Effective websites can help you avoid years of fighting for leads and stumbling around in the dark. When you are starting a business – you get a lot of sh!tty advice. So many people tell you so many things that it is hard to know what is true and what works. Mostly they are just trying to sell you on their offering. So how do you know what is the best thing to do?
There is a lot of work to be done in growing a business, so how do you know where to put your time and effort to grow?
Simple – put your resources and effort into ensuring you are creating the absolute best experience for your customers.
How do you do that?
With an effective website.
Whether this is in the content you create, your in-person promotional materials, your website, the way they buy products from you, or just their interaction with you. If every element can be simple and thoughtful – it will create an easy relationship with your customer which will increase repeat sales and referrals. Which is what we want!
So, when it comes to your website – you need to be intentional about the design. Please note: your website does NOT have to be overly complicated, super flashy, high-tech, or huge. It just needs to simply and elegantly serve your customer and solve their problem.
So, what does that mean for your small business? Well, let’s look at some elements that create great and effective websites that in turn grow your business.
4 elements of an effective website
#1. Balanced Pages
A good website has balance. When a visitor arrives at your page, the first thing they see is the top left of your page. They will hover there before moving up or down the page. Good balance will make your page visually appealing and it will make it easier for the visitor to work with you.
#2 A Modern Design That Is Cohesive
If you build a website that is hard to find your way around or doesn’t really make sense, your visitors will hit the back button faster than you can say ‘gone.’ Make sure that you choose a design and layout that is easy to navigate and easy on the eyes. Don’t add a ton of ads or links to other pages that can drive your customer away from your website.
#3 Keep Your Pages Simple
A clean site is much more visually appealing than one that is too busy. We tend to overwhelm our customers with information. They don’t need every detail – they just need to know how you solve their problem and why they should work with you, then how to work with you.
We tend to put too many active or flashy things on the page and that makes it hard for visitors to stay focused. In fact, it can be annoying. It’s not that you shouldn’t use these items, but rather choose wisely how you use them.
#4 Navigation That Is Easy
Easy to use and easy to find all of the content on the site with clear next steps. Web visitors often look for a toolbar across the side or top so make sure that you stay with what visitors will find familiar and don’t forget the link back to your home page.
Interested in an effective website for your business?
A good web design means visitors stay on your site because they ‘like’ it and return often. It also means they are far more likely to recommend your business to others. When you can quickly and effectively solve your clients’ problems – they will find you extremely valuable and become advocates of your business!
Until next time –
Meredith Siss
Meredith is the CEO and Lead Marketer at Marketing Maiden. She is an expert in lead generation and relationship management. Her full-funnel digital marketing agency supports small businesses through PPC, Google Ads, SEO, Website design, landing page design, email marketing and so much more. It is her personal mission to support all business owners through her free education, online courses, and digital marketing services