Whether you are about to launch a business or looking to take your brick-and-mortar company digital, having the right business website is essential. It will act as your digital storefront, creating the first point of contact for new and returning customers.
However, building and launching a business website isn’t the same as starting a leisure or personal blog! There are some aspects to keep in mind to make sure that your online image is enhanced and your website works well for you and your business goals.
In this quick-start guide we’ll cover the basic must-haves—but don’t forget that every company is unique. So, be sure to understand your needs and work with a specialist who can bring your vision to life!
Before We Start: Be Sure to Partner with a Team of Experts
As mentioned above, every business is unique, and so should be your website. However, it isn’t always easy to balance effectiveness and personality! That is why you should consider working with a specialist, such as Phase One Websites. These experts can help you create a website for your business that is intuitive, fast, secure, and a great representation of your company’s mission and vision.
They will guide you in the choice of the best designs and take care of important aspects, such as accessibility and compliance, to make sure that your website is working harder to help you meet your goals. This is an investment that will certainly pay off!
Open With a Clear Value Proposition
Think about what you wish your customers to know first about you. Is it your decade-long experience in the field? The growing portfolio of successful projects? Or a vision that sets you apart from the competitors? Whatever your company’s ethos may be, be sure that this is the first thing your visitors will get to know about your company.
To add in these essential details, you could develop a personalized banner that contains your value proposition or tag line, as well as a clear call to action. Make sure to use design aspects like fonts or colors to communicate the personality of your brand and make your business name more memorable!
Mobile-First, Fast-Loading Design
Did you know that, today, nearly 60% of internet users access the web via their mobile phones? Because of this, it is critical to ensure that your website is just as fast, beautiful, and efficient on mobile as it is when accessed via desktop. Here, working with specialized developers can help you ensure that every feature, update, and content piece is well portrayed and accessible regardless of the device used by customers to contact your company!
Intuitive Navigation and Site Structure
Whether you are looking to launch an ecommerce website or create a landing page for your consulting business, be sure to keep the site structure and navigation simple, intuitive, and agile. This will allow you to better organise content, and it ensures that your customers can easily find key information, such as mobile numbers, email addresses, and service prices.
Most websites today leverage a standard structure that is easily recognizable by someone visiting your online space for the first time. However, sometimes, thinking out of the box can work best for your business’s personality and goals. Be sure to rely on the help of an expert website designer and developer to ensure you are bringing to life a website that reflects your goals.
Strong Calls to Action on Every Page
When it comes to achieving your business goals—be it building an email list, increasing sales, or boosting visibility—being able to guide your website visitors in their decision making process is essential. And, for this, strong calls to actions can help!
Be sure to add clear clickable buttons in strategic locations, so that your visitors can follow optimized indications to buy a product, save it for later, contact your business, or simply sign up for the newsletter. And, remember, if you are running seasonal promotions or discounts, be sure to leverage these in your call to actions!
Provide Social Proof Through Testimonials, Reviews, and Certifications
Social proof plays a major role in helping new visitors develop trust in your brand and, in turn, move ahead with a purchase or making contact. This is essential in every field. For instance, someone interested in product sustainability and durability may need to look beyond what you advertise and check that, in fact, your products are made ethically and will stand the test of time. Here, reviews can say a lot about your customer service and how a product actually looks and feels in real life.
Social proof is also essential in situations where customers have to trust you for a long-term project. Think, for instance, of someone looking to renovate their kitchen by adding an addition to their homes. These are significant investments, and your customers will want to know that they can trust you!
So, be sure to include testimonials, reviews, and comments from various sources, including Google Reviews, direct feedback, and directories like TrustPilot. If you are just getting started, actively ask for reviews, and don’t forget to manage comments—good and bad—publicly so that you can turn a negative experience into a positive one!
SEO-Ready Foundations
SEO is essential to ensure that your website, and, in turn, your brand, gain visibility through search engines, such as Google. SEO is present everywhere in a website: in its structure, content, and even underlying features like security and accessibility.
A specialized website developer will create a website that is SEO-ready and can be kept up to date with minimal maintenance. These specialists can also guide you in the process of optimizing your content and strategy to rank higher on search engines!
Accessible, Secure, and GDPR-Compliant
Aside from being beautiful and striking, a website also needs to be accessible by all members of the audience, regardless of disabilities or language barriers. So, ensure you are investing in key features like accessibility, security, and privacy protection. These features will go a long way in helping you gain the trust of your customers—and, they are considered by Google in its rankings!
Focus on Continuous Optimization
Last but not least, don’t forget that developing a website isn’t a one-time project, but rather an ongoing effort to keep it up to date, modern, and user-friendly. So, be sure to lay the foundations of a long-term partnership with specialized website developers and trust them in helping you keep your website in the best possible shape!
The post The 9 Must-Have Features Every Business Website Needs appeared first on TechNuovo | Bitesized tech news and reviews.