Small businesses have a lot to evaluate, but really the most important thing is attracting customers.
In a challenging economy, that can be much easier said than done. Try taking a step back and evaluating things from your customer's perspective. Customers have needs, and want to locate the places that meet that need as quickly as possible.
There's always the phone book, but there are questions that go along with the purchase. It'd be best to get answers without having to make several phone calls, and doing all that investigative work. So instead of the phone book, many customers will sit down at their computer and do an Internet search.
This is where quality small business web design comes into play. For a web site to be completely successful, it needs to be strong in three areas, all equally important. If one area is lacking, it could be detrimental for your web site.
First, you'll want your business to come up in searches, such as the example above. Otherwise the hard work sunk into other phases of the project is pointless. Your web site needs to work for you to attract new customers, and be search engine friendly. While it is impossible to directly predict or guarantee anything the search engines may do, there are plenty of things web designers and even the business owners can do to aid the site's chances of success in this area.
Next, the site also needs to be well-designed and inviting for customers. An attractive design will go a long way in keeping customers interested in your web site, and ultimately your brand. There also needs to be a clear navigational layout to the web site, so that customers can find their way around and get the information that they need.
Last, but still important, is a web site's written message. The message needs to be quick and clear. It needs to answer the original question that the customer came for. It needs to do this while being well written at the same time. Nothing will turn a customer away quicker than spelling or grammar errors.
Small business web design needs to strike a balance in all these areas in order to succeed, and a strong web site is one of the best marketing tools that a business can have right now to attract new customers.
