Sometimes it is difficult to think of what to use a website for or what to put on it. Often we just think of our business’s address, telephone number, e-mail address and may a list of the business’s products and services. Here are some website ideas and uses that can be helpful to small business owners and entrepreneurs:
- Informational websites (or “brochure websites”) – sharing relevant and useful information
- E-commerce and transactional websites – conduct business online
- Lead generating websites – generate leads for your business
- Websites used to reduce paperwork – using a website to reduce the load of work on your business’s operation
- Websites for customer service – service and take care of your customers
Informational websites are commonly known as “brochure websites”. In addition to the common home page, about us page and contact us page, these websites can do more. Use them to market your business’s location by acting as a showroom (especially if you’re a restaurants or entertainment venue, etc.) They also make a great “storefront” for your products and services. So use your pages to show how good your business and its products look! Use good photos on your website, it makes a big difference in its overall appearance and feel. If you use bad photos, it will just cheapen your entire website and even your business image.
If you’re in a business where you rely on sales leads, you can design and create a website know as a “lead generating website“. This is something in between an informational website and an e-commerce website. (You’re doing a little more than just sharing basic information but you’re not yet conducting online transactions.) Lead generating websites are designed to build relationships over time. Those relationships your can turn into leads and possibly into clients or customers, when they are ready.
If you business involves paperwork, the paperwork can be time-consuming, frustrating, and even costly. This is where a “paperwork-reducing website” can help. You can have the forms you need, recreated and made available online and on your website. Those forms can be filled out online and be checked automatically for mistakes. You can even allow your clients and customers to check on their paperwork or its progress. This makes your life as a business owner or career professional easier, it will reduce mailing costs, reduce clutter, reduce mistakes, save you time, and make your operation a whole lot smoother! For your clients and customers, their documents can be checked online, their questions can be answered online and they have the ability to see the progress of their paperwork. Now that’s convenience and good service!
Many businesses require a lot of interaction with clients, customers and employees. Often that interaction involves things like answering questions and concerns, or relaying information or knowledge. This requires a lot of time, energy, and labor. There are websites that can help you in this area; forum website and a wiki website. A forum website can allow your clients and customers to interact with each other and get access and provide self-service help. A wiki website can allow your experienced employees to teach and relay information to newer employees. A wiki website is an incredibly effective and efficient way to share knowledge so your business can function smarter and grow more efficiently. These are just two examples on how your website can go beyond the basics.
As you can see from the few examples mentioned in this article, there are many ways a website can help you business. Often, the actual limitation is our imagination!
