Having a website is crucial for businesses big and small in our digital world. Because many local businesses have limited budgets to spend on their online presence, they opt for free or super cheap website templates. If this is you, I promise I’m not here to judge you, in fact, it’s the opposite, I’m here to empower you!
While DIY sites seem like a good way to get around paying a professional web designer, if you don’t optimize your site correctly it could cost you even more time and money in the long run.
So how do you make your own website without it seeming like a failed arts and crafts project? Here are 3 things all the big agencies are doing that you can too!
Install Google Analytics (it's free)
Think of Google Analytics as the all-seeing eye for all things happening on your website. All you need to know about Google Analytics is that it can tell you valuable things such as what page on your site is the most popular if people are viewing more on their phones or computers, how long they’re viewing each page, and where they’re searching from.
This valuable data can help you know what’s working and what needs to be changed on your website. For example, if people are spending lots of time on your homepage but not converting and contacting you, you may need to reevaluate your call to action button, messaging and user experience.
Impress the search engines
Your content is what your users see and read on the front end of your website, and metadata is what search engines read on the back end of your website. Metadata determines if you rank on page 1 or 1000 of Google (or any other search engine) by reading things like your page titles, meta descriptions, and image alternative tags to determine what the page is about and see if the keywords there match up with the words users are searching.
Content is key
This might be a hot take, but in my opinion content is the single most important aspect of your website. It’s the main channel where you can communicate with your website visitors and turn them into loyal customers! There’s so much to dissect here but we’re mainly talking about copy, the words on your site, and creative, the images and videos you use. In general, make sure your main marketing message is first, large and succinct. Your content should clearly state
- What you do.
- Your target audience’s problem.
- How you can help fix that problem.
- The steps they need to take to get your product or service.
- How their life will change once they do.
For a deeper dive on content, check out this article.
Optimizing your website is an ongoing process that takes time to get real results, but it’s worth it! If you’re going to have a website, have one you’re proud of and one that works! By keeping these 3 keys in mind, you’ll have a great head start for attracting customers, boosting sales, and growing your business online!
