Having a small business website can help you improve search engine optimisation, boost credibility and drive conversions from your potential customers but how can you ensure that your website has all the boxes ticked when it comes to the design and functionality?
In this blog post we’ll go over 7 important factors that every small business website needs
Strong Domain Name
The URL or web address of your small business website not only tells visitors about your business but is also a very important factor when your site is optimized for search engines.
Before you go ahead and register a domain name you should make sure that it is clear and distinct like your business name. If your business name is too long or contains hyphens or numbers it may be a good idea to think before you register the domain. We recommend using namecheap to register your domain.
Visible Contact Information
Contact and business information such as your telephone number, opening hours, email addresses are very important pieces of information that should be displayed on your small business website.
Ensuring they are clearly visible and in a prominent position means visitors to your website will have a smooth user experience and will help to generate sales leads. Ideally you should make sure that your contact information is in the header of every page so that users don’t have to spend time searching around your website (a topic we covered on our earlier post ‘5 ways to reduce your website bounce rate’)
Call To Action
A call to action such as a contact form, newsletter sign up or a video encourages users to interact with your website – this is particularly important if your small business website purpose is to generate leads.
On your call to action use a clear phrase to ensure it’s clear to your visitors what you’d like them to do. Emphasize the importance of your call to action by placing it at the top of your page, use a design element such as a colour or font that will make it stand out to your visitors.
Logos, Branding & Videos
Make your small business website look professional by investing in a professional logo design. Whilst at the beginning you may be trying to keep costs down, a well designed logo will portray a good strong image for your business along with credibility of your brand.
If your website has been designed to showcase your portfolio of work ensure that any photos you upload are the correct size and the resolution is high.
A short introductory video will not only grab your visitors attention but also help with the sites bounce rate.
Pages
Before building your website or asking a designer to do it for you, it’s important to think about the relevant pages you’ll need on your small business website. As well as your home page there are a few other pages that are no brainers when it comes to a successful website.
Whether you plan to sell from your website or use it as a showcase for your work it’s a good idea to have a product/services page to highlight what your key products/services are. An ‘about’ page that gives users an insight into your business and introduces staff members.
A testimonials page that features reviews from past customers or clients and a blog which you can use to keep your site up to date with fresh, relevant content.
Get Social & Subscribe
When was the last time you logged in and checked your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram account? Chances are it wasn’t so long ago. Social media is big business now and a vital tool for the small business owner – a platform where you can show the human side to your brand and engage with followers. When it comes to your small business website your social media links and share buttons should be clearly visible so your visitors can connect with you across social media.
If you have a newsletter for your users to sign up to again put the link to the sign up form in a position on your website that stands out.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Having a small business website that looks amazing is great but if you aren’t getting the site traffic you’d hoped for? not so great! Whilst the majority of small businesses are on a limited budget for the marketing it’s important to get your SEO strategy correct from the start. Having a seo strategy in place can help rank your site in organic search results.
The other factor to think about is the structure of your small business website so discuss with your web designer about using a seo friendly format when building your website. When it comes to content on your site keep it relevant to your chosen keywords – this is something your web designer/seo consultant will be able to assist you with.
Want to discuss your small business website with us? You can drop us a message via our contact us form.
