subject: Easy Ways To Make Your Website Shine [print this page] So you've started a business or come up with an idea and you'd like to get it out there. You've put up a website - perhaps even hired a professional designer to create your website for you. Maybe you're getting some traffic, but your site's just not taking off like you expected it to. Where did you go wrong?
Fortunately, there are plenty of folks out there just like you - and plenty of solutions as well - so don't quit just yet. There are two simple steps you can take to make your website stand out and start working.
Step 1: Keep it Clean
A huge mistake that many folks make is trying to cram too much information on the home page. Some websites are chock full of external links, wild graphics, and pointless pictures. Unfortunately, this just confuses and distracts visitors.
Think back to your main goal when you decided to create your website? Are you trying to sell a product? Get feedback? Provide specific information? Focus on your goal and cut out anything irrelevant.
Your home page (and all consecutive pages) should direct visitors to your end goal. By cutting out the frills, visitors immediately understand the point and purpose of your site. That means results for you.
Step 2: Keep it Simple
Simplicity is the golden rule of successful websites. If you've ever been in a poorly-organized department store, you might just understand the frustration of trying to find a specific item. However, on a poorly-planned website this frustration is taken a step further as no one is around to point you in the right direction.
A website must be easy to navigate, or visitors will leave without ever reaching the end goal. Cleaning up your design and cutting out frills is a good first step, but clear website navigation is a must.
It might be fun to give your links cutesy names like "get in touch" or "back to the start", but you'll be doing more harm than good. Web standards are there for a reason - to make things easy on users. You see, visitors scan a page looking for key words like "home", "contact", and "about". When they don't see those words at first glance, they have to work harder to find what they're looking for.
Stick to basic web standards (like navigation terms and site layout) and you'll be that much closer to reaching your goals.
Step 3: Test Drive
Once you've made these changes, do a little test run. Watch while a few friends use your site. Don't give them any tips - just watch. Take note of any areas that cause confusion or questions, and take steps to make those aspects simpler. Once they can find their way around and get to end goals quickly and easily, you'll know things are looking up and you're well on your way to website success!
