Back in the 90's, the internet was something only the elite 'must-haves' or those with far above-average technical knowledge would even consider giving the time of day; but oh how that would change...
To put it into perspective how fast internet usage has exploded over the last 16 years; in the year 2000 just over 400 million (400,000,000) people around the world had an internet connection. By 2005, that reached 1 billion (1,000,000,000). By 2010, 2 billion (2,000,000,000) and by 2014; (you guessed it), 3 billion internet users across the world.
As it stands today, nearly 3.5 billion people around the world have the ability to access the vast virtual world that is the internet. That's just over 46% of everyone on the planet. That's a lot of people able to communicate with each other; sharing conversation, information, and more relevantly; business.
So why could this help you?
Why could your business benefit from being online?
It's all to do with how people spend their time online. Within a month; people within the UK spend over 1,900 minutes online; and that's on average! This is far more time than some people spend watching TV, reading newspapers and engaging with their snail mail. So what can your business do to take advantage of such a great opportunity?There are three main activities people from the UK enjoy and spend most of their time online doing.
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Shopping
In 2013, the total turnover from European sales online was over 3 and a half billion Euros. This includes people searching for mechanics online, searching for the best cake baker in North Wales or for domestic building services in the North West. -
Watching Videos
In the last 5 years alone; video views over the internet have grown exponentially. Websites investing millions into video; such as YouTube (Google), Facebook, Netflix, Amazon and Vimeo has contributed massively to changing how we all absorb content on the internet. -
Social Networking
Thirdly (and to many, most commonly) is Social Networking. We spend almost half of our time online visiting social media sites, to share updates, pictures and video clips with our friends and connections across the internet.
When we stop and consider all this online activity, it's clear that as time goes on; even more people will use the internet in even more ways that could impact and improve your business.
So by taking all that into account; this changes the question from "Why?", to "How?".
How can your business benefit from being online?
As an example; let's say that you're an events organiser based in Conwy. You don't currently have a website, and use Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to broadcast the services you provide. How can you use the internet to take your business to the next level?
Think about when people are looking for an events organiser in Conwy. While under 10% of people will ask and search on social media sites; over 85% of people will head straight for a search engine like Google to quickly find a local business that can provide them with the service(s) they need.Having a website for your business will take the roof off how successful your business can be, because it opens you up to being found in search engines.
Therefore having a professional website design, which has been designed to be fully search engine optimised; will appear high up in local relevant searches. You're now open to a vast world of new customers; that before you would never have had the opportunity to connect with.
This doesn't just work for events organisers. Whether you're a mobile mechanic covering Anglesey, a health and fitness promoter in Llandudno, or a baker in Cheshire; giving your business a website that has been designed efficiently and professionally will give hundreds of thousands of searchers the chance to learn all about your business. They could read information on what your business can offer them, check out any special offers or promotions you have running at the moment and maybe even complete a contact form with their information and a query for you to follow up with them. Having a modern, friendly and high-quality website virtually makes the possibilities of getting new customers endless.
How would a website help my business?
With people visiting your website, you can even learn more about them. Every J-D Design website comes with statistical tools and tracking of your visitors; to see where people are landing on your website, where they came from, and also how they are spending their time on your website. All this powers you to keep your website updated and focused on what your visitors are looking for; meaning more happy visitors and increased chances of making a sale or getting an enquiry.
Every day, thousands of businesses are taking the plunge and launching a professional online presence. So isn't it time your business started taking advantage of the digital world?
If you are interested in getting a new website online for your business, contact me for a free conversation to see what ideas I can offer to make a success of your website online.
