Does your business need a website? If you want new customers you do. More than half of your potential customers will research your businesses online to decide whether or not to do business with you. That makes your website  the first impression people will have of your business. Make a bad impression, or having no website at all, and you’ll never get that first contact.

What about the business that has so many customers they’re not looking for new ones? Let me tell you a true story.

A local restaurant owner had plenty of loyal customers and tried to convince me he didn’t need (or want) a website. “My customers know me by name and love my food. I’ve built a reputation that brings more customers than we can handle sometimes, they’re not looking for me on the internet” he said. I couldn’t argue as we sat in his filled to capacity restaurant on a weekday after the lunch hour.

I brought up the subject of ordering online. He insisted that his menu was too complicated and his customers prefer to talk to somebody. I asked him to consider the future, was he so certain things couldn’t change, thinking of the owners young son who was training to take over the business. We’ll be fine he insisted. He thanked me and we said goodbye.

Several months went by and 2020 brought us COVID-19. Businesses were mandated closed, including restaurants. With some restrictions restaurants were allowed to serve customers take-out food. You see where this is going I bet.

Immediately our phone started ringing off the hook with customers needing to setup ways of doing business remotely. We were scrambling to help our existing customers when the restaurant owner called in a panic asking how soon I could create a website. I explained that it would be at least 30-days due to the circumstances. He hung up in frustration.

A few weeks later I called to check in with the restaurant owner. He explained that in haste he had gone out and hired a firm that promised to deliver in seven days. I told him that I was happy things worked out. “Worked out” he laughed. “I’ve paid them twice as much as you quoted” he said. I explained that given the circumstances he was lucky to find somebody who could deliver so quickly. He then admitted he still did not have a functioning website.

Perhaps the most important reason you need a website is what it says about you if you don’t.