How Important Is Your Website?  

Your website is your shop window. When you walk past a shop and the display is a mess with dirty windows, what does that tell you about the business? In the service industry, specifically, it tells me one thing: If these people can’t take care of themselves, how can I expect them to take care of me? A disorderly website conveys the same message.

You don’t have to go completely crazy, but the website needs to convey the same feeling to the client about working with you as you would try to convey when you meet in person.

Do be conscious of the details. You can have a beautiful website that comes across as very corporate, and then on the contact me page there is a Gmail address. I can never understand how someone spends thousands of dollars on a website and doesn’t bother buying a domain name for $20!

—Mendy Jacobs, Managing Director, Jacobs & Co.

Specifically, when it comes to the Web, there’s a lot of monkey see, monkey do. It’s important to understand your own objectives and follow the blueprints of your mission statement. What are you trying to accomplish with your website? Are you a nursing home aiming to offer families a feel for the level of care your facility provides? Then make sure your website does just that.