It builds your brand. A great website should be consistent with your other branding efforts. If you have a logo, display it prominently. If you do not have a logo, consider hiring a graphic artist. A logo can tell people many things about your company without the use of words. Think about McDonald's golden arches. How is it that kids who are under the age of 5 can point out a McDonald's without the ability to read? It is the identifying colors and shape of their logo.
Your logo can let people immediately know they came to the right place. If you don’t have a logo, or don’t feel you can afford to have one professionally created, use a consistent font in your business name. Use that same font on business cards, flyers, print ads, and of course, on your website.
A great website is one that adds fuel to your marketing efforts. It helps build your brand.
It contains calls to action. A website that doesn’t include calls to action is like a salesman who never asks for the order. You must ask your visitors to do something. Examples of simple CTAs include: sign up today, find out more, call for more info, and get started now. Keep the calls to action above the fold, available for viewing without scrolling down on the page.
Calls to action are asking for the order. The “order’ may be in the form of getting them to join your mailing list or asking for further details. You want them to initiate contact and that is not likely to happen without a call to action. Call to actions can be made more effective by including a benefit. An example would be "Get started today and make money tomorrow!"
Have compelling reasons to use your CTA. Experts say you may only have about 8 seconds to catch the attention of a visitor before you lose them. You need quick, powerful reasons for them to use your calls to action. What's the incentive to click on your join my mailing list (JMML) or request for information (RFI) buttons? It may include free information or access to premium or exclusive content only you can provide.
Brief one- or two-sentence testimonials that show or confirm a benefit can also be compelling reasons to use a CTA.
Use professional photos that are your own. Do not use all stock photos or graphics. Hire a photographer and, if necessary, use a few stock photos for fill. If the site includes a photo of you, make sure it is taken by a professional. Professional photography shows that you are serious about your website and goes hand in hand with your branding. A cellphone headshot is not acceptable for use on a great website.
Use video. According to video production company SundaySky, almost half a billion online content videos were watched in 2012. Videos fall into a variety of categories, but each can be compelling. Videos will engage your viewers and may increase conversions. Some videos are designed to demonstrate or instruct; others are informational or promotional. There are those that feature testimonials, and some simply exist to entertain. They also share the following:
- 56% of consumer web traffic is now video.
- The average video content duration was 6.3 minutes
- The average video ad duration is 24 seconds
When implementing videos on your website, you can increase viewership by keeping them short and making them as relevant to your visitors as possible. The presence of videos alone will not ensure viewership, so invite viewers to watch with enticing or provocative captions.
Mobile accessibility is a must. More than 90 million smartphones are in use in the U.S. alone. How many are being used to browse the net? A whopping 84%. Additionally, tablet ownership reached 22% in late 2012. Yet today, most websites are either not mobile capable or mobile friendly. Keep in mind, not all mobile users are teenagers. A full 50% of smartphone users are 35 years of age or older, and are a valuable market. If your website is not mobile friendly, you are missing out on an opportunity, and a market that continues to grow rapidly.
Mobile users want information quickly. They are not likely to have the patience to sift through detailed information. Their screen sizes are smaller, and they will see your website vertically and horizontally. Your website will need to be optimzed for these smaller screens and various shapes. This is typically done by experienced web designers.
Keep it social media friendly. Having a social-friendly website can boost traffic by leaps and bounds. This doesn’t have to be difficult but it will take fresh content -- blogs, infographics, videos and more. Allow your visitors to easily share your content via email, Twitter and Facebook. Link your website to your Facebook page as well. Make sure you respond to inquiries generated by social media. You may even want to stream your social media content to your main page.
Use appropriate search engine optimization tactics. You can’t have a great website if it can’t be found. Making sure your website suits search engines is a critical step. Do not utilize black hat techniques (like keyword stuffing and hidden links) in an attempt to improve your rankings. Such techniques are not only unethical, they can also provide a bad user experience.
Utilize keywords but do not overstuff them. Keep content fresh. Build a growing list of pertinent back-links. Familiarize yourself with Google’s Penguin algorithm and follow its guidelines. You are likely to be rewarded with increasing rankings.
Conclusion
A great website is one that builds your brand and coverts visitors to customers. It does this by giving them compelling reasons to follow through on your calls to action. A great website will use quality custom photos and relevant videos to make an impression, and it will be mobile and social media friendly. A great website that works will drive visitors by using appropriate SEO techniques. A great website -- an asset for any organization -- deserves appropriate attention.
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