In 2021, less than two-thirds of small businesses have a website, and 41% of businesses without websites say their business “does not need a website.” Some of these businesses believe that because they are local, a website isn’t necessary. However, according to a recent study, 97% of consumers use online media to shop locally. This means that even if you are a local business, if you don’t have a website, you’re missing out on a lot of potential customers.

While it’s true that it wasn’t as important for small businesses to have a website if they focused enough on local advertising and gaining exposure through word of mouth a few years ago, in the age of smartphones and ever present WiFi, consumers go online first when looking for solutions to their problems.

A website adds to the authenticity of your business, being both a marketing and communications tool for your business, allowing you to sell your business and stay in touch with your customers.

A website can also save you time since you can house all commonly asked questions about your business here, ensuring that your customers can make informed decisions without you having to answer the same questions repeatedly.

While it used to be complicated or costly to get a website up and running, these days, there are many easy-to-use website builders out there, including WordPress and Squarespace, that make it simple for anyone to create a website without needing to write code.