For any business type i.e. start-up, local, B2B, etc., your website is a virtual storefront. If you don’t have an actual brick and mortar store, it is the most important presence you have. The survival of your business and brand depend on the experience that your clientele receives from your website.
1. Design
From the ease of use, interactivity, the presentation, and collection of information, the design is critical. In our experience, the design is overlooked by content. There are many local design firms out there. We recommend getting estimates, asking questions and choosing the firm that best fits your business needs.
DIY Design – If the budget is small, one can try to tackle their own website. There isn’t anything wrong with this approach but the margin for error is large. DIY designing takes planning. If you don’t have someone to bounce ideas off of, your website might suffer from bloated copy, a mismatched color palette, stock photography everywhere syndrome, scaling issues and the most hated Display Fonts for readable text.
Not all, but a lot of people believe that design is serious but not serious enough to pay for it. “I have a “relative/friend” that can design anything for $500″. We have been told this numerous times.
TIP: No budget is too small for hiring a design firm in a consultant capacity.
2. Functionality
Functionality is critical. I’m referring to how the site is built to handle common tasks. Is it responsive? How do the interactive pieces work? How easy is the navigation to use? Are the CTAs (Call-to-Actions) used correctly? In mobile, do you have to double tap links? In mobile, does the website shift horizontally?
3. Content
Providing relevant content that your readers want, is difficult if you do not know what they want or need. Content should answer the question “What am I gaining by viewing this material?”. Webpage content should relate to the page it is on. Copy needs to be easily digested and media should support its copy.
4. Call to Action
The whole point of a business website is a Call to Action. If it’s a product, a call to action is to make the sale. If it’s a service, a call to action is to contact you for the service or purchase.
5. Credibility
A good website instills trust from its visitors. Good website design takes this into consideration by incorporating items that help identify that you are a legitimate resource. By utilizing verified links, clearly stating your identity/contact info and employing social media proof, your website will be validated.