The internet is the number one way that people find out about new products and services. Billions of people perform Google searches every day to find answers to their questions or solutions to their problems. Did you know that 88% of consumers research a product or service before they purchase? This is just one reason why it is so crucial to have a high-quality, effective website. While building your own website has become increasingly simple and inexpensive, there are many aspects to take into consideration. The most important to remember is your website is often the first impression a potential customer has of your business. It needs to load quickly, be easy to navigate, and provide visitors solutions to their problems.
Compare it to walking into a clean, well-organized shop versus walking into a messy, disorganized shop. A messy, disorganized website can damage your business’s reputation. If a visitor struggles to find their way around your website or cannot find answers to their questions, they leave your site frustrated and likely will not return. They are left with a negative impression of your business. Designing an effective website can be tricky. This post aims to outline four common mistakes made by inexperienced website designers.
Poor website structure and navigation is the among the top factors that cause visitor frustration. Website structure and navigation must meet the needs of the modern online consumer. It needs to be clear, simple, and consistent. It is best to place navigation menus horizontally across the top or vertically down the left side of your website. Putting your navigation menu in a standard place makes your site easier to use and allows visitors to find what they want within seconds of visiting your site. It also helps to lower your site’s bounce rate, increase your conversion rate, and boost your page views per visitor.
Search engine optimization, or SEO, is the process of increasing your site’s position and page rank organically through effective keywords. Many business owners don’t realize that search engine optimization needs to be built into the design process. Websites that are designed to be SEO-friendly draw more traffic. Why? An SEO-friendly site allows search engines, like Google or Bing, to easily explore and read pages across the entire site. Google and others have recently taken a user-centric approach with optimization now including a focus on how quickly a webpage loads, how easy a website is to navigate on a mobile device, and the security of a site’s connection. A strong SEO strategy increases the chance your website has of landing on the first page of search results improving your business’s visibility and credibility, while driving more sales.
A clear call-to-action, or CTA, eliminates confusion and drives site visitors to take some desired action. It tells your prospective customer what to do and where to go next. That might be to learn more about a service or product you provide, to request a quote, or to read a specific article. To be effective, a CTA needs to provide enough information that site visitors know what they are going to get from taking the desired action. In addition to increasing conversion rates, CTAs also decrease visitor frustration, increase your website’s usability and in turn, increases consumer loyalty.
Your website, the core of your online presence, is often the first impression potential customers have with your business. While using a free or low-cost template may seem like an easy design solution, your site will be similar, if not identical to hundreds of others. You wouldn’t go around copying your competitor. Your website shouldn’t either! Your business has a unique character and by using a free or low-cost template, you strip away the individuality of your brand.
These days your website needs to be built responsively, which means it will adjust to all screen sizes and load quickly. But some website templates are not mobile responsive. If you want an eCommerce site, functionality is often limited in free or low-cost templates. Adding eCommerce and other custom applications is hard or even impossible in a cheap template.
Your website, the core of your digital presence, is one of your business’s most important assets. After all the purpose of a website isn’t simply to exist. It is a tool to drive more customers to your business. Therefore, it needs to perform as intended.
Need help building a website? We can help! Here at Net Driven, we are 100% dedicated to the automotive industry. Our wide range of digital solutions including mobile-friendly website design, eCommerce, digital advertising, and social media, are specifically designed to help independent automotive businesses thrive in an increasingly digital world. Contact us today for a free demo.
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