How To Build A Good Business Website
Author: Richard D S Hill
The UK has the most active online population of any country in
Europe with around 21 million logging on every day and 72% using
the Internet to make purchases.
According to the Office of National Statistics between
2005-2006 consumers spent £103 billion in online purchases in
the UK alone
But a recent survey has shown that for UK SMEs:
o 23% of websites have not been updated launch
o The average age of a website is four years
o Only 8% of respondents had an e-commerce element to their
sites
o 25% of companies had no way of tracking their site
o 38% had no budget at all for website updates
o For those with a budget the annual spend was around £250
So, if you have built a web site and you find that your site
hasn't been generating much relevant traffic and no significant
sales the temptation may be to start "the blame game" but that
isn't going to help. You see building a web site is one thing;
building one that will bring in business is another.
Far too often building a website is seen as a design or
technical issue and confusion is the norm with no one being
really clear why it's there, who it is aimed at or what it is
supposed to do.
Too frequently `getting the website up' is the main objective
and the site reflects the organisation and its departments. But
users don't care about `producers', they just want a site that
is easy for them to understand and use.
Here are some thoughts you can use to make sure your website is
effective and working for you.
1. Have you researched websites in your industry and looked at
your competitors and what kind of websites they have? Did you
find out whose is `doing the biz'? In many businesses you really
can find out how well they are doing from that grapevine and
that will help you to start to see what works for your industry
and what does not. It's gritty, it's boring, it needs someone
who understands your business – that's not likely to be
designers and developers, but engineers, sales people and
marketers. They are the ones that will notice the `little
things' that can make it come together.
2. Can your site be found? Why did you build it unless you
promote it? If it can't be found it won't bring business. Q E D.
Prepare a website marketing plan. "Pretend" (at the very least
pretend and preferably understand) that your site is (or may be)
your most important product or service. How would you market
that? How much would you spend on it? It is critical that your
website is search engine friendly and registered with key
directories; after that there are many things you can do – pay
per click, banner ads, email, viral campaigns, social
bookmarking, social networking and more.
3. Target, target, target. Who are your target audience? What
will motivate them? Most visitors want information. Let's say
that again. Most visitors want information. It is information
about products, services and prices that helps them to make a
decision. And that is what you want – a decision.
4. Does your website provide easy navigation? Preferably one
click from anywhere to anywhere on the site with no more than 7
top level links – more tends to confuse people, but it's a
guideline not a rule! Talk with people from target audience
about how they want site structured and what will make them buy
– yes it is obvious but many don't do it.
5. Does your website have the right content? This is critical.
Not only for customers but also for Search Engine Optimization
(SEO) to drive higher rankings
in organic listings in the search engines which is how over 80%
of sites are reached – even, frequently, if they are book marked
because people love Googling. So…… make sure your site has
relevant and useful content that helps your particular audience
achieve their particular objectives on your website.
6. Is the users' experience pleasant and convenient? Does the
site keep their details and preferences? If you want customers
to visit your website frequently and make regular purchases, you
must securely store their personal details so don't have to
fill-out the same details every time they make a transaction or
contribution. Also, get their consent for future marketing.
7. Do users leave happy? Are there appropriate cues and auto
e-mails to inform customers of what happens next? You'll soon
know. How? When you get unnecessary emails and phone calls from
customers and have to spend more time dealing with them
off-line.
8. Trust. Make sure users can contact your company? Why should
I trust you unless you provide sufficient details for users to
be able to get in touch with you? Provide your company details
including phone numbers and address. Does you site provide
information about policies and terms and conditions to instil
further trust and confidence? Customers want to know. Hiding
things makes them suspicious if not downright angry.
9. Who writes the copy? Believe it or not good copywriters are
worth their weight in gold and know how to structure information
so the most important message is conveyed clearly. It is very
easy to skimp. It is frequently a false economy.
10. Does your website have the right look? First impressions
are important. Don't be flashy and make sure you target audience
have the sure feeling they have come to the right place.
11. The site has to be hosted. It is far to frequently the case
that one is waiting around for a site to load – even with
broadband. Having a first class hosting company is essential. If
the site doesn't come up in milliseconds then people lose
interest and go elsewhere.
12. Can your website be viewed? Sound simple but while your
website may appear fine on one browser that doesn't necessarily
mean that it will display the same way on other browsers. It
certainly has to work in Microsoft's internet Explorer and in
Firefox – the two account for over 95% of browsers but that does
not mean you can ignore the others.
13. Tracking. Measure success or failure. Anywhere other than
your website that you don't do that?? The conversion rates from
the traffic on your website show the effectiveness of your site
marketing and show you where you need to improve. Your web stats
provide information about visitors and referrers, most popular
pages, where they come from, how long they spend on your site,
where they go from your site, etc. This information is
absolutely essential particularly if you rely on your site for a
significant part of your business.
14. Maintenance and updates. Do you keep updating your site
with new content? Are the products in stock? How would you feel
about a supermarket where everything is beyond its sell by date?
Would you use it? Yet there are plenty of sites that are
expected to perform without maintenance – bizarre!
About The Author: Richard Hill is a director of E-CRM Solutions
and has spent many years in senior direct and interactive
marketing roles. E-CRM helps you to grow by getting you more
customers that stay with you longer. We provide practical
solutions that pay for themselves.
http://www.e-crm.co.uk/newslet
