There are currently more than 1 billion live websites. In the time you\u2019ve taken to read this sentence, four new websites have been created. With the proliferation of websites it\u2019s difficult to stand out among competitors and businesses are increasingly challenged to leave a unique mark in the rapidly evolving Internet landscape. This, in addition to the fact that we\u2019re in the middle of an information overload, makes it easy to lose sight of the basics that make a good website. A website should tell a story and communicate information seamlessly to the end-user, otherwise it runs the risk of turning visitors off completely.<\/p>\n
Below are five reasons that your website will never be successful and basic tips companies should keep in their back pocket and utilize in order to prevent their websites from becoming uninteresting and outdated.<\/p>\n
A website can often be the first impression of a company and a confusing website will push potential customers away just as quickly as they landed on it. Users need to be able to find what they are looking for with easy-to-navigate pages and readily accessible information that promotes further exploration. A clean layout with clear headers and information displayed in a user-friendly way encourages repeat visitors to frequent the site and obtain the information effortlessly.<\/p>\n
A bunch of words staring at potential customers is a surefire way to get them to leave a website. Customers crave information but businesses need to be mindful not to over communicate main points. It\u2019s easy to upload copious amounts of text and images on a website to make sure all of the bases are covered but in many cases it\u2019s too much information that ends up overwhelming the user. Provide key information that customers are looking for and relay it in a way that\u2019s easy for them to digest. Write in short sentence and in bullets when possible. By presenting focused information in a logical way customers can address their questions sufficiently.<\/p>\n
Choosing a website name is one of the toughest parts of the branding process. Finding an available URL that aligns with the company\u2019s image and can be easily optimized for search rankings are essential factors to consider. Previously, a company was only recognizable if it had a .com domain extension but times are changing and with the onset of a number of generic top level domains (gTLDs) \u2013 like .business, .brand and .website \u2013 companies have the option to choose from a growing pool of extensions that are ideal for the company in the long term. A notable name creates a unique opportunity to align a company, individual or new product website to better reach the target audience.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately the work doesn\u2019t end once a customer gets to the site and sees a visually-appealing layout with easy-to-use tabs. There has to be a call-to-action (CTA) that encourages customers to go beyond \u201cwindow shopping\u201d and take the plunge by making a purchase either directly on the website or being able to search locations where the product is available. Service providers can ask customers to contact a representative to learn more or have a virtual assistant available online for questions. Smaller CTAs such as encouraging customers to follow the business on social media or sign up for email newsletters keeps both potential and existing customers up to date on the latest news. Making the site interactive and determining what the end result and call to action needs to be for the company\u2019s business model is crucial.<\/p>\n
Mobile growth has surged and more and more customers are accessing websites directly from their smartphones and tablets than ever before. Therefore it\u2019s critical that websites are mobile ready so customers can easily view the content on smaller screens. Customers have a short attention span so information should be easily readable regardless of what device they\u2019re viewing the website on. It\u2019s also important to ensure the website loads quickly on any device so sticking to simple HTML instead of flash may be ideal.<\/p>\n
Websites are essential to a company\u2019s success and take a great deal of time and dedication to build and maintain. It\u2019s important that resources are dedicated to ensuring that this platform is constantly up to date and working correctly. Companies that use these tips when creating their websites will be pleased with the uptick in visitor traffic to their page and overall outcome of having a rich Web presence.<\/p>\n
Originally published by\u00a0Karn Jajoo on websitemagazine.com.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Why Your Website Will Never Be Successful There are currently more than 1 billion live websites. In the time you\u2019ve taken to read this sentence, four new websites have been created. With the proliferation of websites it\u2019s difficult to stand out among competitors and businesses are increasingly challenged to leave a unique mark in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,9,54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-internet-marketing","category-search-engine-optimization","category-web-development"],"yoast_head":"\n