An invaluable component of your business identity is your website. Not only does a website lend credibility to your enterprise, it gives you a way to connect with your audience 24/7, around the globe. For that very reason a solid plan for your site is needed so that your business' reputation is enhanced, not undermined, by your site.
A web designer will ask for certain basic information from you in order to get the process started. A questionnaire such as this one shows the type of information you will need to discuss.
Although the look of your site is very important, the structure of the site must be addressed first. Sites which are simple and easy to navigate create much better user experiences than a site that has too many visual bells and whistles.
To help you make decisions as to what should be included where, break down the information you want to present by category. Thes categories will become the pages on your site. You can think of each page as a chance to tell your audience in a few seconds about the most important features and benefits of that aspect of your business.
Here are some examples of pages that appear on many sites:
A home page to introduce your business and direct people quickly to the information they are seeking.
A page describing your goods and services in more detail. If there is a lot of information, you might have a page per main category.
An 'About Us' page telling your customers about the business. This can include a bio, some history of the business, etc.
An FAQ or 'Frequently Asked Questions' page. This is a very useful to answer all the questions you are asked on a constant basis about your business and policies.
A 'Contact Us' page, listing all the ways people can get in touch with you.
Use your home page to give a 1-shot overview in case they don't go any further. Simple and direct is best, and photos and illustrations can enhance the written content.
If you aren't sure how much text to include, think of your own attention span when you surf the Internet. Keep that in mind and, if you have a lot to say on a subject, state the basics and include links for further reading.
Remember that once of the wonderful aspects of a website is that you can update the information as you need. More pages can be added later as you refine your message and the goals of the site.
In all cases, your site should reflect the personality of your business and encourage interest in what you have to offer. Help your customers find what they need quickly, and keep your content up to date. This will reinforce their trust in your business and enhance your branding efforts.
It's important to create marketing campaigns that lead people directly to your site (online and print advertising, promotions, adding your website address to your business card, etc.) so that you aren't relying on search engines such as Google for web traffic.
One of my favorite ways of driving traffic to my site is to put colorful banner ads on sites visited by my potential clients. They can easily click on the banner ad and visit my site without typing in a website address. It's quick and easy, and has led to many good client relationships.
However it's important to understand how search engines work, as they can be very useful to help drive traffic to your site. When a search engine such as Google gets a request from a user, the job of the search engine is to present him with a list of the sites that are most relevant to his search terms.
In order to determine this relevancy the search engine looks for pertinent information within your site to determine how highly in the list (the ranking) your site should be shown.
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, means using various tactics to get your website as highly ranked as possible within search engines such as Google and Yahoo. The trouble is, everyone can't be number one.
When it comes to the search engines, one of the best ways to enhance your ranking is to know what words your potential customers might be using to search for you. Content is the key to a high ranking within search terms that are applicable to your business, so the first step is to make a list of possible search terms your customers might use to find you.
Think of your product or service names, your brand names, and how your customers might phrase their search requests. Include location names as well. This list of words and phrases will become your keyword list, useful in helping your develop search-engine friendly text for your site.
If you are a plumber with a local Raleigh business you don't need to come first in a global search for plumbers. Your list can include keywords such as "plumber, Raleigh, new construction, plumbing, HVAC". Your web designer will include these words within the code of the site and you can use these words when writing the text for your site. However you don't want to overdo it -- some search engines will penalize you for trying to trick the system!
Another way to enhance your SEO is to have your link appear on reputable business sites that already have a good ranking. It's perfectly OK (and standard practice) to ask companies with whom you do business to include you as a link on their site.
You can also have your site URL submitted to the major search engines just so they know to look for you. This is quite simple to do but, once again, you can be penalized for doing this too often. And beware of email solicitations offering SEO services such as URL submission; many of these companies are not reputable.
For some great reading on the subject, for those who are somewhat familiar with web design, I highly recommend the informative pages provided on the site of web designer Heather Goff. She is particularly adept at content management systems and has made many wonderful websites. Here's a link to her article on SEO.
And if you're interested in helping your web designer with a list of targeted keywords and other useful text to help your search ranking, read my article on Gathering Information for a Successful Website.
If you want to improve your search engine ranking, ask a web designer to look at your site with SEO in mind. They are likely to have some helpful ideas. But to really drive traffic to your website, use all your advertising and promotional efforts as a chance to tell your customers about your site. When they get there, have something engaging for them to read and see. It's a great opportunity for you to convince people already interested in your range of services that you are the one they should choose.
