People often ask whether we see any big “mistakes” on their website. We usually respond with this question, “What are the goals for your site?” Assuming your goals are to generate new leads or sell products and services, here are five “mistakes” we often find on a website:
1. No Planning or No Tracking
Who do you want to come to your web site? What do you want them to do once they get there? How many visitors turn into leads or customers? Analytics tools like Google Analytics can help you to see how people found your site and what they do once they get there. With this information you can take action to improve your marketing as well as the site content to help customers and prospects find you and reach their goals. Google Analytics is free and easy to configure for reporting on your specific goals.
2. Weak or Missing Call to Action
Your customers come to your site to solve a problem. They want to quickly learn about what you offer, and, if there’s a fit, to buy your products or engage your services. Are you making it easy and quick for them to achieve those goals? If you’re not, then you’re losing customers. Every page on your site should have a clear call to action to make it quick and easy for your customer to achieve their goals.
3. No Email Registration
Maybe your customer isn’t ready to buy. Then, you need a Plan B so that you can keep in touch and stay top-of-mind. Our recommended strategy is to get site visitors to sign up for your newsletter. Of course, if you don’t make this easily available to your customer, then they’re not going to sign up. We recommend offering customers the opportunity to sign up for your newsletter on every page of your site.
4. Lack of Search Terms
Your analytics tools will show the terms that people use to find your site via search. If there are terms that describe what you want to be known for, does your site incorporate those search terms explicitly into its content? Are you linking from your content to additional information on your site using those exact terms for which you want to be known to your customers? It is important to use the terms customers are most likely to use in search engines. In other words, if customers find your site using the search term “cool widgets,” then when they land on your site they should see content discussing “cool widgets” and linking to content about “purple cool widgets.” You can find out which terms are most popular on Google Insights for Search.
5. Not Enough Traffic to Your Site
Search Engine Optimization is a start, but it needs to go beyond metatags and keywords. Setting a public relations campaign with timed press releases that link back to your site is key. Additionally, if you want your customers to find you before they find your competition, consider a Paid Search (Pay-Per-Click) Campaign.
Metrist Partners runs multi-day, hands-on workshops on Paid Search and Internet Marketing, as well as customized workshops and webinars on a variety of internet marketing topics, including, Paid Search, SEO and Social Media. We also consult with our clients on a variety of internet marketing solutions. Please contact Susan Shulman at susan@metrist.com for more information.