Look Like a Pro – Even If You’re Working From Your Kitchen Table

Think back to the time when you were younger and you would attempt to make yourself appear taller in order to be able to ride that fun amusement park ride? Perhaps you stood on your tiptoes or you wore those thick-sole shoes. You were not afraid of being on the ride – you simply had to dress the part in order to make it known to everyone else, as well.

That is how it can sometimes feel running a business. You can know that you are good at what you do, but when you are just starting or operating in a small area it may be difficult to make potential customers believe that you are the real deal. That is where your web site will come in – it is like platform shoes that make you stand on your heels and look professional, even though you may be working at home!

I have a story of one of my customers. Sarah operated an excellent business at home baking. Her cupcakes were remarkable, so moist and beautifully decorated and so delicious. However, she found it difficult to make people believe that she could charge the price of professional bakery since they were aware that she was working at home. They would say, it is only a home business or can I get a discount as you do not own a real shop.

Then we created her a gorgeous site – elegant, modern, having beautiful pictures of her works, feeling tales of her baking process. There was something magical that had happened almost overnight. People began to tell me, WOW, your business looks so successful! and Your site is very professional! And the very same cupcakes of the very same home kitchen were now worth all the money – since the presentation was now as good as the product itself.

This is the strength of professional site. It is your online shop window that announces saying, we are serious about our business, and you should be, as well. Whenever individuals visit an effective web site, they form immediate opinion regarding your company:

• Clean design = systematized and business-like.
• Easy navigation = is concerned about customer experience.
• Up to date content = active and confident.
• Professional photos = detail and quality.

I have personally witnessed this in many businesses – of consultants in coffee shops or crafters in Etsy or freelancers building a client base. Your site will be the representation of your business that you will first see and it will predetermine your expectations of whatever will come after.

The best part of all is that your site will not know whether you are sitting in a nice high-rise office or even your kitchen table. It brings your business just as you prefer it to be perceived. It will win you that immediate trust that may otherwise take you years to establish by simple word-of-mouth.

Put yourself into the position of your customer. When you are deciding between two businesses and one has a clean professional website and the other only has a web page on social media or none whatsoever, which one will you entrust your money to? The majority will end up selecting the business that appears to have established and professional appearance even though the two businesses are actually the same size!

Your web site is your opportunity to even the playing field. It allows you to be in competition with larger companies and to be noticed in a diverse market. It demonstrates that you are interested in your business and you are determined to deliver an excellent experience – even the first click.

Therefore in case you have been hesitating due to the fact that you consider your business too small to hire a professional web site, reconsider! Your web is not only an extravagance of large companies but your best weapon of letting the world know that you are doing business regardless of where you are operating your business.