If you have a business you probably know that customer awareness is critical to success. Nowadays a lot of that awareness comes from your online presence, more specifically, your website. Why do you need a great website and how can you build one that drives engagement and contributes to the success of your small business?
Why Your Website Matters
The Internet gives your business a chance to connect with millions of potential customers. A well-designed website is your chance to make a lasting impression on your target audience. Here are three reasons you need a great website.
- Visibility - The Internet gives you the chance to market to millions of people with an online store, but it’s not possible to reach those customers if they don’t know you exist.
- History and Vision - Having a website gives you a platform to share your story, including how you got started, what you’re doing now, and where your business is going. It lets you show customers how long you’ve been in your industry and what contributions you’ve made. Even if you’re just starting out, you can talk about the road that led you to where you are now. Your website also allows you to talk about upcoming products and discuss the long-term goals of your business. Sharing your vision shows confidence and ambition, and lets people know that you plan to be around for a long time.
- Competition - No matter what industry you’re in, it’s safe to assume that your biggest competitors already have a web presence. Make sure you research your competitors online. What are they doing that you can do better (web design? load time? search engine optimization?)? Which marketing methods aren’t they using? How much more attractive can your website be compared to theirs so that your website will perform better? If your business doesn’t have a website, you’re not even in the game! However, just building a website isn’t all it takes to make you competitive. You have to design it in a way that offers better content and convinces customers that what you’re selling is better than what others are offering.
What Your Website Needs
Now that you know why you need a great website you need to figure out what your website needs to be successful. Here are five critical pieces your website should have if you want it to be effective.
- Home Page - Your homepage is the first thing most people will see when they visit your website. It’s your digital shopfront and its design is critical. Functionality is important but so are aesthetics (94% of first impressions are design-related and can make or break conversions, according to Go-Globe). An effective home page should clearly describe what pain point you can solve for a customer and also include testimonials, important industry credentials, and awards.
- Product / Service Pages - If you want people to buy something from you they need to know what you have to offer. Your Product Page should have a detailed description of each product or service you offer to help customers decide between, ‘This is what I want! Sell me this’, and, ‘This isn’t what I want, what else do you have?’.
- About Page - People want to know who you are before they buy from you. It’s like when you meet a new person and you ask about their background, hobbies, favorite food, etc. You’re trying to figure out if they’re like you and if you can trust them. It’s the same when somebody visits your website for the first time, they go to the About Page to find out if they can trust you. They want to know your story, why you do what you do, and figure out if you "get them" and their problems. If you create a personal, likable, and believable About Page, people are more likely to be comfortable buying from you.
- Contact Us Page - If people want to get in touch with you to do business you should make it as easy as possible for them to do so. A simple contact page that includes a contact form, email address, phone number, address, and the ability to book an appointment will take care of this.
- Blog - There are two basic guidelines to a blog, have one and keep it updated.
Ellipsis Can Help
We build websites that work! Let us help you turn yours into something that will get the results you want.
Contact Us: Click to fill out a short contact form or call us at (925) 344-6472
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