Your website is the heart of your digital presence. From email marketing and social media pages, to Google and Facebook Ads, everything leads back to it… and it deserves all the love!
We’ve put together a little guide to give your website some TLC and make it irresistible to users. After all, who doesn’t want everyone to fall in love with their website?
Here we go!
MAKE IT FAST
A slow loading website is one of the most frustrating things for users and can cause you to lose potential customers who don’t want to wait around. A website that loads fast is one of the best things you can do for your site and your business. It’s worth the time and effort!
Be sure that you always upload images that are sized properly and with the smallest file size possible for what you need it. Use Photoshop, Canva or a similar photo editing program to resize photos.
MAKE IT MOBILE AND RESPONSIVE
Now-a-days most people use their mobile devices to browse websites. This is a great reason to make sure your website works well on mobile screens, including tablets. If you have a fairly new website chances are that you’re all set. However, if you haven’t updated your website in several years, this might be a problem and a reason to update your website right away .
To test your website, grab your cellphone and click around on your site pages, test buttons, read content. Is your text large enough to read easily on a small screen? Are links or buttons spaced well so that you don’t keep pressing the wrong one? Is your phone number clickable? If you click on your address, does it open Maps on your phone?
Google switched to a “mobile-first” model for ranking websites in their search results page, so if your site doesn’t pass their mobile-friendly experience test, you’ll likely be penalized.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
Keep things simple and easy to find. Put the navigation menu in a place where you know people will expect it to be. Same with your contact page, phone number, address, hours, etc.
Don’t crowd your navigation with tons of page links and leave white-space throughout your site design. A simplified structure and general layout makes for an easy to use website. You want to provide relevant information, but find a balance between beautiful design and great functionality. If you’re struggling with this, let us know and we can help you figure it out.
USE CONSISTENT AND THOUGHTFUL DESIGN
How things look matters. Leave plenty of white space, choose and stick with a color palette, and use consistent page design throughout your site. All the pages and visual content of your site should work together.
Websites with harmonious design make you feel at peace. You want the user to be excited, interested, and motivated, but we don’t want to overwhelm them or make them hate the experience. Thoughtful designs and color palettes make using a website fun.
Choose a color palette that goes along with your brand and use it throughout your site. Include one neutral color and one brighter color to capture attention. Use the same background color for every page. Try to keep the style of your images consistent. Use modern, easy to read fonts and don’t use more than two or three.
MAKE CALL TO ACTION (CTA) EASY TO FIND
Whether you’re an online store encouraging visitors to shop or a service provider collecting free quote requests, your CTA, or Call to Action, is what will direct people to take the action you want them to take. Examples: Follow us on Instagram! Shop Now! Get Started! Grab Your Free Quote! Subscribe to Our Newsletter!
Create attractive buttons or links and place them somewhere on your site where they’re always visible and easy to find to encourage the user to take that next step.
PUBLISH USEFUL CONTENT
Provide website visitors with the information they need to make an informed decision about your products or services and get their questions answered. Create a FAQ page and a blog to answer customer’s questions and show that you really know your stuff.
MAKE IT EASY TO REACH YOU
The number of websites that bury their contact information is alarmingly large. Get ahead of the game by making it really easy for visitors to contact you in as many different ways as possible.
Make sure to have a Contact Us page with your phone number, address, and a contact form. If you have a physical storefront don’t forget your business hours. This info could be included in the footer of your website so it’s always handy. Consider adding a Live Chat function to your site too.
HIGHLIGHT POPULAR CONTENT
Use Google Analytics to learn what the most popular content is on your website and then see how you can make it more accessible so that visitors can get to it quicker. The faster they get to what they’re searching for, the more likely they are to convert.
AUDIT YOUR SITE OFTEN
Your website is a very important part of your business. You have to give it attention and care, and grow it. The best way to do this is by checking on it regularly.
Check for broken links, outdated content, mobile features, and any else needing updated or fixed. Use Google Analytics to find content that isn’t performing well and fix it. Doing this will help you keep your website fresh and user-friendly so that people love it and come back over and over again.
MAKE IT THE ABSOLUTE BEST THAT YOU CAN
These days your website might be your first and last chance to impress a potential customer that finds you online. Sweep them off their feet and make them fall in love with your site at first visit!
Need help creating a website that you and your users will love? Send us a message and let’s chat!
