These days your website is the first point of contact most new customers will have with your company. Getting that first impression right is key if you don’t want them to head over to a competitor’s site. Here are a few tips on what to put on your site:
1. Answers to questions
People use the internet to research companies and subjects before making contact so your website needs to answer frequently asked questions. They will vary depending on the business you are in but common ones are:
- How will I benefit if I use your product/service?
- How much will it cost me?
- What do your current customers think of you?
- How does your offering compare with that of your competitors?
2. Information on your industry/sector that isn’t readily available
Your website should obviously say what is good about your company and products but why not educate visitors in the areas you specialise in? Every business has subjects that people are curious to know more about and you can fulfill that need with blog posts or videos. For example a plaster could have a video showing the way a pro plasters a wall!
3. High quality images
Too many websites we look at have poor quality pictures of products. Everyone has a digital camera and it is easy to take a few photos but unless you know what you are doing and have the tools to get the lighting right the finished product can look very amateurish. It is worth hiring a professional photographer to take a series of high quality photos of your products, premises and staff that will form the foundation of your website.
4. A great story
Every business has a history and the website is a great opportunity to tell the world about yourself with passion. Why did you start, what are your objectives, what matters to you?
5. Calls to Action
Finally, you need a “next step” for your visitors. That may be a contact form to fill in or a newsletter to subscribe to. Once your website has done the hard work of raising interest you want to try and turn that into an action before your visitor leaves the site.
