Businesses are becoming more focused, more segmented while being one common place for all demographics. With websites being a palsy-walsy, every e-marketer is trying to battle for customers loyalty. For building a business website that looks ‘real’ and wins against the physical storefront, you need to strategize your vision. Masses are bow engaging on digital media than coming in front and this is the time to fool-proof your business website.

Here’s a short and quick guide for SME entrepreneurs, e-marketers and innovators on what mistakes our new-age entrepreneurs commonly encounters and how to avoid messing up with the business website.

1. Only Physical Store, No Website?

If you’re not online, you don’t exist. The rule is simple. Maybe your business is a service business; serving a smaller audience and this makes you feel you can do without a website, but let us just put up straight — your potential client can be a person residing outside your target audience, who might be building a community platform of small service providers like you. Now, this is a business opportunity and as an e-marketer, a website is a front face of your service — the pre-purchase phase, remember.

P.S. Please do not get mistaken that a Facebook page will be enough than having a website. There is numerous reason why we are not considering Facebook as a valid substitute for the website. Facebook is a social media platform, not an authentic digital platform to host your product/services/offerings.

2. Let people reach to you

Be welcoming to people who drop by. Just like you would do it if you have a storefront, your website will be the place where you’ll be getting visitors across locations. Welcome them, ask them to email you — could be a question, query, concern, suggestion or just feedback on his/her experience of the website. Visitors are curious and they want to know things about you and your offerings. Make it easy for them to connect with you through email contact or through social media. They can be your potential customers as well. Using contact forms is fine, but how about sharing your contact details on the footer or contact map on the contact page — much preferable.

3. Update your website

There’s no big turn off than an obsolete website. If a website isn’t looking fresh with lively content, then it is going to leave an impression of an outdated brand. Customers are smart and they know how to check your website’s status. The blog section you see is one of the most powerful indicators of your brand’s agility to trends. As an e-marketer, you must have your blog section updated. This is where your visitors are going to know how worthy your brand is.

4. Ignoring a custom design website

Unless you are a web designer, please stay out of designing your own website. Of course, we now have a bucket full of free and inexpensive web template options to pick — but that is not going to serve your business purpose. Your website is the first impression to the masses and you really want to strike the best. It’s worth investing some time, energy and money to get it done right by professionals. Irrespective of what scale business you are, a decent looking website, cleanly coded and informative layout, makes an appealing first impression.

Find a partner agency (like us) that can help you evaluate the message you want to communicate, and help you craft a design that represents — and reinforces your brand. There’s a saying, “you can pay now, or you can pay later.” You can pay a designer now, or you can pay later in the hit to your brand. Focus on what you do best, and find someone who can help you communicate that with your target market.

5. Say yes to mobile-friendly website

More than half out of 10 website visitors are drawn by mobile devices. If your website isn’t designed considering the mobile viewing experience, you are sure to lose the attention of your potential customer. Mobile-responsive themes are the thing and it will always win you some business and great customer experience when they connect with you.

Points To Consider Before You Take A Start

1. Email list

Before the big launch, when it comes to fetching emails, this serves as building an audience before you’re up on the website. This simply means, you already have a group of the audience awaiting your launch and that says a lot. Communicate with your subscribers by welcoming them to your unique concept and connecting with you as a brand. This is when you can build trust in your brand for them. Make the most from that one email you send to your subscriber.

2. Social Media for small business

Your offering adds value to your target audience and you as an entrepreneur should display these social proof on the website. We’ve discussed social proof and how you can use it earlier. Start interacting with your related audience. You first need your people talking with you and about you before you push the product to them.

3. Call-to-action

Visitors are always looking for more information before buying the product/service. This takes some time for them to make the final decision and to speed up the though evaluation process, an entrepreneur should add the CTA (call-to-action) button on the website. Make it easier for the customer to add a product directly from the upsell product displayed by you under the one he/she selected.

Read more: Medium