What about the perfect website?
Nowadays, the common belief is that if you’re not on the internet, you don’t exist, and to some extent, they’re right, but it doesn’t apply to all businesses.
The corner store most likely doesn’t have social media accounts, and even less likely a website. However, you can probably find it on Google Maps and come across it while walking since it usually has multiple signs indicating it’s open and what kind of items it sells.
To precisely understand what your business requires, you must comprehend your business model, where your customers come from, how they find you, when they’ll buy from you, and what the cost of acquiring a customer is.
The store aims to catch the attention of people passing by and for the local neighborhood residents to know its operating hours. This way, when they need something, they’ll know where to go and if it’s open. It’s also beneficial to be on Google Maps because if someone from outside the neighborhood wants to buy a soda, they’ll likely search “store” on Google Maps. There’s no need to have followers from all over the country or a website explaining how to sell a soda.
Therefore, your business also doesn’t need to have everything, but it does need to understand how it’ll attract customers, how to get in touch with them, and when they’re most likely to make a purchase.
If you offer services like car repairs, your customers will probably search online for things like: “My car is making a strange noise when I start it.” Most likely, Google will provide answers. If your business has an article related to that issue, it’s very likely that the customer will bring their car to your location. On the other hand, if they need preventive maintenance, they’ll likely look on Google Maps.
Another example is when someone needs a website. They’ll likely start by searching on Google: “Agencies that create websites for medical clinics.” At that moment, your website should appear first to attract more customers.
Social media, on the other hand, aims to build communities. Sharing content will help people trust you more as they’ll understand who you are and what you do. However, it’s not the best platform for specific service searches. If you want to expand your business’s reach, you’ll need to consider ads or generating a lot of content until you go viral (which doesn’t always happen).
So, you’ll need to be on social media when your business model requires customers to trust you exceptionally. For example, a nutritionist needs to generate trust so that when someone interested in changing their eating habits thinks about it due to having watched their videos and trusted their advice for a long time.
Something you need to understand is that none of this happens overnight. Everything requires a lot of effort. You need to understand what content interests your customers, how to expand your network, and which social media platforms you should be on. But above all, it’s extremely important to define how you want your customers to perceive you.
Don’t make the mistake of opening a store and investing all your money in a website without placing signs outside. If you don’t put up signs, no one will know you’re there, and having an attractive website won’t be of any use if you don’t update it for months.