In today’s ever-connected world, small businesses can no longer afford to put off creating their own business website. If you hope to remain competitive, you’ll need to cultivate a high-quality website that can generate leads and provide you with a solid branding opportunity.
Features of Every Best Business Websites Have
Whether you’re creating your first business website or looking to improve an existing site, consider the following facets of successful business websites and determine how you can incorporate each into your design.
1. Make Your Company Accessible
Part of providing great customer service means providing customers with easy access to your representatives. Make it as easy as possible for your customers or clients to contact you through your website. List pertinent contact information on every page. This could mean a list of pertinent email addresses or phone numbers in the company to various departments.
This will make it easy for site visitors to access the information they need immediately. You may also consider installing a pop up chat feature for instant help with customer questions. Check out http://zopim.com to check out a free trial and provide better customer support instantly.
2. A Mobile-Friendly Site
Consider how many times a day you access the internet from your smartphone or a tablet. Mobile usage is on the rise 80 percent of all internet users have a smartphone and this trend doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon. That means, if your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you’re losing out on numerous clients and potential revenue. A recent study from Mobify found that over 1.2 billion people access the internet through their smartphones.
Instead of creating multiple website schemes, hire a programmer that can help you create a website that utilizes responsive design. This enables users to switch from laptop to iPad to smartphone to desktop with ease. Your site needs to be quick to load and not overload a visitor’s phone or other device. The average mobile user will wait only three seconds for a page to load before clicking out and moving onto the next.
3. Provide Educational Content
Content is king, and the more educational, unique content you can provide, the better your site and business is bound to do. If you don’t already have a blog on your website, it’s time to start one. You may choose to write the blog posts yourself to start, especially if you’re hoping to build a reputation as an expert in your field. You can also post articles for writers looking to get their name more exposure.
Focus on creating sharable information that serves a practical purpose for your site visitors. From online guides to industry updates, there’s no limit to the types of content you can produce. Figure out what people are talking about in your field or industry and start from there.
4. Social Media Buttons Are Vital
News flash: social media is important for modern businesses. You’re likely (hopefully) already using social media strategies to improve brand reputation and boost sales, but have you considered how your website can play into these efforts? Including social media share buttons is a simple but effective way to gain more likes and garner more shares about your site, product, and service.
Ad these share buttons to every page of your website and keep running feeds about your social media updates on your site to keep customers updated. Consider a site like http://mashable.com. They have both Twitter and Facebook share buttons on their homepage, but they also include a drop down button that provides links to all of their social media channels. That’s social media share buttons done right.
5. Testimonials Are Key
Customers will not buy from companies they don’t trust, especially in competitive industries saturated with numerous options. That’s where testimonials come in. Positive reviews provide your site and company with a measure of credibility, and will provide you with the opportunity to prove your worth to a site visitor. Keep in mind that testimonials don’t need to be lengthy essays about your product or service. Short and sweet is often better, especially for online consumers.
Consider a site like http://beatthecpa.com. Their testimonials include succinct reviews of the company’s service that more than do the trick. Happy clients won’t mind providing less than 100 words about their experience with your company.
Include these five aspects of a successful business website into your own design and reap the rewards in no time. 🙂
