The entire world has shifted online over the course of the pandemic. In fact, a new report from digital.com revealed that one in four small businesses still don’t have a website or any sort of online presence. The Digital survey was administered in May of 2021 and surveyed 1,250 small business owners with brick-and-mortar stores.

With e-commerce increasing year-over-year for decades, it’s astonishing to that so many small business owners are missing out on crucial new customers due to a lack of an online presence.

READ ALSO: Here’s how minority-owned businesses are rising out of the pandemic

Credit to them for finding a way to survive, but just think of how much higher their sales could be if they put themselves on a 24/7 marketplace!

At Business Warrior, we teach small businesses how to take a holistic view of their online reputation, listings, website search results and social media. Let’s look at three of the top reasons why every small business needs to be online.

1. Most consumers begin their search for a local business online

When was the last time you jumped into your car and decided to drive around to find that specific store to visit?

Consumers are always going to search online first before they go shopping or out to eat. They research a point of interest to find a nearby location or a place with the highest rankings or public sentiment. This means it’s imperative that business owners have their local company showing up in those searches through both their website and online listings like Google My Business and Yelp. 

If a shop isn’t coming up in a Google search, then it won’t be gaining the highest potential of new customers.

2. Social media isn’t enough

Being active on social media is a good start for any small business, but it’s also not enough.

It’s a great way to promote the store and to keep a brand top of mind, but business owners also must keep in mind that in many cases a direct sale won’t be made through social media.

When consumers visit a website, they tend to be in more of a “buy now” mode and it’s much easier to look around, browse on a website page and entice people to buy a service or product.

Having a website also can allow small businesses to gain email addresses and develop content funnels that build trust in the company.

3. Ability to sell online is a 24/7 opportunity

A small business with a brick-and-mortar concept is usually open an average of 12 hours per day.

That means they are open for business in just 84 hours out of the 168 possible hours in a week.

Without a website, many small businesses are closed for business 50% of the time every week!

According to a 2019 report consumers spend an average of 6 hours and 42 minutes per day online. To maximize profits, it’s important to position a small business with the ability to take reservations, schedule a service or sell a product 24 hours a day through a reliable website.

Making money while sleeping is the greatest way for business owners to enhance profits and by setting up an online site, it will give companies the opportunity to do just that.

Author: Jonathan Brooks is president of Business Warrior. Business Warrior is the source for small businesses in America to enhance their brand and boost marketing results. The Business Warrior software takes a holistic view of a business’s online reputation, listings, website search results and social media. Predictive algorithms are utilized to recommend the most imperative actions needed to drive new customers, positively impact daily operations and improve profitability. For more information, please visit businesswarrior.com.