Recently, I ran across what I thought was a friend’s hijacked shop site (first clue: it was in Japanese!) and learned that she no longer has a web site, period.
As “old school” as you might think a simple web site for your consignment, resale, or thrift shop might be, it’s not. There are
3 big reasons your web site must shine
as bright as your shop windows (yes, even if you’re strictly online, without actual real glass windows!)
Why “a gift I give myself”?
Because, in addition to letting your business be found by strangers and forgetful favorite customers… having a web site makes YOUR online communication, promotion and advertising
easier, quicker, and more effective!
How can that be?
Reason #1 that your web site is a gift to yourself: No longer do you have to explain and explain…
whether you’re promoting a special event, telling folks where you are, or issuing a call for a new season, a clearance sale, or just about anything else! Imagine being able to simply post Don’t miss tomorrow’s Giant Sale! and add the link to where you have ALL the info about it, on your site.
Talk about a quick post! No big details, no forgetting to tell them where, when, how. Being able to link to the spot on your site with all the info is also a quick way to answer comments (no more spending 10 minutes answering and worrying that your reply sounds rushed, curt, or less than gracious…)
Reason #2 that your web site is a gift to yourself: If your graphics, videos, social media links are on your site, you can use and use and use them all over and over again.
All that I did for the following post is put the web page’s URL down, then added a Call to Action: Why the viewer should do what I want her/him to do: discover all of my social media offerings.
(Notice that you can even choose which graphic on that page to use, to suit your message!)
Reason #3 that your web site is a gift to yourself: It finds your customers 24/7
All those people looking for a shop they don’t even know exists… or forgot the name of… or want to find to send the info to a friend? If you have a web site with good, useful, refreshed information, search engines will pop your site right up, and you get to tell them all about why your business is the one for them! No web site? Not enough Google love to motivate them. Try searching for resale or thrift or consignment and the name of your area… you want to come up on the first page of results.)
Remember, not everyone is on, or checks out, or cares to use, all the various social media sites. If you’re only on Facebook, or any other 3rd-party site, you will be missing people. Potential customers, consignors, donors, sellers, fand, fanatics, most-loyal-promoter ever. That’s not something you’d like to miss, I think. That’s why I say that a web site is a gift you give yourself.
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 