The thing most business owners are concerned about is making money and growing their business. Most of the time they don’t realize what sort of impact a professional logo, website, and web video can make. They think as long as they have “something” it will be ok. But, they don’t realize that that “something” might be hurting them more than helping.
Professional Web Design
I know it may seem biased, but as a web designer, I’d say having a company website is one of the most important things you can do as a business owner. As I’ve noted before, 97% of Internet users look for goods and services online. This means that if your company is not online, you’re missing out on thousands of potential customers and clients DAILY!
With that being said, just because you have a website online, doesn’t mean you’re actually reaching and obtaining those customers. You could actually be sending them right to your competitors… When those 97 percenters go online to find the service or product they need, they will almost ALWAYS check out and compare multiple services providers before making a decision. Having a website will at least put you in the lineup of businesses (if you have good SEO), but if your site is not professionally done, it could make their decision a lot easier and send them to your competitor. I know business owners love to cut costs and many of them think their media is the place to do it but they are WRONG! They way your site is designed will subconsciously affect the viewer into either trusting you, or not trusting you. Wix.com, Web.com, and other “easy website creators”, don’t tell you that. They appeal to your instinct to get stuff done cheap, rather than done right. When your site has the proper design techniques to cater to the viewers eye, good Call-to-Actions, easy navigation, blog posts, etc., you will see your business’ online trust grow exponentially compared to the website you just threw up to check a box off the business owners list.
Logo Design
In the same way that a website can instill trust or distrust in an online viewer, a logo can do everywhere else. Business owners are often naive to the fact that design can greatly influence people’s subconscious. Different colors evoke different feelings and emotions. Letter slant can make you seem fast moving or slow moving. If your company logo is not designed specifically for your business and your demographic of customers, then it could be hurting you. Your logo is your chance to make a good first impression and when your logo is unprofessional, people will think YOU are unprofessional even if you offer the best service in the world and are the nicest person anyone’s ever met.
Business Videos
It is getting more and more common to see videos on company websites. I won’t try and tell you that they are NECESSARY for your business, but pretty soon they might be. I would highly suggest getting on the bandwagon now rather than later. The reason web videos are getting popular is because they also are used to instill trust with viewers. If people can see you and hear you, it naturally makes them feel like they know you. People would way rather do business with people they feel like they know, as opposed to some faceless company that lacks a human touch.
As I’ve said before, and I’ll say again: you can’t just throw something up and think it will have the same effect as a professional video production. There are certain editing, lighting, sound, and camera techniques that the average business owner doesn’t know and honestly won’t ever have access to unless they spend a bunch of money on equipment. Unfortunately, I’ve seen company websites with self-produced videos and every time I watch, a puppy dies somewhere (not really). I’ve seen people sitting in the dark with scary looking shadows, bad sound quality, NO sound, blurry cameras, you name it. Sometimes the videos have even been on the company’s home page. Don’t do that. Please!
Grow Your Business with Media
So, as a business owner, don’t fall into the trap of “cheap”. Get professional help when it comes to your media production. Don’t think you have to spend boatloads of money either. There a many quite affordable media production options that will give you the trustworthy professional design you are after without putting you out of business.