Does your business need an optimised site?
Surprisingly there are about 1.3 million SME businesses in the UK that are not even online. Of the companies that do have a site, most actually have a poorly presented and ineffective presence on the internet. Whatever industry you’re in, the web must be a fundamental part of your strategy. You should ignore it at your peril.
There are many reasons why the web is not properly embraced by SMEcompanies. Many business owners wrongly assume that a website is something that would serve very little purpose for their company. This could not be further from the truth. The costs of having a great website designed are much less than people think. A site that will be a vital asset for years to come will most probably cost no more than £500 to £1000 or a single page advert in one issue of a trade magazine. There’s no reason for any company site to look like it’s been designed and developed on a limited budget, but it’s important to get it right the first time. Choosing a web developer based on them offering the cheapest quote might be great in the short term but won’t ever garner long term positive results. You should see your site as a long term investment, just as you would when purchasing a shop frontage, installing computer systems or hiring a new employee.
Having a website is very a cost effective way to market your business and immediately show a creditable, professional image. But, having a website isn’t always enough. Apart from the branding, general layout and content the most important part of a website is making sure that it is targeted and optimised so that you get visitors. There are numerous ways to get your site noticed online including offline advertising, internet marketing and pay per click but the most effective of all is SEO. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation – which put simply is the process of optimising and improving your websitecontent in order to increase the number of visitors to your website. The higher your website appears in the search engines, the greater the chances that your site will be visited . Most businesses that do have an online presence are in many cases offering little more than ;static, unoptimised sites. They are usually impossible to find on Google unless someone actually searches for them by name. The top 10 results will attract the most potential customers, with the top spot getting most of the visitors. It’s a common misconception that it’s hard to rank high for these kinds of search terms and best of all the resulting traffic and potential customers are all free. The number one position on Google’s search results receives 42% of the clicks. Below the top few spots, the percentages decrease massively. If your site isn’t at the top of Google, you are missing out on a lot of visitors and therefore potential customers. Every business should have, at the very least, a search engine optimised site. SEO Essex can help your business get to the top of Google. Visit them to get a free SEO report and analysis of your site now.