Make your site interesting and fun
Most of the business websites that you’ll see around the net follow the same pattern – 4 or 5 page website with a simple design and menu that consists of Home, About Us, Our Services, Contact Us and possibly a testimonials page with a couple of poorly written lines of text from someone who might, or might not, actually exist.
This approach to promoting your business on-line has never worked. A basic website is uninviting, uninspiring and just plain boring.
To really stand out from your competitors today your website needs to be memorable. It needs to offer something other than the usual offering of a few hundred words about you on a couple of poorly laid out pages. It needs to jump out of the screen and capture the attention of the visitor.
So what does a modern website need in 2012?
Here we present the desirable features that any self-respecting business owner should include on their website…
- Strong use of images and colours – boring grey or white sites are out in 2012. In are bold colours, big photos and strong identity. Use images to reflect your company ethos and colours that are exciting and vibrant.
- Videos – not as expensive as you might think but an excellent way to convey your message. Use videos throughout your website to give people an alternative to reading through your text and to get across just how good your services are. Video testimonials from customers are even better.
- Chat box – these used to be considered very uncool but in 2012 they’re becoming very ‘de rigueur’. Online chat is very popular with website visitors and can greatly increase conversion rates. Try ours and see how well they work
- Slide shows – the alternative to a video in lots of ways, a slide show allows you to promote the main benefits of your service or products in an attractive, eye-catching way.
- Blog – business in 2012 have to become publishers to market themselves and your blog is the main focus of the content you generate. Your blog allows you to establish you and your business as a leader in your field and provide potential customers with content that they can take value from. If they value your content then the chances of them actually using your services or buying your products increase.
- Social Feeds – Aligned with your blog and your other marketing efforts, your social networking efforts can be displayed on your website to snaffle up a few more followers and likes.
- Team bios – customers like to get to know a business so your team page is vital in assisting that process. A good bio consists of a good picture of the person, a friendly write up about their background (a light hearted approach to this works well), and their contact details (email address, twitter handle and LinkedIn link).
- Logos of clients – brand recognition is really important for providing visitors with reassurance that you’re a company they can do business with. Many companies are scared to put their clients on their website but really, what’s going to happen? If your clients are happy with your service are they really going to jump ship and go to a competitor that easily? Having recognisable brands on your website provides confidence that your visitor is in good company by using your services so it more than makes up for the risk of giving your competitors targets to go for.
So, if you want to really show off your prowess and you’ve got a website that’s more 2002 than 2012 you need to focus some attention on your site and add some of the above to really make it stand out from your competitors.
