Your business’s website is one of the best ways to practically communicate your brand to your audience. Aside from being an excellent resource for information, your website is also a great place to display the personality and characteristics of your brand. In an age when most people search the Internet for information about businesses, ensuring that you have a well-designed and informative website is one of the best ways to make sure that your customers can find you. If you are struggling with the complexities of creating a great website, fret not. There’s plenty of great resources available that allow you to make a website suitable for your business.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at how to create a great website.
Consider your design choices
Before you pick a website host or decide on a domain name, you need to make sure that you consider the nature of your business and how you should relate to your audience. The best way to make sure that you relate to your customers well is through thoughtful, intentional design choices. For instance, a website for a law firm will strive towards a refined, polished aesthetic. Design should stand out from your competitors; nailing the design process is the best way to make sure that you communicate the value of your brand above other brands. A unique website design is one of the best ways to communicate the value of your product or service. Good design communicates things about your business that can’t be communicated verbally and immediately adds another level of value.
Decide on a domain name
Domain names can be a tricky part of creating a good website. Ideally, you would be able to purchase a .com domain name with the exact name of your business. However, that isn’t always the case. Sometimes the domain name is already taken, or it is too expensive for your budget. However, there are many great workarounds available. One of the best options is to use an alternative domain ending such as .io, .co, or another ending. There are plenty of other options available such as design, shop or store as well. You may need an abbreviated version of your business name so that your domain is easy to remember and find.
Find a great hosting service
There are tons of website hosting services out there. Some simply offer a URL and some bare-bones templates; others offer full-service design and impressive capabilities like built-in e-commerce platforms and SEO tools. These options may or may not be appropriate to your business; make sure that you understand your particular needs and don’t overspend on hosting. One great local option is VersaCore Tech Designs.
Provide great content
One of the major draws for visitors to your website is plenty of content that is relevant, informative, entertaining, and helpful. Many small business owners can be tempted to make their website one long sales pitch instead of a resource for their customers to make purchasing decisions. Don’t make that mistake.
Instead of the “Sales pitch” approach, make sure that your website provides plenty of content that is relevant to your customers. This can include video content, blog posts, articles, or informational sections related to your product or service. This should be uploaded frequently and with high standards for quality.
Make the customer the focus
While your website shouldn’t be a blatant sales pitch, it should also do a good job of communicating value to your customers. The best way to do this is to make the customer the focus of your marketing.
Rather than endlessly listing the benefits of your product or service, created in the image of your ideal customer through narrative. Make sure that your potential customer or clients are able to identify themselves through the narrative and content you provide. As you describe your business through the lens of your customer, you are then able to introduce your business as an excellent addition to his or her life. This method works especially well for lifestyle or clothing brands, but it is also helpful for service industries.
Nail down UX
UX — short for user interface — is one of the most important things to consider when it comes to great website design. While user interface includes visual design, it mostly refers to the way your website is structured and how your customers will interact with it. If your website isn’t pleasant to interact with and navigate, it will make your business less attractive. It is the same principle as ensuring that your storefront isn’t dirty and cluttered; you want your customers to have a great presentation of your product and be able to find what they need quickly. UX design allows visitors to your website to build confidence in your product.