7 website mistakes that are hurting your business
Woohoo, your website is up and running. Maybe it has been burning a trail on the information superhighway since ages ago.
But what is it actually doing for your business?
Does it generate any sales? Does it effectively drive your business?
Or perhaps it is just sitting there, a little lonely and, well, feeling a bit useless.
Regardless of your industry, your website should be your star performer, working hard day and night, helping you to grow your business.
If it is not, then you might find you are making one or more of the following mistakes.
Mistake #1: It is not goal driven
Why do you have a website? What outcomes do you expect it will provide your business?
Not having a clear business objective is one of the key reasons for website failure. Establishing the right goals for your website can, therefore, be the difference between its success or failure.
Start by focusing on these three key steps – how to Reach, Engage and Convert your customers.
Mistake #2: Poor first impressions
People don’t have much patience when it comes to using the internet. You need to get their attention immediately, tell them who you are and what you can do for them.
We live in a visual world where design matters. But don’t overcomplicate it. A more simplistic design will generally win over a complex page with too many things going on.
Remember, a potential customer is looking for a solution to their problem, the slightest distraction can result in them leaving your website.
Mistake #3: Launch and forget
When did you last add new content to your website? Was it that great news article you wrote back in 2011?
If you just list your products or services and maybe provide a bit of information about who you are, then your website is unlikely to thrive.
Google loves fresh content. As do your customers. Potential customers need to be convinced that your business is credible. Help them understand why they should do business with you; in other words, you know what you’re doing and you’re passionate about what you do.
Mistake #4: Sloooow
Okay, so more people have access to faster internet connections these days, but if your site doesn’t load quickly then you are in trouble.
Remember we internet users are an impatient lot. Don’t give us another reason to leave your website.
Test the speed of each of your websites pages and get recommendations on how to optimise them using free tools such as GTmetrix or Google’s PageSpeed Insights.
Mistake #5: Browser / device compatibility
Your customers will access your website from their smartphones, tablets, laptops, home computers or other device and expect a great experience regardless of their screen size, browser or operating system.
Don’t disappoint them. Ensure your website is responsive and compatible.
Mistake #6: No call to action
So, you have managed to get traffic to your website, now what? Chances are you want to convert them into business.
A visitor should never be unsure of what to do next on your site. Tell them what you want them to do. Have clear call to actions (e.g. ‘Learn more’, ‘Buy now’, ‘Sign-up’ type buttons) that lead the visitor along your sales funnel towards your conversion point.
Mistake #7: Analytics
Effective website marketing is about understanding what is working and what is not.
Integrating Google Analytics (free) into your website will provide you with a wealth of information, helping you to better understand your site visitors and what they are doing on your website.
A deeper understanding of Google Analytics will also enable you to track your goals and provide insight into whether your call to actions are working.
This information will help guide your decisions when looking to improve your website, giving your customers what they want and helping you to measure performance.
But don’t stop here…
A website should be a living, evolving entity. Don’t let it sit idle.
And no matter what changes you make to your website, if it doesn’t get you new customers then it’s not doing its job.
The team@MyMarketer.
