Two Simple Ways to Make Your Small Business Look Professional

If you’re on track to launch your own small business, it can be tempting to dive straight in and announce yourself to the world before you’ve got all the bells and whistles that go with a legitimate company. While that go-getter energy might mean you hit the ground running, you might miss your chance to nail that all important first impression. If those early months are as busy as you hope they’ll be, you may never get around to making sure your business looks as slick outwardly as you know you are. The two simple tips will help you avoid looking unprofessional.

Get Yourself a Proper Email Address

Even if your business is totally legit, asking your clients to contact you via a Gmail or Yahoo address signals to them that at worst, you don’t care about their privacy or security of their data, and at best, that you are not a professional outfit. It doesn’t cost much these days to secure a business email account, especially when you consider that this small fee will pay off in terms of customer trust. Email hosting for small businesses is a good option if you want a professional email address on a platform you are accustomed to. Depending on which web hosting service you use for your website, you may be able to select an add-on to obtain a business email that corresponds to your domain name. Whichever route you go, move on from that Hotmail address before you start communicating with customers!

Create A Professional Website

These days a website is non-negotiable if you want people to take your business seriously. Yes, some companies only have Facebook pages, but bear in mind that not everybody uses Facebook—Millennials, for example, certainly use it less than their parents. Younger people these days prefer other apps like Whatsapp and Snapchat, so if you’re hoping to market your product to younger generation, you’d be crazy to limit yourself to Facebook, or any social media platform. And don’t worry about making it super modern – a simple, clean website that accurately describes your business is more than enough to start off with. As long as your webpage informs your audience of who you are, what you offer and where to find you, it will be adequate to announce to the world that you are open for business and are here to stay. You don’t have to be a tech nerd to make a website these days. Sites like Squarespace can do a lot of the work for you, allowing you to spend your precious time on your business. Whatever you do, make sure you don’t launch your website until it is complete! Pages that say ‘under construction’ are a really bad look, as they undermine the impression you’re trying to create of a stable going concern. Once your company finds its feet, you may want a more elaborate website, at which point you could look into getting a custom built website to suit your requirements. Hiring a professional web builder can be costly; don’t take that step until you calculate that the outlay will pay off in terms of sales.

Whether you’re on the brink of your launch, or just getting set up as a business, make sure you announce yourself properly by taking into account these tips.