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If you are ambitious and want to drive up sales , your own website becomes a must . Sure , you may be growing purely from recommendation , but you are throwing away quite a lot of additional growth if you don ’ t make a decent website a priority .
What should go on a website ?
The first thing to think about is the questions that potential customers are likely to be asking , as this is what you need to bear in mind first and foremost :
• Can you provide the service I am looking for ? For instance , if you are an installer , do you do domestic or commercial installations ? Do you do emergency out-of-hours call outs ?
• Can you provide the service where I live or work ?
• Can I trust you to do a great job at a reasonable price ?
The first two call for facts , but the last will be decided mostly by the emotions that your website creates . That ’ s where pictures and testimonials come in .
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So , most websites should have as a minimum :
• Something to try to establish the feel of your business . This should be on your home page . For instance , are you small and friendly or big and ultra-professional ( and maybe ultra-expensive )
• Be specific about what services you provide in what areas
• Provide clear contact details
• Have customer testimonials
• Mention trade associations , qualifications and any warranties that can be provided with your work
• Show pictures of your work illustrating how tidy and professional it is , preferably with before and after pictures
Some example sites of trades companies
The following are some sites of real trade companies . These may provide some food for thought : Sole Trader handyguybuilds . weebly . com Ten-person gas company www . town-gas . co . uk A moderate sized landscaping company thelandscapecompany . org . uk Big boys www . pimlicoplumbers . com - I have to say that I think that Charlie Mullins who founded this company is a genius at self-promotion .
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Putting your website together
The best result for your website is likely to come from a recommended local web designer . After all , every installer fully understands the difference between an amateur and a professional .
There will be a cost , and you will still need to gather high quality pictures of you and your team , previous jobs and so on to pass to the web designer to use on the site . Of course , you could use a professional photographer if you are really serious .
It ’ s also possible to do-it-yourself using services like Wix . com , Wordpress . com , or Moonfruit . com . These are remarkably powerful at building websites , but you will have to learn how to use them . Note that you will only get the
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best results if you have a good eye for design .
An alternative to a website is to create a free business page on Facebook . This provides some control and you can still give full details of your company . Customers or competitors may post disparaging comments so you have to stay on your toes to delete them quickly .
As a recap , it ’ s important to think about what your prospects will want when they arrive at your site . I believe that you need to answer these questions :
• What size of business are you ? Are you a big firm ( and possibly expensive ) aiming at complex commercial projects , or are you small , local and friendly aiming at homeowners ? Try to make this clear .
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• Do you provide the service I need ? Make sure you list any specialisms that you might have with more detail . Specialisms are likely to sustain higher prices .
• Do you provide service in my area ? Remember that anyone in the UK ( or overseas ) may find your site so be clear about where you will and won ’ t work .
• How do I know you will do a good job for a fair price ? Customer testimonials , before and after photos of your work , a decent picture of you and your team ( at work perhaps ) and the design / feel of your website will help here .
• How do I contact you ? Give your phone numbers and an email address as a minimum .
Please make a decision The internet has radically changed our world and the rapid fall from grace of Yellow Pages provides one good example of this change . It ’ s vital not to let things just pass us by . It may be right to decide not to have your own website , but please make this a definite decision rather than letting it happen by default . All the best .
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