While it’s easier than ever for a small business to set up and benefit from a website, a new survey commissioned by the marketing software company Clutch.com reveals that nearly half of small business do not have a website. Why? The majority of the no-websiters say it is not relevant to their business or because it’s too expensive. If you are one of the no-websiters, come up with a better excuse. If a customer is trying to find you via Google, a website is very relevant to your business. The majority of the small businesses covered in the survey had ten or less employees and  annual revenues less than $1 million. Here are some key findings:

Small businesses with/without websites

54% | (Percentage of…) Small businesses that HAVE a website
46% | Small businesses that DO NOT HAVE a website
24% | Plan to build a website in the near future
12% | Are unlikely to build a website in the future
10% | Unsure whether or not they will build a website in the future

Reasons small businesses don’t have a website

32% | Not relelvant of business or industry
30% | Cost
12% | Use of social media profiles instead of website
11% | Need for ongoing maintenance
10% | Lack of technical knowledge
5% | Don’t know or other

For small businesses with websites, percentage that have mobile friendly websites

68% | Have a mobile friendly website
32% | Don’t have a mobile friendly website, or don’t know

The most anticipated website changes or improvements during 2016

40% | SEO
40% | Social media marketing
39% | Content development
38% | Design
36% | More website features
32% | Mobile friendliness
31% | Security
21% | Improved user experience
21% | Improved site performance
19% | Marketing automation
7% | No changes or imprements planned

Observations and recommendations

• All small businesses can benefit from a website. Whether a one-page site or a comprehensive interactive tool, every business in every industry can benefit from having some type of website.
• The cost of not having a website is much higher than the cost of building a website, especially with the availability of lower cost DIY website builders.
• For those small businesses with a website, there are always areas to improve on a site to maximize its visibility, credibility, and usability.
• Small businesses need to make their websites mobile friendly and further optimize these sites for mobile engagement.
• Both usability and site performance should become a priority for small business website improvements in 2016.
• Small businesses that have a website will continue to benefit and further, those that have a mobile-friendly, user-friendly, optimized site will beat out competitors as they offer users a higher quality website experience.