Five Things Every Web Site Owner Should Avoid
You’ve built it, now is anyone showing up to your web site to take advantage of what you have to offer? Did you make a mistake when you built your web site? Is it the fault of your designer or is there something you are doing wrong? Let’s explore five of the aspects of web sites that you should avoid when building your web site.
Why would anyone bother coming to your site?
Do you know? What is the reason a potential customer would come to your web site to begin with? If you can’t answer this question, then you are in trouble. You have to have a purpose for someone to come to your site – and, more importantly – return to the site after their initial visit. Their should be specific goals, like finding new information, helpful files to download, news, coupons, and specials available only for people online. Just because you built the site, doesn’t mean people will visit. Give them a reason!
Did you design your web site for your own benefit or for your customer?
Many companies make this mistake. Instead of having a web site that helps the customer, they build it for their own pleasure. Here’s a little secret: No one cares about your company. If they do, put it on the About Us page and let them click on that. What the customer cares about is your products, your services, how to return items, how much shipping is going to cost them, is there a way to save some money….well, you get the picture. Your customers care about themselves, not that you have been in business since 1971 and have designs on cornering the market. Let them have a way to contact you so they can ask you the questions they need answered.
Don’t piecemeal your web site together.
We’ve all seen it. You go to a web site that looks like forty different companies put it together. That’s probably because they did. If you are going to build your web site, don’t have different agencies put it together with different themes and applications. Too many cooks spoil the soup, as the old saying goes, and the same will hold true for your web site. Plan your web site to look like one singular marketing piece. Do not have multiple designs and themes.
If you have a web site, have a budget.
When you build your web site, realize that this isn’t a one time cost and you are off to another project. Web sites have hosting fees, domain charges, and updates. When you make changes to your catalog, your web site will need to change. If you add products, you need to reflect these on your web site. There are types of web sites, called Content Management Systems, that allow you to make your own changes. If you foresee your web site changing often, this might be the route to consider.
Web Sites are different than brochures and catalogs.
A web site is completely different than your catalog. It isn’t a radio commercial and it isn’t an ad in the newspaper. The way you successfully develop your web site can not be done by recycling your old marketing materials. Even the way your write your web site content is different than other mediums. When you are writing a newspaper or magazine ad, you must realize that you are trying to catch someone’s attention while they are turning the pages. When you are trying to gain the attention of someone on the internet, you must consider the keywords that they will type into Google or Yahoo to find your web site. Using the right words will get people to look at what you have to offer. Forget the fancy pictures and gimmicks you used in the old way marketing to people. With your web site, you need to find out how to attract customers from words alone.
If you found this post useful, you should read these articles:
How to Stick Out in a Crowded Internet
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Confessions of a Small Business Owner
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Three Ways to Promote Your Web Site
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