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What makes a website great? Part Three
John R Ramos • March 2, 2020
To continue with more “how to make a website great” tips.
Usage of well-written headlines
Your headlines should accurately describe the benefit that your company can give to your customers, and stand out from the rest of your text. Ultimately, you should try and put yourself in the shoes of your target audiences, and work out why they have come to your site.
Using well-written headlines also has another advantage: it improves your search ranking. The Google search rank algorithm gives more weight to H1, H2, etc. headlines than your content. If you put the key terms that your customers are searching for in the headline, you are likely to see your search traffic increase and climb the Google page rank.
Be consistent
Consistency can be a real problem for pages that have been around for a while. If you have legacy pages on your website from years ago, redesign them. You should aim for the same beautiful design on every page on your site, from your product pages to your contact forms.
There are two problems with inconsistent website layout design. The first is simply that pages that look different from each other make your page look cheap because it looks like you can’t be bothered to update your old pages. The second issue is that your users will get lost if your pages look different across the various parts of your site and if they don’t know where they are they are going to leave.
Check 404s
Part of ensuring consistency across your pages is to check that every link on your site works.
There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that encountering a 404 error annoys your customers, and makes it look like you are not taking your site seriously enough. (FYI…a 404 error is an HTTP status code that means that the page you were trying to reach on a website couldn't be found on their server)
Also, having lots of broken links on your site slows down, and it negatively affects your search ranking.
The best web building software now automatically checks for broken links, so you can identify and fix them quickly. There are also plenty of free tools, though: to check if you have any 404s you can set up Google Webmaster tools on your website and check crawl errors. You can also use this 404 checker for free.
Remove the jargon
it is easy to forget that your customers aren’t as knowledgeable as you when it comes to the details of your industry. Are you now wondering how to write great content for your website that will grasp and maintain the viewer’s attention?
Great content writing, therefore, aims to remove as much jargon as possible from the website copy. Not only does jargon confuse customers – but it can also actively dissuade them from using your site. Explain your products and services as clearly as possible, and you are sure to be rewarded with loyal, engaged customers.
Don’t fall into the habit of writing that is generic and boring. Take a look at your site, and remove words like these: next-generation, flexible, robust, scalable, easy to use, cutting edge, groundbreaking, best-of-breed, mission-critical, innovative. These words are used on thousands of websites and have essentially lost their meaning.
Include sharing buttons.
If you don’t include opportunities for your visitors to share their experience on your site, you are probably going to miss out on a lot of traffic. Social media shares are one of the most effective ways to promote your website because this traffic is built from the existing visitors to your site.
Sharing buttons are a great way to encourage sharing on your site. They offer a non-pushy way for visitors to instantly share their experience, or recommend your website to their friends. Again, many of the best website builders include sharing buttons as a tool you can use in the construction of your pages, but you can also try out free social sharing tools like SumoMe and Shareaholic.
Improve your SEO
You can have the best website in the world, but if no-one can find it, then it counts for nothing. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
is a huge and complex field, but ignoring it altogether can have a profound (and negative) effect on the level of traffic to your site.
There are a few easy tips for basic SEO. You should check what keywords your customers are searching for, and write content that engages directly with these keywords. Sometimes, even changing one word in a headline can have a huge effect on where your page is ranked, so don’t be afraid to experiment and see what works best.
You should also make sure that you are producing a range of different types of content. Videos, blog articles, podcasts, and e-books all have their place, and producing all simultaneously ensures that you are reaching the largest audience possible.
Be responsive
Using social media on your site doesn’t stop with giving your customers an easy way of posting their experiences to their social media feeds. You should also follow up with any comments that they make – good or bad – and you can even highlight this on your website.
Firstly, it is approximately nine times less expensive to keep existing customers than it is to get new customers, and engaging with your customers is a very effective way of ensuring their loyalty. Secondly, you can often defuse criticism of your company by engaging with your customers directly. If they have had a bad experience, and post this on social media, a heartfelt apology from your company can go a long way toward proving that you take their business (and their feelings) seriously.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you think we could assist you in your digital marketing endeavor.
POST WRITTEN BY
John R. Ramos
The John Ramos Blog
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1. Boosts SEO and Online Visibility
In a recent post, I wrote about ten reasons a business needs an updated website. In this post, I would like to elaborate a little bit more as to why you should consider my suggestion(s). As an email marketing specialist and content writer for small to medium-sized businesses, I want to talk to you about something super important for your website: optimizing it for mobile devices. Nowadays, almost everyone uses their smartphones and tablets to browse the internet. That's why having a website that is mobile-friendly is so crucial. It provides a better user experience and can improve your search engine rankings, making it easier for potential customers to find your site. A responsive design is one way to ensure your website is mobile-friendly. . This means your site's layout and content automatically adjust to fit any device’s screen size. Pretty cool, right? Another way to optimize your site for mobile is by optimizing images. Large images can slow down your site's load time, which can be frustrating for mobile users. So, compress images and reduce their file size without sacrificing quality. Simplifying navigation is another crucial factor for mobile optimization. Use clear, concise labels for your menus, and make sure they're easy to access from any device. This can help mobile users find what they're looking for quickly and easily. Testing your website on multiple devices is also a good idea. This will help you identify any issues that must be addressed to ensure your site looks and functions nicely across all devices. Lastly, prioritize speed. Mobile users expect websites to load quickly, so minimizing the use of large images and videos, using browser caching, and compressing your code can all help reduce your site's load time. . So, there you have it! Optimizing your website for mobile devices is essential for providing a positive user experience, improving search engine rankings, and driving conversions and sales. As an email marketing specialist and content writer for small to medium-sized businesses, I encourage you to consider these tips and make sure your website is optimized for mobile. . Your competitors may have updated their websites, which can make your site look outdated in comparison. Updating your website can help to ensure that you stay competitive and that your business stays relevant in today's digital landscape.
Outdated Design:
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