Top 10 Website Characteristics

[Pages:3]Top 10 Website Characteristics

By Beverly Reynolds, Owner

Is YOUR website measuring up?

When it comes to creating your website, there are 10 things every website should have in terms of characteristics. How does your website measure up in comparison?

1. Search Engine Optimization or SEO From the moment your site goes live, it should include Search Engine Optimization or SEO. That is, there should be a proper header in the code, including the use of keywords for search engines, spiders and web crawlers. That does not mean the creepy kind of spiders that send you jumping or screaming into the air, but the ones that scan your site for the key phrases that your target audience will be typing into the search bar.

You want to be sure your audience finds your offerings (products, services or both). You probably worked hard to get it live, even if someone else designed your site.

2. Ease of Navigation with Eye-Catching Imagery Everything from your name to your logo and even how users navigate from page-to-page should be consistent. Every downloadable resource should look the same and make people want to learn about more and keep them engaged. You name should be short and tell the story of your business and your logo should be clean, crisp and simple.

3. Consistent Messaging When someone sees your website for the first time, they should know at a brief look what your business can do for THEM. The messaging on your site should not be focused on you, but instead, how you can help THEM. When they go to the Contact page, does it look like they are on the same website? Are the fonts and color scheme reliable and recognizable?

4. Clear Offerings Sometimes to capture the eye of your audience, if is best to offer something that is free. This could be in the form of a whitepaper or eBook, or even a longer blog post. It is your responsibility as a business owner to draw people in with a simple offer. Then, when they look at your Library, books or services, they know at a moment's glance what your business is about, what you are selling and what problem you are solving.

5. Lead Capturing A good and successful website will have a means for capturing leads. That could be something as simple as a means for gathering a full name and email address. Perhaps you might think of asking for this detail in exchange for free information or an entry in a reward or contest. This helps you build an email distribution list for future deals and promotions.

Top 10 Website Characteristics

By Beverly Reynolds, Owner

6. Call to Action Decide what it is that you want your target audience or user base to do while on your website. Perhaps you have a button on a specific page to buy an inspirational book that you recently wrote and have for sale on Amazon. On the other hand, maybe you want them to click a button to see the latest sale or offer. No matter the action, find ways to involve the minds of your readers and keep them coming back for more education.

7. Privacy Statement / Protection Several websites have a privacy statement at the bottom. Whether a privacy statement or some other action on your behalf. Think of ways you can protect both you and your user base.

For example, if there are financial transactions, ask yourself if you are doing enough to protect the identity and privacy of your customers and their credit or banking information.

Likewise, are you doing enough to protect your work and your business from a legal standpoint? These are just a few of the examples that can put your business at risk.

8. Blog Content A blog used to be a separate URL from more website designs. Nowadays, designers and hosting sites are making them a part of most website hosting packages that can be customized to fit your look and your brand. A blog is a series of posts that could be 500-600 words in length or even longer. Blog posts could be Top 10 Lists, Suggested Products, Step-by-Step Procedures and more. Use your blog to peek the interests using topics as they related to your business.

For example, I design websites, so a popular blog topic might be How to Incorporate SEO to become known in the Marketplace.

9. Easy to Update This option is back-end facing to the person who deals with the upkeep and hosting of your site. However, if the information is laid out in an `easy-to-find' manner, then it will be easier and more efficient to make small or larger-scaled changes. Sometimes information becomes out-ofdate and should really be changed quicker than font updates, but no matter the type of changes that are needed, be sure your site is coded and designed for longevity to stand the test of time.

10. Analytics The word analytics typically means you are looking at data, perhaps charts and graphs, that depict the amount and type of traffic your site has drawn over time. This is especially important to new businesses and after certain marketing streams have been deployed.

For instance, if you want to see the effectiveness of a series of paid Facebook ads, you can see if your site gained more traffic or popularity over the course of time while these ads were live.

Top 10 Website Characteristics

By Beverly Reynolds, Owner

Questions:

1. How is YOUR website measuring up? 2. What are some successful websites in your industry? How can you emulate characteristics

without copying their ideas? 3. What areas of your website could you make quick improvements to as a result of these ideas

(e.g., colors, consistency, fonts, navigation)? 4. Does your website leave you or your customers in any type of risk that you could avoid?

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download