For many small businesses, “having a website” can feel like checking a box. It exists. There’s a menu, some photos, hopefully a contact form. But when we talk about having an online presence, we’re talking about something much bigger and far more valuable. We're talking about creating influence, attracting attention, building trust, and eventually converting that presence into real business growth.
In working closely with small businesses—whether in a client meeting over coffee in Franklin, TN or building out site maps from scratch—I've seen how easily people get overwhelmed by the digital landscape. But when we break it down into core strategies and focus on the essentials, building a strong online presence becomes not just achievable but empowering.
Let’s explore the strategies I’ve seen make the biggest impact across projects spanning industries, platforms, and budgets.
Your brand is not just your logo or color scheme—it’s the sum total of how your business shows up in someone’s mind. Before we build anything digital, we need to understand who you are, what you stand for, and what emotions you want people to associate with your brand.
I often joke that part of what I do is web design therapy. A big chunk of our discovery process is actually just listening—uncovering the underlying fear clients have about being misunderstood, overlooked, or not taken seriously. That fear leads to overly generic messaging that doesn't feel authentic or ineffective DIY design choices that undercut your credibility.
One local bakery I worked with had a beautiful mission centered around community and sustainability. But their website used a stark corporate theme because they’d chosen a generic Squarespace template and hadn’t customized it. It didn’t reflect the company’s soul. By aligning the visuals, font choices, and copywriting with their values, we saw a 40% increase in newsletter signups within 60 days. People finally felt like they were “meeting” the business online for the first time.
Having a website isn’t enough. You need a site that works as a living, breathing part of your business strategy—not just a static brochure. This means aligning every page with goals and customer intent.
I see a lot of businesses pick the platform first—WordPress, Webflow, Wix, etc.—before thinking about what their site actually needs to accomplish. That’s like buying a house before deciding what city you want to live in. Yes, I build in all these platforms, but I choose based on the complexity of the project, the team’s comfort level, and future needs.
For example, a boutique healthcare provider needed HIPAA-compliant contact forms and CMS flexibility for blogging, so we opted for WordPress with careful plugin curation. A modern architecture firm needed visual control above all else, so we chose Webflow. Matching the platform to the business goals made both projects more scalable and smooth.
I often ask, “What’s the one thing you want a visitor to do on this page?” If you can’t answer that, how will they know what to do? Websites should guide behavior, not just show information.
Small businesses often hear about SEO and immediately check out. It sounds intimidating, slow, and expensive. And yet, it’s consistently one of the highest-ROI efforts you can make online—if you do it right.
For service businesses rooted in community—chiropractors, contractors, cafes—local SEO is a golden opportunity. Ranking in Google’s local pack can mean hundreds more calls, foot traffic, or bookings each month. One local landscaping business I worked with added city-specific service pages for surrounding towns and saw a 65% increase in form submissions from organic traffic in three months.
The trick is to contextualize pages with genuinely helpful content rather than just stuffing city names. Think: showcasing past local projects, embedding Google Maps, featuring customer testimonials from specific regions, and updating business profiles across all directories.
Remember: SEO isn’t a trick. It’s trust, built over time.
I always say your website is the fireplace, but your content is the fire. Without consistent fuel in the form of blogs, resources, videos, or case studies, your online presence grows cold. Content warms people up to your business before they even reach out.
One therapist I worked with had struggled to connect with clients online. She kept posting academic articles and overly formal pieces on her blog. When we shifted the tone to answer questions people actually Googled—like “how to manage work stress without quitting your job”—her traffic jumped 300% in 90 days, and two new long-term clients came specifically from those posts.
Clients don’t want jargon. They want relatability. They want to see themselves in the stories you’re telling.
Use the psychology of reciprocity—give people value, they’re more likely to trust and eventually hire you.
No one's really neutral when reviewing businesses anymore. They either love you or tell the world what you did wrong. Which is why proactive review strategies are essential—not optional.
I spoke with a local law office recently who had only two Google reviews. They’d been in business for five years. Why so few? “No one thinks to leave one” was the answer. That’s a missed opportunity. We helped them add a review request process into their workflow (automated email a few days after case resolution), wrote example copy for clients to personalize, and within six weeks they had 22 visible reviews—all five stars.
Suddenly, they looked like the dominant player in their niche, without any changes in service or pricing. This is perception power.
Respond to every single review. Prospective clients read how you handle critique more than they care about perfection.
Many businesses chase the new: new traffic, new leads, new followers. But the gold often lies in nurturing the people who already showed interest. Email marketing is still the highest-converting digital channel, according to HubSpot's 2024 data, with an average ROI of $36 for every $1 spent.
Let me escort you away from the idea of annoying “email blasts.” Good email marketing is about showing up like an old friend—helpful, expected, and occasional. For one real estate consultant I worked with, we built a monthly email around local market stats and an honest “what I’m seeing in the field” section. Engagement went up even though emails only went out once a month. People stayed subscribed because it didn’t feel like noise.
Your audience doesn’t want a content factory. They want you. The same business owners who struggle to get clients often post nothing for months on social, or only share templated graphics they bought from stock libraries. That’s not presence. That’s filler.
If you're a photographer, Instagram is obvious. But maybe you’re a B2B consultant and you’d rather own LinkedIn. That’s fine. The point is to be consistently present on one or two platforms and actually engage. Comment. DM people. Be real.
One of my clients, a fitness coach, posted short, honest video check-ins each week—sometimes while sweaty after a run. It was raw, yes, but it was authentic. Her following doubled in six months and inquiries followed. People bought in because they felt like they knew her.
A strong online presence is not a checklist—it’s an ecosystem. Every piece supports the others. A thoughtful blog post gets shared on social. That traffic lands on a focused landing page. That user signs up for your newsletter which builds trust over time. Later, they book a call or walk into your store. It’s all one conversation, just in different formats.
I worked with a small e-commerce brand in Franklin selling handmade candles. Before, their traffic mostly came from Etsy, over which they had zero control. We built a cohesive online strategy: a Webflow storefront, local SEO-optimized collection pages, lifestyle product shots for Instagram, and an email sequence for abandoned carts. That year, their direct website revenue tripled. Not because of any one magic bullet. Because it all worked together.
If there’s a thread that ties this all together, it’s this: build an online presence that reflects who you really are and what you’re trying to build. Don’t just market louder, market smarter. Don’t just post content, tell stories. Don't just get a website live, get one that supports your client journey from curiosity to conversion.
What works is alignment. Between your brand voice and visuals. Between your goals and your technology. Between your audience’s needs and the value you provide. When it all lines up, it doesn't just “look good”—it feels real. And real is what people trust.
Presence isn't a project. It’s a practice. And with the right strategies, it can be your business’s most powerful growth engine for years to come.
Copyright © Zach Sean Web Design
