Small Business Advice

Small Business Web Design – Common Mistakes

Effective small business web design is now critical to almost every small business. In fact, until you have your own business website, most potential customers won’t see you as a credible business at all.

Why is that? What makes a business website so special?

Small Business Web Design Matters

Your website is a key marketing vehicle for your business. It isn’t just a shop window. It’s an international travelling sales team, with the ability to sell 24/7/365 to customers in their own homes in the moments when they are most interested in buying.

Think about what it would cost to achieve that coverage with a team of salespeople. That’s the value a website provides.… Read the rest “Small Business Web Design – Common Mistakes”

How A Google Business Profile Helps Local SEO

Google Business Profile (GBP) — previously known as Google My Business (GMB) — is becoming more and more essential for small businesses hoping to thrive locally. Are you a local business keen to get more website visits from customers in your area? Then claiming and optimising your Google Business Profile (GBP) will let you:

  • List your business location or service area on Google Maps and local search results
  • Display key information in local searches like opening/closing times and contact details
  • Boost your local search rankings to reach potential customers searching for related services or products in your area

Getting Started With Google Business Profiles

Even if you’ve never set up your own GBP listing before, Google may have already created one for you to claim.… Read the rest “How A Google Business Profile Helps Local SEO”

Professional Web Designer or DIY Web Design?

Hiring an experienced, professional web designer offers huge advantages over relying on DIY website builders or cheap web design services. Yet many small businesses still cripple themselves by falling for the false economy of cost-cutting on this business-critical investment.

So, put simply, here’s how the key benefits of professional web design compare to those other options:

  1. Saving Time vs Wasting Time: Time is not free. It’s the only thing you can never buy back. Professional design is not fast, but learning to do it well enough to compete takes far longer — and you are competing with firms who hire professionals. DIY site builders may look like a shortcut, but buying a spanner won’t make you an engineer.
Read the rest “Professional Web Designer or DIY Web Design?”

Small Business Email Marketing 101

Promoting your small business can often feel challenging, with a host of strategies all claiming to be the most effective. In truth, most of these strategies work better for specific business models than for others. Despite that, small business email marketing stands out as one of the most popular, reliable and lucrative ways of building a business.

The catch is that, for those same reasons, spammers have abused email marketing. That has made it more complex and more regulated than many new small business owners suspect. Still, it remains well worth the effort for most businesses.

Why Small Business Email Marketing?

Email marketing offers several benefits to small businesses, not least of which is its high return on investment (ROI), which averages around £36 for every £1 spent.… Read the rest “Small Business Email Marketing 101”

5 Top Marketing Trends for 2024

With 2024 fast approaching, the question on every small business’s mind is “How can I better prepare for the new year?” Taking advantage of the latest trends is an effective way to grow your business and reach a wider audience. So here are a few of the top marketing trends that you need to consider.2

1. Content is still king

The growth of ad blockers has made traditional advertising tougher for small businesses. Paid ads simply aren’t as effective any more. It’s also a slow and passive form of marketing that you have little control over.

In any case, customers generally prefer to buy from people they know, like and trust. So even without an ad blocker, most people are pretty good at ignoring anything that looks like a traditional paid ad.… Read the rest “5 Top Marketing Trends for 2024”

5 Top Tips for Designing a Small Business Website

Planning to launch a new small business website? There’s a lot to consider when designing a small business website. Have you thought about how its design may affect its visibility on Google or how people perceive your business?

Gone are the days when a free DIY site or Facebook page could do the job for you.

The competition is tighter now, with 71% of small businesses already operating a website. Your site has to stand out amidst the sea of competitors. Get started the right way with these 5 top tips to create a good small business website:

1 On-Site SEO is a Must

First and foremost, make Search Engine Optimisation a priority for everything you do on your site.… Read the rest “5 Top Tips for Designing a Small Business Website”