A website is an important part of any business’s marketing plan. It can often cost thousands to design and maintain a website, but it doesn’t need to be so expensive if you do it yourself or use free tools, apps, and widgets. Here is what you can do to improve your website and earn more from it.
1. Use An IT Support Service
If you own a business, you require an online presence. Without it, you’re losing out on potential customers who are not just browsing in their local area, but also looking for companies like yours online. If your website is poor quality or outdated — or if your hosting company doesn’t update software and protect against malware — you could be putting your business at risk. Using an IT support company can help to make sure that your site is visible, provide the right content through keywords and metadata, and backup files to avoid data loss. Also, they can help with website security, cloud solutions, and business applications. It’s an investment that will quickly pay for itself.
2. Improve Your Site’s Mobile Accessibility
It is no longer good enough to have a website that works on desktop devices. Now you need to have one that will work on mobile phones and tablets too. More than half of all web traffic comes from people using their mobiles, so it’s important to protect your business’s online reputation by making sure you have a good website navigation menu, menus that are properly labeled for easy browsing, and they should be accessible in both portrait and landscape modes. Your site should also include an ‘add to home screen’ button, which allows users to see your site as they would any other app — without having to visit the browser.
3. Think About Updating Your Site’s Appearance
Your website’s look is critical. It does not need to be complicated or expensive, but it does need to be appropriate for your audience and easy to navigate. Beyond the look of your website, you are also required to consider all the other components as well as how they work together. Using a professional web designer can help ensure that all these elements work together seamlessly so that you get the most out of your site. This will help you to engage your customers with unique, high-quality content that is relevant to their needs.
4. Don’t Forget About The Search Engines
It’s easy to forget about the search engines when you are focussing on marketing your business offsite. However, being listed at the top of Google or Bing is an ideal way of getting new customers through your door, so you have to take this seriously. Making sure that you submit your site URL to search engines is an obvious step, but it’s equally important to make the most of your page titles and descriptions by using keywords appropriately. You also require spending time promoting specific pages in order to get them noticed and track the results by keeping an eye on Google Analytics reports. Being listed at the top of a search engine will help increase traffic and sales for years to come.
5. Take Advantage Of Offsite Marketing
Your offsite marketing efforts should complement your online efforts. There are many ways to help promote your business online — for example, by networking through forums and social media sites, writing articles that link back to your site, developing relationships with bloggers that will link to you, using videos or podcasts on YouTube or iTunes. When offsite marketing complements your online efforts, it speaks volumes about your company’s brand perception, which will help to increase traffic and sales. Offsite marketing is a vital part of your business’s success.
6. Make The Most Of Your Site’s Stats
It’s easy to see how many visitors have been drawn to your website through search engines or other links. However, what you really need is a comprehensive set of reports showing the number of visitors at each stage of their visit, as well as where they came from and how long they stayed. This will enable you to discover what is and isn’t working on your site, so you can quickly make the necessary changes to increase sales. In order to do this, you will need to install a web analytics tool such as Google Analytics. Additionally, it has been shown that businesses that have good customer service tend to have a larger share of the market than those that do not. To improve your customer service, you can start by offering discounts or free shipping on enormous orders according to your analytics of certain customers.
7. Get Social
Social media is a great way to connect with your customers and prospects. You can find out what they are interested in, what their problems are, and how you can help them. You can also build a community where people get to know each other and share information. Social media is also a remarkable way to get your name out there, whether that’s by tweeting or making videos on YouTube. These are all great ways to increase traffic and sales. If you want to grow your customer base, improve market share or simply earn more money from your website, you need to spend time working on improving every part of it so that you get the best results for all of your hard work.
8. Keep Your Site Fresh
If you have been running your business for a period of time, you will find that there is a lot of competition out there. You require doing everything you can to stand out from the crowd…it’s not easy, but it is possible if you take the time to improve your site. You could start by adding a blog so that you can post articles on a regular basis and link back to yourself. This is a great way for people to get to know you better, as well as keep them returning to your site for more information. Making sure that your website content is fresh will do wonders for increasing traffic and sales.
A website is not something that can be created overnight, it takes time, dedication, and patience. However, with careful planning and thought, you should be able to create something that will represent your company well.
