subject: 5 Ways to get more from your website [print this page] 5 Ways to get more from your website 5 Ways to get more from your website
In the modern world, a website is more-or-less a must have' business asset. But there is a difference between simply getting your business online, and having an effective web presence. Here are five simple steps any business can take to ensure their website delivers better results whether that's increased sales, more enquiries or even lower costs elsewhere in the business.
1 - A picture speaks a thousand words
It's an old adage, but perhaps with the shortening attention span of web users, one that is becoming ever-more important. In this age of ready access to broadband, web designers need no longer be afraid of image rich sites and indeed, they shouldn't be. You will sometimes have only a matter of seconds from a user arriving at your site, to them deciding whether to stay or click the dreaded back button. Well-chosen images can convey much quicker than paragraphs of text exactly what your business is about, creating the initial desire in the web user to find out more about you.
2 Content is king
Once you've grabbed their attention, the web provides you with the opportunity to give your customers as much information as they need. Whilst I wouldn't recommend sending them straight from a stunning home page into pages and pages of text, the web does give you the unique opportunity to give your customers as much information as they need.
Remember keep the flow through your website clear if you are a shop for example, some customers will shop visually they'll see what they want and buy it. Others need to justify to themselves why they need your product so give them the extra information they need, but without making everyone read through it just to get to the "Add to Cart" button.
What's more, search engines love content so making sure you have relevant, optimised content will help with your search engine strategy.
3 Clear Navigation
Bad navigation frustrates users and frustrated users will often go elsewhere. A clear, standard structure is important. If you have a big site, you'll need to define clear sub headings to keep your menus manageable. Increasingly, users are becoming accustomed to more detailed menus at the foot of webpages. Adding a footer as a second navigation option can also help you keep a tidy main menu.
4 Offer a Newsletter
What's the good of someone finding your site if it then becomes lost in a blur of websites they visited that day? Adding a newsletter is really a no-brainer a good newsletter can not only help you turn initial visits into sales, but it's also a very cheap way of regularly contacting your entire customer base. With e-mail, it should be possible to contact every one of your customers weekly, for less than the cost of a single annual mailing.
Remember though, people value their privacy, so ensure you have a clear privacy policy, and it often doesn't hurt to offer an incentive to sign up perhaps a money-off voucher? Oh and if you have a physical store, be sure to ask customer for their e-mail addresses there as well contacting them by e-mail rather than post will save you a fortune on postage stamps!
5 Have a clear contact point
At the very least, a link to your contact page should be clear in the navigation. As well as your e-mail address, this should include at minimum, a phone number and address knowing that you are a real company is a significant confidence boost for a customer who's never heard of you before.
I also recommend including your phone number prominently in the site template. It won't necessarily increase call volume by that much, but it will serve a clear reminder to your customers that you are a real business, with the reassurance that they can get hold of you.
