5 Major Reasons Why Your Website Can Make or Break Your Business
Websites aren’t just information about your business—they are a part of your business.
Just like any other process within your company, your website plays a critical role in delivering a product or service to your customers. After launching hundreds of websites across different industries, with clients big and small, we have learned how much of a direct impact your website can have on your business—for better or worse. Here are a few reasons why:
1: It may be the only chance you get
Much like meeting a new person, websites deliver a huge impression in a very short amount of time. The difference is that we feel no social obligation to spend more time with a website, and there will likely be no second chances.
First visits usually last 10-20 seconds. If the visitor’s attention isn’t captured in that time, that will likely be the last time they see or think about your business.
Of course, this feels incongruent with the amount of time and care that goes into creating the business. We imagine a website visitor patiently exploring our entire website, taking in all of the great content, and carefully considering what to do next.
More likely than not, they are actually making a snap judgment about your company and deciding if it’s worth another 10 seconds of their time.
While first impressions can send people running, they can also pull people in. Delivering the right first impression is one of the first big opportunities that can have a major impact on the success of your website.
2: Your website speaks on your behalf
A great salesperson can take a complex concept and reduce it down to its essence in a way that resonates with their audience. Websites play a similar role—in the absence of a salesperson, your website does the talking for you.
Think of your website as the layer between your internal operations and your audience—even the smartest, most impressive product will fall flat to your audience if not positioned correctly.
Visitors to your website are trying to answer the question of “what’s in it for me?” as quickly as possible. While websites provide a lot of space to explore content and talk about your business, your visitor likely won’t make it that far if their attention isn’t captured quickly.
Of course, this isn’t as easy as making big generic claims like “grow your business while you sleep!”—your visitors have seen it all before. It’s about knowing exactly who your audience is, what they care about, and what the perfect message is to get them engaged.
Similarly, a perfectly written script about your business doesn’t connect if not delivered properly through design. Design does as much talking as the words themselves, if not more. Great websites take well-crafted messages and skillfully deliver them through the design of the site.
3: Websites impact our perception of value
One of the most powerful “side effects” of a beautifully crafted website is the perception of value it creates about the company. While this is true at any stage in a company’s lifespan, it is especially impactful in the early stages.
For many companies in the early stages, websites and pitch decks will often be the first impression someone gets of the company. Prior to having significant traction in a market, there is often a “chicken and egg” problem—in order to attract the right customers, you need great marketing material. To get great marketing material, you need more customers to afford it.
Websites, when done well, present a relatively low-cost way to accelerate your quality of marketing. Websites have the power to make a brand new company look like an established player in an industry...or the opposite.
4. It can align you with your target audience (or not)
Websites are kind of like clothes—they show people what “group” you belong to, how you culturally identify yourself. While this sounds superficial, it can have a far-reaching impact.
If your website feels too “stuffy” but your target market is accustomed to companies with more progressive marketing, you may lose them before the first conversation.
The same can be true for a company that tries to be too progressive in a market that is not ready for it. We have seen both ends of the spectrum—many industries require a delicate touch in how “modern” conventions are applied.
Your audience is going to expect something from you before they get to your website. The art is in knowing where to push and where to hold back. Being in an industry that is not receptive to change doesn’t mean you can’t be innovative—it just takes more skill.
5. Websites can turn visitors into engaged prospects
What do you want people to do with your website?
In our experience of leading hundreds of website Pilots, this is one of the first questions we ask.
The answer may vary dramatically based on the industry. Removing e-commerce sites from the equation, there is likely a shortlist of actions you would like your visitor to take. Scheduling a call, downloading gated content, joining a newsletter, the list goes on...but the action must be clear.
It is common, especially in earlier stages, to see websites that offer little or no direction on how the visitor can engage further—it’s just a bunch of information, maybe a contact email. This isn’t too different from meeting someone at a party that blabbers about themselves for a few minutes then just walk away.
In order to build a relationship with your visitor, there needs to be relation. Show your visitor why they should engage with you and how to continue the conversation.