Dex Media Website GraderExcuses. Everybody’s got ‘em. Especially when you’re an uber busy small business owner who does more work in a day than most people do in a week. It’s hard to find the time to build, update or redesign a website. Here are some of my favorite excuses small business owners make for not updating their company’s site.

We’re Gonna Start Off with a Bang.” 

You want to be the next Diet Coke and Mentos. 20 million views or bust. You just have to come up with the right idea. What about a flash mob? Flash mobs get crazy views. Once you figure it out, you’ll finally launch the website and blow up. You just have to figure it out…

“We’re Changing the Game!”

You’re adding services. No, seriously. You’ve been a fried chicken restaurant since the day you opened, but you’ve always wanted to add a caviar delivery service, and the website should really reflect that. Or your greeting card store wants to provide the best biodegradable kayaks on the western seaboard…but it’s going to take a minute. And until then, your site is under construction.

“We’re Concentrating on Social.”

These days, with Facebook and Twitter and Snapchat and Instagram and blogs, and who knows what else, you might think you barely need a website. And social allows you to have a one-to-one conversation with the customer. But you only posted three times last month. And one of those posts was a close up of your thumb.

For a lot of customers, the first contact they have with your business is, you guessed it, your website. So, if your site isn’t up to snuff, well, you might not keep that customer.