A 2015 study from Redshift Research found that 59% of small businesses don’t have their own website. Among respondents’ reasons for not running a website were cost, time, and knowledge required. Although these are reasonable concerns, there are cheaper, quicker and easier solutions available that produce professional, personalised results for a fraction of the cost of hiring a web developer to build a bespoke site.
“I don’t know how to code a website”
Learning how to make a website doesn’t mean you have to learn how to code. A do-it-yourself Website Builder package can be used by the least technically savvy business owners as an easy way of creating a professional business website from scratch. Images and text can be added through an intuitive interface, and the ready-made website templates can be personalised to build a website to your liking. This drag-and-drop functionality allows you to create a website without hiring a web developer.
“It costs too much to build a website”
Depending on the scale of the website and the experience of the developer, having a web professional build a website for you could cost between £100 and £5000. This large upfront cost is off-putting for small businesses just wanting to get started online.
However, create-your-own-website packages like Website Builder allow businesses to get started online from £4.99pm. This massively cuts the cost without compromising on quality.
“Building a website takes too long”
If you do get a web developer to make your website for you, it can take weeks before he gets it how you want it. He may send over one version, then you ask for changes, and he sends it back a week later. This back-and-forth process results in a large timeframe before you get what you want – if at all.
With Website Builder you can design your perfect website without delay. You can see your changes instantly, and with drag-and-drop customisation of ready-made website templates, it’s easy to create a website that looks exactly how you want it to, with no need for a web designer or developer. And, if later down the line you change your mind about your website design, changing the look is as easy as it was to make it in the first place.
“I already have social media accounts”
Instead of running a website, many small business owners instead choose to operate their online presence through social media accounts. Although a strong social media strategy is key to the success of a small business, it is best when used as a complement to a website, where you can market your products and services in more detail.
“Websites need a lot of maintenance”
It’s important to keep websites up-to-date with the latest security features and software updates, and the content of the websites should be refreshed frequently as well. This could be overwhelming for a small business, but for Website Builder we have created a range of how-to guides and help articles that walk you through the process of creating your own website. On top of this, technical support is available 24/7 by phone and email.
For businesses wanting to sell online directly from their website there are online store capabilities included in Website Builder, but for a more complete ecommerce package, consider Ecommerce Website Builder.
