I have heard several people tell me that their website is not really important to them because their customers come to them from referrals and/or cold calling. Or that they have plenty of business without having a website. 

Many of these comments are indicative of a misunderstanding of the purpose of a website for most small businesses and service businesses. With the exception of companies actually selling product online via a shopping cart, most of my customers have a website that makes prospective customers feel good about making a choice to hire them.

The sale is not made online, that’s true.

So the website is not the sales pitch.

The website is the business suit that you wear to a meeting with an important new prospective client.

Imagine that someone you admire has scheduled a consultation to learn about your services. They could represent a big sale or ongoing revenue. You want to make a good impression and don’t have a suit that fits, so you go and spend a few hundred dollars on a new suit to look your best. The client meets you, sees your attractive, well-fitting suit, and realizes that you are, in fact, the consummate professional he was hoping to hire. This seals the deal and you close the sale.

Your website is just like that suit, except it meets with people all day long, every day. Even when you are sleeping. Your website either confirms your prospect’s view of you, impresses them more, or makes them think twice. If you make a great impression in networking meetings but have a disorganized, amateur website, your prospect may conclude that you are good at sales, but don’t have the company and services to back it up. Better to be poor at sales (just good enough to inspire someone to check out your website) and really wow people online, than to make a great impression in person but have a disappointing image online.

So next time you are weighing whether to invest time or money in your website, remember how much you invest in making a good impression in person a few times a week. Then remember that your website is making impressions for you every minute of the day.