small business

Summer is finally here, and for many of us, that means extra time to clean and spruce things up. While it’s a great time to clean up and make changes around the house, it’s also an ideal time to think about easy ways to clean up your small business website.

As a small business owner, the company’s website is the face of the brand, telling your story and providing that super-critical first impression to customers within seconds. In fact, it only takes about 50 milliseconds (that is ½ second!) for a website visitor to decide if they will stay or leave a website. Ensuring your company’s website remains up-to-date and relevant is imperative to connecting effectively with your current and potential customers. There are a few important tips to keep in mind when it comes to updating your business website.

Accuracy:  Take the time to scroll through each individual page of your website to ensure all of the content is accurate. This includes contact information, directions, hours of operation, pricing, answers to FAQs, and more. Photos should be high-quality and current, showing the latest products or offerings for customers. Keeping your website up to date also helps ensure your small business is included – and perhaps even upgraded – in search engine rankings.

Speed: Ensure your website loads quickly and is optimized for viewing on every kind of mobile device. This is now a must-have in today’s digital marketplace, particularly when you consider that mobile internet traffic accounts for more than 55% of total web traffic. If your business’s website is not mobile-friendly, you are losing web traffic as well as valuable leads. Website users expect fast loading speeds, so if your site is taking too long to load, chances are good your visitor won’t be hanging around too long to check things out.  Did you know how fast website pages load has a direct correlation to bounce rates?  Slow-loading pages increase bounce rates which then negatively impact your business’s search engine ranking. This is why ensuring your website is responsive and loading at optimal speed for viewing on any and all devices is critical.

Incentives:  Hopefully, your business website already has multiple opportunities for customers to engage via Call to Actions for more information, a product demo, or perhaps even a free sample. (If you scroll through the site and don’t see the CTAs easily accessible, now is the time to make the change)! Another great way to keep your website fresh is to offer incentives for customers. For example, a 10% off or free shipping discount code for their first order are two common incentives that help show the customer you appreciate their time and, hopefully, their business. According to Forbes, 88% of online shoppers prefer a free shipping incentive. Feeling like they got a deal and are saving money is one way to help your customers feel good about their purchase, and hopefully, return again and make another. Other successful incentives include expedited shipping; a free gift with purchase; free set up or installation; no contract agreement; exclusive “sneak peek” news; free returns; and a money-back guarantee. Don’t be afraid to get creative!

Content Refresh:  On average, companies update their websites every two to three years. If you don’t remember the last time that you added a new customer testimonial or product photo, it might be a good indication that your site is overdue for some fresh content. Keeping your business’s website relevant and providing timely, invaluable content is vital. If customers know they can find a blog with helpful tips, watch a video testimonial, or see some stellar (and recent) project photos, they will likely stay engaged and keep your business front and center when it comes time to actually make a purchase. Remember: Stale content is a turnoff, freshening things up periodically is a must. Once again, search engine rankings come into play here, since newly uploaded content and new visitors both positively impact the SEO ranking of your small business.

Appearance: A website should have a crisp look and an up-to-date design and feel. Your small business website (hopefully) already explains your company and its products or services but remember that it also needs to be easy to navigate and offer a memorable experience or “takeaway.” Any visitor should leave your website having gathered all necessary information to make observations that contribute to their buyer’s journey that hopefully converts to a sale. Some tips when considering your small business’s overall website appearance:

Layout and Navigation:

  • Does the website look clean and organized? Meaning, is there a nice balance of text and imagery throughout?
  • Is the navigation bar and/or drop-down menu conveniently located?
  • Do the pages quickly and automatically link to each other?
  • Are the pages consistent in both look and feel? For instance, are the font type and style the same throughout?

Content:

  • Is the content new and relevant to your current business and offerings?
  • Is the content effective, engaging, and conveying your brand and its key messages?
  • Is each individual web page organized with headlines and sectioned appropriately to promote easy reading? 46% of consumers say they leave a website due to a lack of a clear message.
  • Imagery and visuals – a must!

After looking at these five important areas, is now the time to refresh, revamp, or perhaps even redesign your business website? With so many buying decisions made digitally by today’s busy consumers, ensuring your website is operating properly and delivering a positive customer experience is crucial to develop or maintain your online presence and to increase your overall sales.

Steven Clayton worked in the Information Systems field for 19 years, holding many roles including: CIO for a public company and ended his corporate career as a Vice President for a Fortune 500 company. Since then, he has started and/or co-founded six different startups, four of which are in business today, and running profitably—including NetBlaze. His companies employ more than 60 people all around the world.

Cleaning website stock photo by fizkes/Shutterstock