7 things you need to know in 2017 before you build a website

Have you just started a small business? Are you looking to increase sales? Do you want an online presence for your small business? Make sure you read this before you start.

We’re in 2017, a year of changes and trends that get quickly overtaken by others. As an entrepreneur or a small business owner like yourself, you need to be ready to adapt to these changes. Here in this article, we will discuss options for you too, either, build a new website or re-design your old one. So, let’s get straight to the point, shall we?

Thing #1: Purpose of the website

Have you ever doodled in a notebook without looking? Or just randomly hit keys on the keyboard out of boredom? – You’ll notice that 99% of the time it will be gibberish. The purpose of the website can be, to inform people about your products/services, to talk about your hobbies or to create awareness of your business. It is an online business card in many cases.

You need to make sure that your website represents truly what you are offering. These means don’t add something that is non-relevant to the website that doesn’t aid in clarifying the purpose of your small business.

Thing #2: Functionality

Now that we have established a purpose let’s talk about functionality. Let’s say you’ve set a purpose of building a website that sells the highest quality emoji plush toys. Well, you’re going to need an e-commerce plug-in to do so.

Determining functionality can be rather easier to figure out, as it is a single operation on a web of operations. It is directly tied into your purpose, so keep that in mind.
The nature of your small biz will determine the functionality of the website. If you sell clothes, you might want to consider e-commerce plug-ins, if you offer consultation advice, you’re going to need an email collection plug-in, or if you only write blogs you might want to consider a comments plug-in such as Disqus Comments.

Thing #3 Target Audience

Finding your target audience is the gateway to perfecting your branding strategy, especially if you are a small business owner. Exploring you niche is where people from your target audience will gather. Will the people that visit your website be the same age as you or are they Millennials? Gen Z? A handy way to find your target audience is by comparing your purpose and ‘fitting’ it into a specific demographic. You want to ask yourself, why will they visit my website, what is it they’re looking for, will they want to come back? These are questions you need to ask to form a target audience.

Thing #4 Branding

This is one of the most important things you can do. First impressions are forever. This is especially true when we’re talking about an ever-growing internet user base. When people don’t spend more than 4-5 seconds on a page if it doesn’t resonate with them.

Branding is one of the most important aspects of your online presence. Typography, colour pairing, colour psychology, images, your value proposition, headlines. All these concepts are your brand. It is what defines your small business’s online presence. If you want to learn more about how to create your brand, check out this link on how to create a brand.

Thing #5 WordPress

I could tell you all about other content management systems and how they are all good. But when it comes to market share and portability WordPress is your number one CMS. You can choose from a range of free templates to get you started quickly with your vision. Additionally, it has premium templates (that cost $$) but it will be more customizable and tailored to your fit.

If you’re not convinced, check this article out Why to build your website with WordPress The sum of it is that overall WordPress is better at customising your website, managing your content and it is friendly with SEO and social media.

If you’re not sure how to build it or you would like some help you can always contact someone from a web design company

Thing #6 Coding

Programming can be easy for some but for the most of us, it’s something difficult. It’s also important you find a language that will suit your style, you can also find the best languages for website creation here. Although, we highly recommend you using JavaScript, as it’s the most common language to create code for.

If you are like the most of us with not very good to zero programming skills it’s highly recommended you search for the best web developer you can get, of course, within your budget. The perks of hiring a developer are that they will create a website for you that is responsive, fast, mobile-friendly, user-friendly and with SEO optimisation.

If you’re interested in learning how to code for the purposes of self-motivation or just for creating your small business website, there are many places that offer free courses for coding, such as, Khan academy or even YouTube.

Thing #7 Cost

Most of the small business believe getting a website is expensive. As explained throughout the article you can even set up a website with as little as Zero Dollars. Now, it might not be the best-looking website, or have the best domain name, or even have enough bandwidth to support more than a handful of people but it can be done.

However, if you’re a serious person about setting up a professional website, made by developers and designers the estimated cost will be around $2,000 AUD to $3,500 AUD. Short term it might seem as a steep price to pay, however, in the long run, the potential of sustained traffic to your website will easily out shadow the initial investment and server fees.

Conclusion

To wrap this up I’d like to point out that to be successful in creating your website all you need is to work hard and stay focused. The content in this article will help you have a plan before setting out on the adventure of web development.

Creating an online presence for your small business is an exciting new step, whether you already own a small business or you’re starting a new one, it is always an adventure to further improve yourself and your business.

If you’re looking for someone to help you with your adventure let us know in the comments about your ideas! We would love to hear them and give you tips. If you want to find a web developer, look no further, we have the most intuitive and most affordable packages you will be able to find for web design!

Author – Wesley Hucker, Digital Marketing