Popular belief implies that websites are not needed without the existence of a marketing plan, but the reasoning behind this can be easily contradicted. The necessity of a website in today’s digital-driven market is unquestionable. With eCommerce growing more and more each day, people can’t expect anything but a rise in the number of websites available on the Internet. Regardless of the specifics of a business, owning a website is paramount to reach a large number of people who might be interested its services. According to a study led by the team at Clutch where 351 small businesses were surveyed, 2/3 of them stated that they rely on their websites to gain new clients and transform existent ones in loyal customers, as well as to inform their clients about their offers and changes that may occur in their firms.
A website can generate leads passively, without investing much time or other resources into it. Marketing plans are required once the website starts stirring some interest among users. It is important to understand that all businesses, no matter their operation size, should invest in a website in 2019. Around 60% of businesses without a website stated that they are willing to invest in one during the following year. Irrelevance to industry or the use of paid campaigns on social media are not valid reasons not to start a website, and the inexistence of a marketing plan won’t affect developing a business website in any way. Digital marketing as a whole can help businesses grow tremendously in a short period of time, an opportunity that entrepreneurs did not have before the technological advancements of today. Combining a good website with great marketing strategies is the key to success, but it’s not mandatory to start there.
Design-driven organizations are more successful
There is no logic behind investing lots of money into a marketing plan and applying it as long as your company website is not well-built and aesthetically pleasing. In fact, companies should bother investing in marketing plans only when they know for sure the website that they own is completely ready for full exposure. This is why having a marketing plan in place is not a condition of developing and using a website. Most successful firms out there are design-driven, which means they place the image of the company on the first place, and the marketing strategies fall on the second place, even though they will be required at some point in their development.
Adobe conducted several surveys in regard to digital marketing and the teams found out that companies which invest more in their image and own design-driven companies are almost 70% more likely to exceed their business goals, without additional marketing efforts. Another study stated that small businesses invest less than 4% of their budget on developing a good website and marketing it afterward. What is even more interesting is that people who stumble upon a great website are more likely to visit the brick-and-mortar store because of the online experience they had with the website.
Convincing clients to make a purchase
Companies that own a website have bigger annual sales compared to the ones that don’t. Customers are willing to make a purchase as long as their trust is being earned. Websites contribute tremendously to this purpose, as the information listed on them can answer most of the questions that a person may have regarding the company. Even though owning a website might not be specified in a marketing plan, making use of it could lead to a visible sales boost.
Around 40% of Internet users find at least one website that makes them buy a product each month. A good website increases the possibility of a client making a purchase, even though the company might only have physical stores. Developing an eCommerce website is not required to boost sales. Informative websites that provide users with valuable information about a company can lead to more sales, with zero marketing efforts brought to the table.
Is the cost factor an obstacle?
The average amount of money that people are willing to invest in developing a website is $500, which is often not enough to develop a responsive, good-looking one. As for the entire digital marketing budget, around 45% of small businesses spend around $10,000, while the rest do not consider this factor relevant yet. The cost factor involved in owning a website and then promoting it is considered by many firms a financial obstacle. Whereas the owners of such companies might be aware of the positive implications of using a website, the costs of developing and then maintaining the website cannot be handled. Other companies prefer doing their own digital marketing without hiring a professional to do it, which may lead to financial loss due to errors.
Building a website for success depends on multiple factors. The most relevant one is the creative aspect of it. The online appearance of the company is the one that either builds trust or makes the visitor leave it in seconds. Good website design and relevant content are the keys to convincing visitors to return or choose the services of a business. Details such as Search Engine Optimization must be included in the web development process because it will dictate how successful the website is later. After building a website by the book, marketing efforts can finally be involved. A plan is not necessarily required to put together a good website, but promotion strategies are essential at some point to reach the maximum potential of digital marketing. Once this point is reached, the digital marketing process should be in good order.
Considering the information listed above, companies don’t have to waste months on creating a marketing plan to create a website. The purpose of websites is to give more people access to information related to the firm, thus increasing the chances of transforming the users into actual customers.