If you are developing a new website, use these points to ensure you have a great website:
- Take the time to understand the business. Every business really is different. I feel it’s really important for me to decode the culture and the persona of a business before working out how we are going to represent it online.
- What are the short term and long term goals you want to achieve through the website and in general? Website needs to be aligned to the big picture as it is an integral part of any business.
- Next is products or service offerings. How they are offered online can significantly improve the chances of getting conversions.
- Understanding your customer is the key. Your website must be customer focused and should be able to connect itself with its audience. It doesn’t matter how good it looks to you or me. It must look good to the target audience. For this, you must take the time to dig deep into the behavioural profile of your customers.
- Branding comes at #5 for me. Some agencies put Branding as #1, but I need to have all above points checked-off first. Make sure the brand is represented well on the website. The website should help enhance the values and message of the brand.
- Now comes the design and layout. It’s not just the design that matters, it’s the User Interface & Experience that makes all the difference. The better you do at #4, the better you will do in this area. The idea is simple; even the most complex task should feel like a piece of cake to the user. Make your website super user-friendly.
- Once the design is done, the next focus should be on development. The small details during development can make a huge difference in the effectiveness and interactivity of the website. Good development also goes a long way in helping the website get higher Search Engine rankings as well longer shelf life.
- Next is content. Once all the efforts have gone into making the site, it’s the content that will prompt users to take any action on your website. From the main heading on the home page to the descriptions on the products/services or about page, good copy/content will help you jump through the hoops.
- Next is Call to action. Now that you have designed a user-friendly interface, you want users to interact with your website using Enquiry or Quote form or Call now or Add to Cart. Make it easy for customers to do business with you.
After 12 years and hundreds of websites later, I believe these golden rules help our clients attract, retain and convert more quality customers.
