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It seems easy enough. Launch a beautiful website for your business and watch the customers roll in, right?
It’s OK. Feel free to laugh. Because we both know it isn’t that simple. But why? Why is it that attractive, well-polished websites sometimes don’t meet your expectations where it really counts—attracting new customers and retaining your existing ones? What causes beautiful websites to deliver downright ugly results?
Planning for Success
You're not clear on your goals.
This sounds very basic, but it’s absolutely worth asking yourself: What am I trying to achieve with my website? Are you in a highly-competitive local environment?
If you’re starting with more questions than answers here, take a deep breath. That’s normal. You’ll be glad you challenged yourself to understand what you hope to accomplish with your website and your broader online presence.
If you’ve heard a customer say they like your website, that’s certainly a compliment. But it’s worth exploring whether that matters. It may—that could be the reason they decided to work with you in the first place. Many will say that a website that “works” is one that converts, turning a visitor into a new or returning customer.
Always keep your goals in mind.
Your investment areas need some adjustment.
Sounds like something a financial advisor would say. Here, we’re referring to the marketing elements that help you maximize the potential of your website. A common misstep is to spend so much on the site itself that you lack the budget to add the components that make a beautiful website drive the results you want.
92% of business owners believe that having a website is the most effective digital marketing strategy. But we would argue that having a website alone isn’t a strategy at all. Essential, yes. Comprehensive, no.
What about the other marketing pieces that complement and help drive traffic to that website? Reputation management tools? Social media management? We’ll get into some of these later in this guide. But right up front, you should ask yourself if you’re prepared to balance and allocate your budget beyond the website design itself.
The On-Screen Experience
Make mobile matter more.
When you’re investigating why your website is underperforming, one of the first considerations is what that website experience is like for your mobile user. Mobile device usage for web browsing passed the 60% threshold for the first time in 2020, landing at 61% across five trillion visits. In its simplest terms, three out of every five visitors to your website are doing it from their mobile device.
Too often, websites are designed with desktop browsing as a priority. And while desktop browsing still accounts for roughly one-third of your traffic (36%), mobile friendliness rules the day for today’s consumer. The stats pass the gut check. How often do you hear about a business from a friend, advertising, or some other source and simply search for their website on your phone? Your customers do the same.
Essential conversion elements are missing.
For most business owners, it’s important to remember that above all, the website should be converting visitors into customers.
There are three main ways in which you’ll convert new visitors from your website, so ask yourself if you’re making all of these options available. In order of importance and effectiveness, those conversion mechanisms are:
- Phone Calls - This can be as simple as making sure that your phone number is on the screen at all times. As users scroll through a page, that phone number should go with them. Offering a Click to Call conversion point gives you the opportunity to have an immediate phone conversation while a website a visitor is actively browsing has your services top of mind.
- Chat - The same is true for chat. It’s arguably less effective than the phone call, since the conversation takes place through a chat window rather than an over-the-phone discussion. Regardless, chat is extremely convenient for users and may even be preferred in many cases. As consumers often make buying decisions outside of typical business hours, chat keeps you “open” 24/7/365. Offering both phone call and chat options is the best strategy for covering both conversion opportunities for immediate conversations. Statistics show that adding a live chat feature to your website typically increases conversion rates by 20%.
- Forms - If a visitor isn’t able to discuss your services at the moment, they should be able to submit their information for a follow-up conversation with your team.
Not all content is created equal.
There’s much more to your website’s content than just stuffing words on a page. Google and other search engines reward unique and original content. That content should include topics that are specific to your business, including information about the services you offer and their benefits, your service providers and their experience and qualifications, your locations, and more. Anything that makes the website’s content feel like it could only be about your business is a plus in the eyes of search engines.
If writing pages of unique and custom content sounds like a beast of a project, that’s because it can be. However, having a sufficient amount of this unique content is a must, and there are resources available to help you out. The search engines (and your future customers) will reward you.
A powerful self-check: Are you proactively anticipating and answering the questions your potential customers will ask? Because before they ask you in person, they will ask Google. Provide those answers in the search engines, and you’re more likely to get website clicks and traffic from searchers who want to learn more. Those are better quality searchers, as people who search questions tend to be more likely to convert into a customer.
Content definitely has on-screen and “under the hood” impact, so let’s dive all the way in.
Under the Hood
There’s power in the platform.
Another consideration when trying to solve for poor website results is to learn more about your website platform. Is your site easily adjusted when changes are needed? If for example you need to adjust business hours due to an emergency (or a pandemic!), how easily can you make those changes to keep your website information accurate and up to date? Any lag in those updates risks outdated information and a poor experience for your potential and current customers.
Also evaluate how well your website platform allows for plug-ins or apps that improve your website’s functionality. If you have a thriving social media presence, how easily can you incorporate an Instagram, Facebook, or other feed into the site? Or how about appointment scheduling plug-ins? Chat tools? These features can greatly improve a visitor’s experience, but your website has to be ready to support them.
Site health has to be a priority.
Your website also has a non-human audience. While your website may be very readable for the average site visitor, Google crawlers have to be able to make sense of things as well. Evaluating your website’s health and cleaning up any technical issues that come to the surface makes comprehension much easier for the crawlers and bots. Technical issues might include things such as sitemaps (or the lack thereof), URL structures, bloated code, images delaying page load times, and more.
A beautiful, content-rich site that speaks the language of all visitors (both human and search engine) is much better positioned for success.
Beyond the Website
Are you attracting the right traffic?
If you’re seeing disappointing website results despite high traffic, it’s worth taking a closer look at those visitors. Are they truly potential customers for your business? If you serve a geographically localized customer base, can those visitors do business with you?In other words, are you generating the right traffic to your website?
If you’re finding that your traffic isn’t optimal for converting and bringing new revenue through your doors, consider your accuracy in local directory listings. Are your name, address, and phone number (also commonly known as “NAP”) info details accurate across the board? That can have a major impact on local search traffic to your website. Does your content make it clear which local area you serve? Making that very clear can also help you get the traffic you want.
Your online reputation also matters.
A common mistake is to think that a beautiful web presence stops at the website itself. No way. It’s just as important to support that website with the glowing reviews of your customers. Even if the website tells a very compelling story to your visitors, they’re still going to validate that information with testimonials from your customers. 79% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations from their friends and family. Make sure your visitors get all the validation they need. Leave no doubt.
Lacking those raving reviews today? That’s OK. There’s no better time to start collecting them than now, and there are tools that can make that process extremely easy for you and your staff.
Support your site with social media.
Recent trends suggest that social media is emerging as a primary search tool for consumers. Yes, Google still dominates online search, but with the average user spending over 2 hours and 15 minutes per day on social networks, it’s an important channel to consider for making first impressions and driving high-converting traffic to your website.
A thriving social media presence engages both current and potential customers, including highlighting promotions and special pricing on additional services, sharing before and after stories and photos, and showcasing staff members and events in the office. As social media continues to grow as an influential research tool for potential customers, just like your website, your presence should make a similar strong and welcoming first impression to represent your business.
How are you managing your social media presence today? Do you have the time to cover an active posting schedule? Are you constantly in need of ideas for content? Luckily, there are tools that can assist you here.
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If you’re ready to speak with a knowledgeable marketing professional, we are pleased to offer a complimentary, no obligation consultation.
