Why Isn’t Your Website Working Well?

Benefits

Choosing a Consultant

Best Practices Direct

Articles

January 2007

Why Isn't Your Website Working Well?
By Erin Ferree, Elf Design

One of the biggest marketing problems that businesses face is ineffective websites. A website is often one of the largest marketing expenses; unfortunately, many companies never see a return on that investment.

Why? The average website typically:

Is not well designed. Sometimes websites don't match the rest of your designed materials or, worse yet, don't look like any of your other materials. Or the website is designed based on an outdated template or using old technologies such as frames.
Tries to do too much on each page. As a website grows, information is often tacked on to pages where it might be a "good fit." As different people add content over time, information and images can wind up in the wrong areas. The site will become confusing.
Has little or no information of value to potential clients. Most websites are written all about you and your business – not about your clients and their needs and concerns. You should clearly discuss how your services or product will help clients.
Lacks calls to action. You have to give your visitors clear instructions on what to do and how to proceed. Each page of your website should be designed with a "next step" in mind, and you should tell the visitor what that is and how to do it.

If your website has these problems, it's time to redesign. And you should redo the site with some basics in mind.

A business's website should perform a few basic jobs. It should:

Extend your brand.
Answer your prospects' most-asked questions.
Help you to grow your prospect or contact list.
Convert your prospects into clients.

Your site can easily do all of this and more. In any website redesign, you need to address three main elements: content, design and function.

Content

Overall, the content, or text, on your website is its single most important element. This content gives:

Interested prospects a place to learn more about your services and get their burning questions answered. Describe your offerings and their benefits; address frequently asked questions; and give prospects a way to easily contact you for more information or to schedule a meeting.
Current and past clients an easy, informational resource. Make your contact information clear and easy-to-find. For current clients, give information about the product that they've bought, or the process you'll go through to deliver your service to them. For past clients, offer information on using your product or service. Give them an easy way to keep in touch and get more information, such as a newsletter.
Internet search engines some content to read. Search engines only read text, not the graphics. So choose a few keyword phrases and use them throughout your site. Hopefully, your keywords will help your site to rank well.

Design

The design of your website should be consistent with your brand identity and marketing materials, so that the website can extend your brand online. Include the following in the main template design of your site, and use these elements consistently on every page:

Your logo: This should tell your story - who you are, what you do, and what makes you different.
Your Visual Vocabulary: This is all the visual elements, in addition to your logo, that make up your business's look and feel. This includes fonts, color schemes, photography, shapes and backgrounds.

It's important that your logo and Visual Vocabulary be used consistently throughout all your marketing materials. If your website looks markedly different from your other materials, people who have your printed materials might feel like they've landed in the wrong place when they visit your website.

Your site should also have:

Appealing information design: Content is key, but your text has to be laid out in an understandable, readable and compelling manner. Website visitors usually skim content quickly, so put the information in quick bursts, such as bulleted lists. Use headlines, subheads and bold text to break up the copy and keep visitors interested.
Consistent navigation design: If your navigation changes from page to page, it will be difficult for visitors to find their way around the site. They won't easily be able to tell where they've already been. Keeping your navigation consistent gives users an easy way to access all your content. Also, plan the navigation for the entire site before laying it out. This will ensure that you've accounted for all the pages and you won't have to squeeze more pages in later.

Function

The average website is designed as an online brochure. But the ideal website does much more. Specifically, it can:

Grow your contact list: Collecting the names of the people who visit your website and are interested in your services is a great way to create a list of contacts for your follow-up marketing (such as sending a newsletter).
Answer visitors' questions: Including answers to common questions can help visitors get instant gratification from your site. A contact form can encourage hesitant buyers to ask the questions that will help them overcome their buying doubts and fears.
Convert prospects into clients: Using calls to action throughout the site can help convert prospects into paying clients. Give visitors clear instructions on what to do next, and clearly outline the benefits they will receive by doing so.

If you address all these main issues, your website will be an effective marketing tool. It will produce results, attract your target customers, and help you to close more sales.

About the Author: Erin Ferree is a brand identity and marketing design strategist who creates big visibility for small businesses. Through her customized marketing and brand identity packages, Erin helps her clients discover their brand differentiators, then designs logos, business cards, and other marketing materials and websites to reflect that differentiation, as well as to increase their credibility and memorability. As the owner of elf design, Erin is passionate about helping small businesses stand out in front of their competition and attract more clients. You can see her portfolio or subscribe to her newsletter, Expand Branding, at www.elf-design.com.