You Must Have A Quality Web Site

Marketing Must #2

You Must Have a Quality Web Site

When the internet was first becoming popular for online shopping and local search, business owners could justify not having a professional looking website. After all, who knew if the internet would take off as a means of finding local businesses? If it didn't, money spent on having a website designed would be wasted.

But the internet is clearly here to stay, and any business that hasn't invested in a professional looking website is losing customers to those that do. A professional website is a marketing must - it's what gives your online business the credibility that customers require before handing over their credit card information.

A recent survey in Marketing Sherpa's E-Commerce Benchmark Guide revealed that the average abandonment rate for online shopping carts is 59.8%. This eye-popping statistic means that nearly 6 out of 10 online shoppers leave a website before finishing a transaction but after having added something to their shopping cart. Why? It's most likely because they feel uncomfortable making the purchase - perhaps the website doesn't look credible or they don't feel like their information is being protected well enough.

Whatever the reason, the scary truth is that 60% of online shopping sessions are ended before a purchase is made. This loss in revenue is completely avoidable, and it probably amounts of much, much more than the cost of developing a professional looking website.

Even if your business doesn't use its website to sell anything, it will still benefit from a professional, clean looking website. Given the grip that the internet has on modern life, consumers demand more from a website than the most basic information. They want to be entertained and engaged with the web, and if your site doesn't provide that to them, they'll take their eyeballs to a website that does. More important than the information that a website conveys is the experience that it provides - that's what the end-user walks away remembering.

If your site is bland and generic, your visitors will associate those same traits with your brand. You want to provide potential new customers with an impression of your company that elicits a strong, positive response - not a yawn. A professional website design conveys that your company is legitimate and cares about its outward appearance. It might be the first impression that a new consumer has of your products and services, and a bad first impression very rarely results in a lasting relationship.

Think of your website as the public spokesman of your company. But unlike a normal company spokesman, who can at most speak to a few dozen people in a day, your website has the ability to reach thousands upon thousands of potential customers each day. Is it worth not putting the best face on this spokesman that you can?

About The Author:  MyWebGuyTaylor is an ebusiness SEO consultant from Santa Barbara, CA, specializing in seo cms solutions, e-business automation, joomla seo, web marketing, Small business website marketing and seo campaign management, Joomla Search Engine Optimization, Social Bookmarking, Link Building, SEO Article Writing. 

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Its the look and content, not only great graphics but also content value.These are key essentials so you can generate more
traffic on your website. True, your website is the spokesman.I liked the article you wrote, more info on this please. :-)

Marianne , September 23, 2009

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