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What you put on your website can say a lot to potential customers.Your website is not just your company’s online home, it is also its calling card, and what you put on that card can say a lot to potential customers. You’re Easy to Work With (or you’re not) Surf around any category of websites (mega-retailers, popular online magazines, restaurants), and you’ll see they have a lot in common when it comes to layout. Amazon, Walmart, and Wayfair put a search box top-center to make is easy for customers to look up what they seek to buy. BuzzFeed and Cracked both have leading stories, followed by a stream of the most popular current articles. Restaurants have dominant homepages with links to their menus, locations, and online ordering options above the fold. It might seem a bit boring, this consistency of design across each niche, but there’s actually good reason for it. Companies which specialize in the same things have the same objectives, and the same items to prioritize across their sites, so those sites end up looking a great deal alike. And customers prefer it that way. Visitors to you site like being able to find the information they seek as quickly and easily as possible. Keeping your site somewhat in line with the popular design scheme in your niche lets visitors know you’re keeping it simple for them, which they can then expect to translate into any further relationship with your company. You’re Trustworthy (or you’re not) A lot of things on the Internet live in anonymity, but your business can’t be one of them. You don’t have to splash your name all over your company’s “About” page, but it is important to be transparent about what your company is, what it does, and its policies, and that transparency comes in a lot of different forms. If you buy from an online store, what matters to you? Price probably, but that’s not the only thing you consider. You probably don’t care about the name of the owner-operator, but you certainly care about whether the product you order will actually show up when it says it will and in one piece. Providing a legal business name that can be researched, contact information, and a full explanation of your return policy can mean the difference between a purchase and a potential customer moving along. Why would they send their hard-earned money to an anonymous, untraceable entity? There are quite a few online businesses operating in relative anonymity. You can stand out by being open and honest. You’re Funny (or trendy or traditional or different) So, you’ve tightened the nuts and bolts, ensuring your site visitors will find you both trustworthy and easy to work with. Now’s your chance to let them know who you truly are. Call it “the pitch,” call it “style,” call it whatever you want, but the fact is you can get a lot of personality across in the design and copy of your website. Maybe you want to be the toaster retailer with a sense of humor, or the most elegant architectural firm in the city. The images on the page and the copy that supports those images can tell that story for you. A bit of personality lets site visitors and potential clients connect with you on a more personal level, so don’t be afraid to show a little flair. Remember, every house needs a roof, walls, and a foundation, but you can paint it any color you want.
Author bio:
Shawna Newman is digital marketing consultant with an emphasis on site-building and SEO. She has sold several successful web-based businesses, and owns and operates Skipblast Digital. She provides this post on behalf of London web design company Bond Media. |
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