Considering why you build a website for your organization will help you know what to include and what response to encourage. The “why” for your website can vary depending on the age or your company, the size of your company and the type of business you are building. Let’s consider a couple of different reasons for a website and how the “why” impacts your content and your ask. If you are just starting out on the small business journey, your “why” may be because “you are supposed to have a website”. It may be adding legitimacy or supporting initial word of mouth exposure. A business with this type of “why” should be sure to include some key website features: 1. The business name prominently displayed. 2. The owner’s name prominently displayed. (Include any one else that will have a public role). 3. Your primary product or service. 4. The geographic area you desire to reach. These items will be the primary keywords for your website. Your “ask” will generally focus around the easiest way for you to interact with people. This could be a phone call. If phone is the way you want people to respond, place your phone number prominently and repeatedly. You don’t want to put website visitors on a scavenger hunt for how to reach you. Email or a form are other potential responses. Whatever your ask, make it obvious. A different why will result in a different focus and potentially a different ask. We will explore more reasons behind a website in future blog posts. But we encourage you to spend some time exploring your “why” and evaluate if your website serves your purpose. Need help? Let us know and we will be glad to offer feedback.
We encourage business leaders to explore why they have a website. Understanding your “why” will help you focus your content and your call to action (your “Ask”). In this post we will explore the focus and ask for a business growth website. If you are ready to use your website to more actively help your business grow, you likely want to generate leads, capture key data and perhaps even qualify leads so you can focus on responses likely to turn into future customers. At this stage in a business, the website becomes part of a broader marketing strategy to reach new customers. The importance of branding elevates. Consistent colors, logo and taglines help visitors responding to another platform know they landed in the right place. Website pages dedicated to your key products and service area help capture a wider keyword reach. For example, instead of one page saying you are an electrician, you will now have pages dedicated to electrical inspections, load calculations for new equipment, breaker panel upgrades and commercial electrical to better capture specific needs of customers looking for your services. The ask is likely to be more detailed as well. Instead of just a phone call, a form fill may be more effective to capture relevant details like service location or best time to make contact. Different pages of the website may have targeted calls to action specific to the service being highlighted. As you explore your why, evaluate your website content and ask so that it fits your purpose. If you would like us to evaluate your website, shoot us an email and we will be glad to offer feedback.