Lots of small businesses are delaying setting up an online presence. Now more than ever if your business isn’t online, people are not going to be able to find you. The Internet is a fabulous place not just for entertainment and information, but it also plays a vital role in business growth and development. If you have a small offline business, you need to bring it online to reach and communicate effectively with existing and potential customers. How do you get started? Your business needs an online presence with a well-designed, lead-catching, sales increasing, brand-differentiating website. That sounds like a lot, but all good websites share the same fundamentals.
1. Domain name
Your website’s name is your online identity via which your customers are able to reach and connect with you. Make sure to choose a name that not only suits your business but one that your customers can easily relate to. Make it easy to type, keep it short and make it memorable.
Avoid using special characters and numbers, people are more likely to type in your domain name without a hyphen, which could take users to a competitor’s site. Number in your business name can cause confusion for users so it is better to avoid altogether.
2. Choose a domain extension
Domain extensions are suffixes that come at the end of web addresses. Choosing one that works well for your business is key. There are hundreds of domain extensions available today. The good news is that search engines, like Google, treat them all equally, so choose a domain extension that offers availability with the domain name you want and matches your businesses. A .VU web address makes you stand out and be seen in your community.
3. Design
One of the most basic elements that make up your online identity is your website design. When people visit your website, it is the first impression they have of your business. It impacts how they perceive your brand and the likelihood of whether they want to do business with you. Your website doesn’t have to be a show stopper, a professional yet simple design gains a customer’s trust and makes it easy for them to find the information they are looking for. A simple design and a user-friendly interface is the best combination.
4. Ensure you’re safe
Just like you need to protect your offline business and keep it secure, you need to do the same for your online business. You do this with an SSL certificate. Having SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) will ensure that the sensitive data of your website’s visitors will be transferred over a secure network. A website with SSL displays a padlock in the upper left corner of the address bar of the browser, this assure your website visitors their information is safe and you take their privacy seriously.
5. Be found
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. The World Wide Web is a vast place and your website can get lost in the thousands of sites offering similar information. By using SEO, you can increase your credibility and quality around specific keywords to help increase your search ranking and better ensure customers can find your site. A strong SEO strategy is pivotal to the success of any website.