Things Your New Business Website Should Have
Building a new business is exciting and can be challenging. Alongside the time you’ll be spending on your new business you’ll also need a website. It’s no longer a question if you should have a website. Not having one will make it difficult to establish and market it against your competitors. But what should your website have in order for it to be effective and profitable? There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, but the following basic functions will help you establish and make sure your website is being visited, used and helping establish your brand. Here are the 8 things your new website should have in order to be competitive.
1. Contact Information
Making sure your contact information is displayed everywhere. Sounds simple enough, but there are websites out there that miss this one. Make sure your phone number is easily accessible, read and is a working number. There’s nothing more frustrating than having something on your website that leads you to something that does not work. If they can’t get ahold of you, your visitors will go somewhere else.
2. A Blog
Writing and sharing about your current projects, products, services and industry is highly beneficial. With each new post, it provides valuable, informative and good SEO content. It’ll also help in establishing your online authority on subject matters and topics about your industry. Also, make sure your blog is listed under your domain (www.yourcompany/blog) instead of using a third-party blog such as blogger.com.
3. Testimonials & Case Studies
A good way to show that your website and business can be trusted is by sharing testimonials and case studies. By sharing what others are raving about your business, it will build credibility with your visitors, potential customers that are ready to purchase and those that are window shopping. Surprisingly to many business owners, the testimonials page is one of the most visited pages on sites. But, before you start posting personal information like full real names and their locations, always ask your clients for permission. Seeing real endorsements from well-known businesses and organizations means a lot more than an anonymous testimonial.
If you provide case studies on your site, come up with a consistent, concise format to explain what problem your company solved and what process you went through to get there.
4. Images/Video of Your Team & Work
People like pictures and they also like that your team knows what they’re doing. Some examples of what to show on your website are pictures of your staff and team doing the actual service. Another thing you can show are before and after photos. These are especially helpful if you’re in a landscaping business or any business that can show how things looked before and after your services.
If your services are less tangible, such as insurance or life coaching, show pictures of your staff in a friendly and welcoming manner. You can also show your offices and any images of recognizable landmarks. This build familiarity and lowers anxiety of new customers when they come visit your business.
Even better than images are videos. Showing videos of your team in action providing friendly service will be highly beneficial on establishing trust with your customers. Green Monkeys Studio provides video production services to better meet your marketing needs.
5. Subscription Offer
Part of the 8 things your new website should have is a subscription sign up. By providing a “stay up-to-date” newsletter subscription, it will let you share information about your company, current projects and services. This will allow to grow a loyal base, growing your email contacts for any future marketing specials you may provide.
6. About Us Section
Having an About Us page or section is a great way to tell your company’s history, share your mission, and let others know about your goals for the future. Make sure to include the founders of the business, its current management team and your staff. Make sure to have images on their bios. People love to see pictures. It gives them a sense of connection, especially if a potential customer schedules a meeting with your team. They’ll be able to put a face to the name of your team.
7. Social Media
Definitely include a icons to the most popular social media apps. Such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and any others you may want listed. Link directly to your pages so website visitors can find you quickly and easily.
8. Most Importantly, SEO Strategy
Optimizing your site with relevant keywords that match a searcher’s intent is extremely important for website traffic and generating leads. This is all part of an intelligent search engine optimization SEO strategy.
To help with your SEO strategy, here are some best practices you can implement today.
- Write your titles and meta descriptions with SEO in mind, making sure you use relevant keywords in both.
- Keep your URL structure concise, easy to follow, and incorporate keywords
Aside from the obvious information such as your company name, also focus on generic terms to help those that may not be familiar with your business. For example, Green Monkeys Studio wants to be found on Google for “Website design, Seattle, WA” rather than just “Green Monkeys Studio.”
Our Marketing Team Is Here To Launch Your Business Forward
There are many other elements to making sure your website is providing a good user experience. These 8 things your new website should have are a good starting point to upping your new website. At Green Monkeys Studio, we pride ourselves in providing you the best professional services that deliver. We provide top ranking SEO marketing and digital marketing services. Need a new website or update your current one? Our design team is here for you to provide top notch web design services; delivering responsive websites that rank on Google. Reach us at (206) 445-1185 or fill out the form below.