So you’ve taken the plunge and started your own business. How scared are you? You’re probably most concerned about the financial aspect. Will you meet your planned budget? If you’re starting out you may not have much capital to fall back on. This makes it difficult to grow your business as fast as you want.

Take a moment to consider some technological developments. These developments can benefit your business no matter your field or niche.

There’s a competition on to see who can offer businesses the best services. Some of these services are absolutely free. You can grow parts of your business without putting your budget under pressure.

A lot of focus in 2017 is given to websites and social media activities. I want to share a few pointers regarding your website.

You can have instant boosts in traffic and response rates. All you need are a few adjustments.

1. Social Media Integration

Your website will never be successful in isolation. Online platforms are designed to interact. I’m talking about social media. Are you on:

Instagram

LinkedIn

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

These can direct traffic to your website. Embed some of the images or videos in your website pages. These can increase the pages’ value for visitors.

This is not about entertaining your customers. You must always provide value:

Showing your Facebook feed on your website generates trust. Visitors can see comments. Other clients’ opinions are valuable marketing tools.

Small businesses come under a lot of scrutiny. Customers wonder whether they can be trusted for excellent service and longevity. Isn’t it better to trust the established companies? As owner your LinkedIn profile is invaluable. Stipulate what about your past makes you perfect for your current position. Make sure this link appears on your website. When consumers get familiar with a company and its people they’re more loyal to it.

Add these platforms’ icons to your website. It creates unity between many platforms. Make sure you include links to your website on other platforms too.

2. Calls to Action

Building requires action. When you’re building a small business you need many activities to take place:

Reaching new clients

Gathering market information

Gathering client information for future campaigns

Making sales

All these can happen via your website. But your visitors must be shown how and where to take part. Make sure your website pages include buttons for:

Quick product reviews

Questionnaires

Product sales

Invitations to join mailing lists

App download

Do you have these? Now make them easily visible so you get as much interaction as possible.

3. Responsive Design

I hope one of your first goals is to build a client base. In 2017 you need to look for them online. The number of people using online platforms rise every year.

The necessary avenues to pursue include:

Via your website

On social media

You must realize these platforms are accessed mostly via Smartphones and mobile devices.Your website is probably designed for computer screens. Did the developers cater for responsive design?

Responsive design allows your website to adjust size. It will open in a size which makes browsing easy no matter the device.

Apps

You can boost your business’ public image even further. Create an app unique to your company. This is a current trend. For once a fashionable item has a lot of value too.

Apps can contain:

Contact detail

Product information

Purchase portals

Your customers can obtain all necessary information they need. You don’t even need a large team to make this happen. Only an app.

This is how technology makes life easier for small businesses. How much will this cost you? It doesn’t have to cost you anything.

In a few years you can have a professional one built. Start off with one you design yourself via online applications. Their quality is good enough to get you started. Learn which features your clients love. Expand these in future.

4. Analytics

Measuring your business’ progress is essential for growth. You may be adept at measuring sales numbers. Do you know how to measure your online impact?

Luckily software developers love helping website owners. And the service is usually free. You can use online analytics tools to draw statistics:

Find out which of your website pages are most popular.

Which features generate the most interaction?

Which channels—such as social media or emails—guide traffic to your website?

You can streamline your website. Make it more dynamic:

Cut out features that don’t attract attention

Add more of what customers love

5.Graphics

Boost your website’s impact by using graphics. When I’m lazy or in a hurry I usually only register pictures. Text doesn’t make an impact if I don’t have time to read.

Photographs

Photographs of your business can improve your public image. I love looking at any company’s images.

Images give me an idea of a business’ culture, values and products. These all determine whether I will use the vendor in future. Increased knowledge builds trust. And a picture is worth a thousand words.

Make sure pictures are of high quality. There are many online tools that can help you create amazing visuals for your website.

Images

Images are excellent for describing:

Your business network and partnering with others

How your products work

6. Avoid Sound

You can’t overuse graphics and videos. They are popular on websites and social media. Audio and visual aspects don’t have the same role on all platforms.

One aspect you should guard against on your website is sound. People browsing Facebook know sound may start playing. When I’m browsing websites I’m not prepared for this.

More than once I instinctively closed websites where videos’ sound immediately started playing. I don’t want to disturb those around me while at work.

Don’t let similar circumstances cost you visitors. Allow them to decide when they want to listen. This decision may keep them browsing your pages.

When your business is starting out each step you take is important. Your future reputation and current profit margin depend on it. Make sure your website adds to your success. It’s a powerful tool. Few people draw all possible benefits from theirs. Are you going to change the statistics? Be a frontrunner and show others how it’s done.