Use our website evaluation checklist as a guide to improving your website. We'll cover website improvements that will help you generate more traffic and increase conversions. Let's get started!
Know your audience
If you've been reading our blog then you know we mention this often. Effective marketing begins with knowing what makes your target audience click. It's important to know why they would be visiting your website and how your solution could help solve their problems.
Use words in your content that your audience can identify with and avoid industry jargon. The images you use should resonate with them as well. For example, if you're target audience is millennials don't include images of adults in their 50's, use images of millennial aged people instead.
Every detail of your website should be strategically targeted for your audience. Even the colors you use can make a difference. Is your audience mostly female? If so, consider that when choosing your website's color pallet.
UVP
Not to beat a dead horse, but remember your audience! Clearly state your unique value proposition. A first time visitor should be able to identify what your company does in just a few seconds after visiting your website. Don't risk losing hard earned traffic by not clearly stating what you do and how you can help.
Pro Tip!
When showcasing your UVP, see if you can tie it to your target audiences challenges or pain points. If they can recognize your solution in the first few seconds of their visit, you could see a dramatic increase in interested prospects!
Basic SEO
Having a well optimized website can help you get found more often in the search engines for the products and services you offer. There are MANY ways to optimize your website, but there are a few basic optimizations to begin with that can make a big impact.
Here are a few basic SEO items you should tackle first:
- Title tags - Ensure every page has a unique title tag that includes keywords that represent the content on the page well.
- Meta description - This is your best opportunity to entice someone to click your listing in the search engine results. Make it short and compelling.
- Avoid duplicate content - Don't limit your website's success by duplicating the same content across multiple pages. Search engines can ding you for this. Rule of thumb is to never duplicate content across pages if possible.
- Use sitemaps - Sitemaps make it easier for your website's pages to be crawled by search engines. I suggest you use an XML and HTML sitemap for maximum indexation.
- Image ALT tags - Search engines cannot read images. Include ALT image tags to tell search engines what your images are. Make it a double win by including keywords as well.
- Good content - Content is king for a reason. Both search engines and people like good content.
- Create quality inbound links - It's important to understand what a backlink is. Building backlinks can quickly become a minefield of mistakes and mishaps for the uninformed SEO, even if it is basic. Check out this step-by-step process on how to build backlinks the right way in 2018.
Leverage content marketing
Blogging is one of the best ways to generate traffic to your website. Publishing one to two posts a week can have a great impact on the amount of traffic you can generate.
If your website doesn't have an active blog, it would behoove you to add one. Remember, most people give up blogging after three months, so publishing content regularly can give you an edge over your competitors.
Make it easy to convert
You've worked hard generating traffic, don't waste it by making it hard for visitors to convert. Below are essentials to increasing conversions:
Calls-to-action - Include a prominent call-to-action on every page of your website. Use a contrasting color to make it stand out on the page.
Forms - Forms make it quick and easy for visitors to give you their information. They also play nice with your CRM and help you keep track of your contacts more efficiently.
Landing pages - For offers such as eBooks, webinars, whitepapers etc., landing pages can help you increase your conversion rate. Landing pages remove distractions and help visitors focus on your offer and the value it presents.
Contact info - Captain Obvious says "Include your phone number, address and important contact information on every page of your website to make it easy for visitors to contact you."
Have you optimized the crucial elements mentioned above? If not, use this website evaluation checklist and get started now! You can't reap your harvest until you sow.
If you would like a free, no obligation website and marketing analysis, grab your assessment below. We'll outline actionable ways you can improve your website and marketing.
