with getting started and can help with learning the basics.
