Setting up a website for your company can be as simple as you want to make it. Do you want to go into great detail and provide the best user experience at each stage of your customers’ online journey or do you simply want a basic online presence? The most important aspect of this process will be determining the needs of your customer and the subsequent requirements of the website:
- Does the website need to provide e-commerce for you to sell your products?
- Does it need to provide large quantities of information to prove the value of your proposal?
- Does your business thrive on word-of-mouth promotion, meaning that you only need a website to showcase your goods or services?
Although it will vary from business to business, a typical client/customer buying decision will involve following these steps:
- The realisation of a problem and recognition of a need
- A search for information leading to awareness of your company
- An evaluation of your proposition weighed up against the alternatives
- The final decision to make a purchase
Do you have a presence at each stage and are you persuading your customers to progress to the next? Depending on your product or service, having a physical store may still be important, but upwards of 60% of buyers will conduct their research online – which means that your website will form an essential part of this buying process. You should provide your potential customers with what they’re looking for as quickly as possible. When you’re creating or building a website there are numerous options available to you, and the decision you make will most likely be influenced by your budget. If you have the finances available you can ask an agency to guide you through the process of:
- Structural decisions
- Design
- Build
- Content creation
Building your own website If you’re going to create your own website, there are numerous online tools available that will allow you to do so for a fraction of the cost of a professional designer. You’ll get access to a wide range of modern design templates that work perfectly on all platforms (mobile, tablet, PC and laptop) with free hosting included – all you have to do is write the content and upload your product photography. If you’re a larger company then this won’t be the choice for you, but for any start-up or small business, this is a good place to start.
