Your company’s website was created to increase sales and to generate leads. Over time, the look and feel, as well as content, may have become dated. Often, a website has had content added to it that it was not originally designed for. The result can be an awkward looking and an awkward functioning site.
If you are thinking about an overhaul of your current website, keep in mind that it will need to be for the right reasons. It will also need to be part of a larger strategic marketing plan.
The most important reasons is to generate sales and be found by more prospects/clients – everything else is secondary. Without a prospect finding your site, you are not even getting the opportunity to generate new sales and you are not making money. Being found is easier said than done. It starts with creating a great looking website with an accurate, compelling message that will help generate more leads than your current website. Your visitors need information, as well as a look, that is persuasive.
Next is the underlying code and structure of the website. These are the parts most people never see, but search engines are very interested in. These un-seen parts of the website must be optimized to be successful with Google, Bing and other search engines. The appearance of your web pages needs be supported by carefully researched keywords and key phrases. Search engine success is the difference between a beautiful site that is busy and a beautiful site that nobody sees.
Once you have attracted prospects to your website, converting them into buyers is critical. Your website needs to have the functionality, ease of navigation and great content that people are looking for.
Many times, the content of a website is pretty good. After all, you know your business best and are able to write to your strengths. However, what it often lacks is the impact of a professionally designed website. Your website has to instill trust and confidence in your business or brand. Fair or not, people make decisions based solely upon the appearance of a site, even when your product or service is superior to your competitors.
Nearly 50% of the time, web sales are simply lost. The reason? Your visitor cannot easily find the information, products or services they are looking for. The result? They simply cannot be converted to sales. Don’t waste website traffic, and lose sales, due to a lack of sales-ability.
After your site has been professionally redesigned and relaunched, it must be monitored, refined and improved on a regular, on-going basis to continue to capture new prospects. Information must engage visitors or they will leave your website and land on one of your competitors.
If you are considering investing your precious marketing dollars in a website redesign, it should be carefully and professionally crafted from the ground up to be found by your prospects and to convert them into sales. This happens when you have a strategic plan in place from the very beginning.
Remember, business websites are created to generate sales. Today, it is not enough to just have a website. It must be part of your larger strategic marketing plan.