Most of us have heard of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The base of his pyramid consists of our basic physiological needs, like food, water, sleep, and so on. According to Abraham Maslow, once those needs have been met, we can work to meet higher levels of needs, moving up the pyramid through safety, love and belonging, esteem, and finally, self-actualization.
What if we were to apply this same hierarchy to our small businesses? What basic needs of our businesses need to be met before we can work our way up the pyramid to business self-actualization and ultimate success?
You know it’s coming… wait for it …
Yes, among other necessities, you need a website.
- Do you know that 74.4% of the population in North America is now using the internet?
- For those of you in the health and wellness industry, do you know that 61% of adults look online for health information? That’s eight out of ten internet users!
Here’s a personal story to illustrate this point. I recently decided to start taking yoga again. I did an online search for yoga studios and instructors in my area. Surprisingly, this search turned up only three studios! I would be willing to bet you a year’s supply of wheatgrass that there are more than three people teaching yoga in my city! But alas, I won’t be able to find them unless I happen to meet someone who takes yoga from them. By the way, the yellow pages, which I hardly ever use, revealed the same three studios. I guess they’re the only ones marketing themselves. Do you see the opportunity here?
A website is a basic need for your business that can also help you fulfill the rest of the needs on your pyramid. How so?
Safety – Having a web presence brings you more business, which increases your financial and employment security.
Love/Belonging – Stretch a little and add a blog to your website to increase interaction with other businesses and consumers.
Esteem – Now that you have a professional website, and you’re blogging to build relationships, you gain the respect of others as an expert in your field. This increases your confidence and helps you gain more clients. You also gain self-esteem by expanding your use of internet tools. You’re on a roll!
Self-Actualization – With your increased business, your expert standing in the field, and your sparkling self- confidence, (all based on your professional website, remember?) you are free to be ever more creative in solving problems and growing your business. You have now built a self-actualized company!
So what are you waiting for?
Smartflex Solutions has helped hundreds of small businesses, and we can help you, too. Call our friendly staff to ask about our website solutions, and start climbing that pyramid!
