Whether you’ve started a business website or not, you may not realize how much value a website can offer a business. Think of your website as your online business card; the face of your brand to those meeting you for the first time on the web. While your best impression might be made with a visit to your store or through a phone call, some people are going to find you online first and your first impression on the world should be a good one.
Not only does it set the tone for whether or not a customer decides to get in contact with your company, but for some companies, it’s the perfect way to make sales through an e-commerce site or having an online submission for a quote on services. Your website could provide you a great value but you need to make sure you are setting yourself up for success. Take a look at some ways that your website could help you out and what to avoid doing to make a poor impression on your online customers.
Reaching your target audience
A great reason behind your business website is to reach your target audience more broadly and more easily. Not everyone that would love your product is going to be living in your town to find out about you. Your target audience may be found across the country or across the world. Being able to reach them through a well-designed website is important.
Make sure that you aren’t creating website that is designed for a different type of audience than your target audience. For example, a business that appeals to teens should be designed in bright colors, trendy headlines, and with images they can relate to. Making it look too sophisticated or too gender-specific may cause some in your target audience to click away.
Choose content, designs, colors, font size, and all of the details that would catch the eye of your target audience to ensure you are making a great first impression and keeping them from clicking away before they’ve gotten to know your business.
Make navigation a breeze and load times speedy
If you’ve caught the attention of a potential customer, next you need to make sure your website is easy to navigate through and that page load speeds are quick. Website speed not only irritates customers, but it will rank you lower in search engines making it harder for your customers to find you. Make sure everything loads quickly and that it’s obvious where to click to learn more about your business, to shop, to browse your inventory, and to get questions answered in an FAQ.
Offer easy checkout
If you are going to run an ecommerce site, make sure that your customers find it easy to shop with you. If you are hoping they will return in the future for more purchases, you need to show them that it’s easier than ever to get your product ordered and on the way. Don’t make checkout overly complicated or you may run into customers that don’t have the time or technical knowledge to complete the transaction.
Offer engaging content and calls to action
Lastly, make sure you provide engaging content that will capture the minds of your readers, with information that is relevant and interesting. Your content is also easy to share on social media, which can further be shared with your target audience’s friends and family who may find your business’s services or products appealing to them as well.
Having fresh content each week will keep your customers thinking of you, wanting to tell others about you, and showing that you are an expert in your industry. Provide a call to action to share, like, or comment on your content. Just make sure the content is unique and actually yours, as sharing other people’s content will affect your website negatively.
Once you understand how to make your website great, it can provide you huge value. Your business will be able to reach a larger range of customers, increase income through online sales, and will be more likely to be talked about on social media through a well-designed website with engaging content. Use these tips to make your business the best it can be with a solid online presence.
