Your website is the most important marketing tool for your business. Even more important, it acts as your storefront and many times it’s the first interaction potential customers have with your business. Remember, first impressions matter.
In the past, we’ve covered several marketing tips to help your business grow from setting up your Google My Business Page to engaging with Millennials. All of those pieces of your marketing strategy will not be effective without a well-designed website. Why? Consumers purchasing habits have changed over the years, and today more than 92% of consumers visit a business’ website before making a purchase. That’s nearly everyone.Â
So you have a website. You’re set, right? Not necessarily. If you do not have a well-designed website that is easy to navigate, you’re missing the out on sales and could be losing business to your competitors. Consumers only spend an average of 7 seconds determining if the website they have visited is the right one for their needs. Yes, you read that right, only 7 seconds. So now you see why it’s vital that your business message is clear and concise and that your website is beautifully designed. Without this, your customers are simply going to find someone else to do the service for them.
Below are five easy things you can to do make sure your website is resonating with potential customers:
1. Make it Easy to Navigate on Any Device.
There is nothing worse than looking up a company’s website on your phone only to realize that you cannot click on anything you need. Websites need to be designed for any device from giant desktop screens to mobile devices and everything in between. Luckily, today most websites are designed with a responsive feature. This means the site adapts to any screen size so it’s as easy to use on mobile as it is on tablet and desktop – no pinching or horizontal scrolling required. The design instinctively adapts to the device it is being viewed on so it looks great on a mobile, tablet and desktop, making it easy to use.
If you have an older website, it may not be responsive. This impacts your business negatively for a couple of reasons. First, it gives a bad first impression. Second, it makes it harder for a visitor to get to where they are going. And finally, it could be hurting your rankings on Google. Without a good ranking on Google, your website might not be found by potential customers.
2. Show Visitors What You Can Do for Them
Instead of telling people what you do, show them. A picture is worth a 1,000 words so use before-and-after images to really wow your potential clients. These photos allow you to tell your unique brand story and showcase your expertise. Even more, 66% of people would prefer a website that is beautifully designed versus something plain and simple. Images of your work are your best content and will resonate with visitors.
3. Make it Easy for Them to Contact You
Naturally, when people visit a website to look for contact information they look in two places, the top right of the website or the footer. If your contact information is not in one of these two places, your visitor has already left your website and is looking at your competitor’s. You want to make it easy to contact you via email or phone. If it takes you more than one click or 3 seconds to find out how to contact you, its costing you potential sales.
4. Tell Them About You + Your Business
People may not remember everything about your business or services but they’ll remember a story. Every business has a story and website is the place to tell it. Are you a multi-generational family business? Do your employees volunteer for Habitat for Humanity? Has your business been around for 35 years? Do you offer tick and insect control services because a family member has Lyme disease? People want to work with companies that have a personal story and can connect with them personally. Tell your story. Share your work. Talk about your accomplishments.
5. Let Your Customers Speak for Themselves
80% of Americans read online reviews when hiring a lawn care or landscaping contractor. We’ve spoken about this stat time and time again. You need to actively manage your online reputation as only one in ten happy customers leaves a review. It’s important to make reviews a priority by asking all your current and past clients to leave reviews for your business. Better yet, add some of these reviews to your site as testimonials. Create a case study that shows before an after photos of their project along with their testimonial to really highlight what you can do for your clients.
Whether it’s design support, marketing consultation, or direct marketing pieces, Central is the right partner for your business. If you need help with your marketing or business initiatives, reach out. We’re ready to help you grow.