You have a website, but you would like it to be more successful. What can you do to make it more of what you need it to be? According to www.socialbusinessbank.com, Houston, TX, a company that furnishes credit card services and terminals, there are at least ten things you can do:
Your Website Goals.
Define the goals of your website. Make sure you have a clear understanding of the website’s purpose. If you don’t have a clear picture of what your website is about, how could your customers? Do you want to sell products, provide information, or use it for marketing purposes?
Your Domain Name.
Choose an easy to remember domain name that is simple to spell. People should associate your domain name with your company. That doesn’t mean creativity is a no-no. Here’s an example: If your company’s name is Tony Miller Shirts and you sell T-Shirts online, tonymiller.com might not be the best of all domain names for you. Unless you have a strong brand associated with “Tony Miller,” nobody will care about tonymiller.com. Domain names like millertshirts.com or tonysshirts.com could be a much stronger asset for your company.
Your Design.
Designing a website by oneself is possible, though unless you really know what you’re doing, give this job to someone who actually earns a living creating brilliantly designed websites. It’ll pay off in the long run. Make sure your designer understands what your business is about and communicates your ideas. Most importantly, let them do what they can do best: handle the designing part of your website. You will get a great design and will save time and troubles.
Your Logo.
In most instances, your web designer will also be able to create an awesome looking logo for your company. Again, make sure to communicate your ideas, and possibly send him self-made drafts, until you have the feeling he truly understands what you’re looking for. Be careful; a logo is like your domain name. Your customers should identify your business with the logo every time they see it. Your logo should be uniform across all your marketing materials.
Your Content.
Tell your customers not what you want to sell. Tell them why they should buy your products and why you are better than your competitors. Be sure that all your content is easy to understand.
Testing.
Test your website. How long does it take to load? Are your pages W3C valid? Be wary about too many images. They may look great, but no visitor has the patience to wait until they’re all loaded
Social Media.
Integrate widgets in your website. Use Facebook and Twitter to promote your website. If you have a blog, connect it with Twitter and Facebook. Social Media is an ongoing project. Social Media means to communicate, and to communicate regularly.
Feedback.
Do you have a contact form on your website? Give your customers the chance to contact you without calling you. Why? Many people are interested in your products, but are shy to ask their questions via phone.
Search Engines and SEO.
Add your website to all popular search engines like Yahoo!, Bing and Google. Give every page of your website a specific title, and add your keywords in headers and in your content. Use Bing Webmasters, Yahoo SiteExplore and Google Webmaster Tools. These tools will show you how “visible” (aka search engine friendly) your website is.
Analyze your website.
Add analysis software like Google Analytics or Piwik to your website. They’re both free, so you can control the visits on your site. These reports provide you with essential information like page views and visits per day, the countries of your visitors, the time and location of your visitors, and much more.
For more information:
Social Business Bank
10685-B Hazelhurst Dr. # 8563
Houston, TX, 77043
Tel.: 888-255-4162
Website: www.socialbusinessbank.com