Website worries? Our Top 10 Tips…
Looking for website tips for a small business? These days a website is not optional for a business – it is mandatory.
Also long gone are the days of dodgy looking websites and poor image quality. Your website needs to look professional, be user-friendly and quick to load, be informative, be found easily, and be accessible on a mobile device – and be Google friendly.
Your website is your shop-front. It’s often the first point of contact that someone has with your business, so it’s very important to create a good first impression. Ensure your website is presenting the best possible image of your business at all times.
We regularly see small businesses trying to save money on a website by doing it themselves or getting a friend to help. Most of the time this ends up being a bad decision – costing the business owner lost time and money, and often having to start from scratch again with a new website. Your website is a key investment in your business – and your key marketing tool, so make sure you do it right.
Also an important point, you own your website (unlike your social media pages which you don’t actually own at all) – so your website is where you should be directing people to. Don’t just depend on your social media pages, which is the equivalent of putting all your eggs in one basket.
Before you start developing a website, we suggest the following 6 steps:
- Do your homework – research other websites, especially your key competitors, and make a list of what you need and like
- Create a ‘website brief’ which includes all the specifications you require
- Talk to a marketing consultant or get marketing advice before signing an agreement to commence building a website (don’t just talk with a website developer – many are not ‘marketing’ experts, they are website development experts – two different things) – especially if it’s the first time you’re building a website
- Ensure you obtain several quotes from website developers who are experienced and have client sample websites they can show you
- Make sure the quote includes all the tools you need; and specifies what’s included or not eg. is data content input included? images? is hosting included? is onging SEO or maintenance available?
- Make sure you have your content and images ready – to make the process as streamlined as possible. Write all the texts in advance, considering what text and image will go on each page. If need be, outsource a copywriter to assist you, and make sure SEO is considered during this process eg. keywords are important.
If you already have a website, below are our top 10 tips to ensure your website is performing as well as possible for you – especially if you are a small business.
Top 10 Website Tips
- Is your website mobile friendly & mobile responsive? If not, upgrade or get a new one fast! If you’re not sure, ask for advice.
- Does it have easy-to-find contact details – on the home page? Not having a clearly visible phone number is one of the fastest turnoffs for potential customers – transparency is vital for small businesses.
- Do you tell people who you are and your purpose? This includes showing your personality, an ‘About Us’ page, photos of your team.
- Can you capture data (email addresses)? This includes an opt-in or signup function; or a sales funnel.
- Do you have a clear “call-to-action” on your home page? What do you want visitors to your site to do; what step should they take next?
- Do you regularly add new and authentic SEO and keyword-friendly content?
- Is your website quick to load and easy to navigate? Quick means less than 3 seconds ideally
- Are your social media links visible & working? Ideally on your home page (header & footer)
- Are your images relevant and reflect your brand, professional quality & do you have the license to use them?
- Can you measure the performance of your website? Do you know where visitors to your site are coming from?
How do you know your website is performing properly or not? Make sure you ask people for feedback on a regular basis. Your website might make sense to you, but more importantly, it needs to make sense and work for your customers. Also ensure you have a website measurement tool installed to analyse your website’s performance; Google Analytics is the most common one.
Of course, there are other items to include and manage to ensure your website is performing optimally, but the above list provides the key points to get you started.
If you’re not sure if your website is performing well, or if you are thinking of building a new website, please contact us to discuss. We can assist and provide quotes for a website audit, to upgrade an existing website, or for a new website.
If you have any questions, comments, or additional suggestions to add to this list, please let us know. We’d love to hear from you. Check out our Blog for other marketing tips; or Contact us.
Planet Marketing provides practical and sustainable marketing advice – helping you determine what marketing suits your business best.