Research Shows Websites Influence 97% of Clients' Purchasing Decisions

Your website may very well be the most powerful tool in your marketing kit. Not only is it the place prospects and clients go to learn more about you and your services, but it has a huge impact on their ultimate purchase decision. In fact, only 3% of the 200 buyers surveyed - from companies of all sizes - say a provider's website has no influence whatsoever over their purchase decision.

The survey was conducted by RainToday.com and included more than 200 buyers responsible for more than $1.7 billion in professional services purchased, such as accounting and financial consulting; architecture, engineering, and construction services; human resources consulting; IT consulting and services; legal services; management consulting; marketing, advertising, and public relations; and training services.

The influence of professional services websites on purchasing decisions has increased significantly over the past four years. According to the survey, 74% of buyers report the service provider's website holds at least "some influence" over their ultimate decision to buy services from the provider. This is 23 percentage points higher than in 2005 and represents a significant increase in the importance of websites.

It's clear that professional services firms must take advantage of this power. With well-designed websites they can:

• Establish that they are professional : through professional design, writing, and arrangement of content.
• Establish that they are worthy of consideration : through an overview of their services, their client list, biographies of their professionals, and case studies that show how they helped clients and delivered what they promised.

Establish themselves as an authority : through blog posts, publications, videos, and other resources to help build credibility, reliability, and trust-all essential elements necessary to win clients

How important is your website to growing your business?

 

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