Tips to Make Your Website Useful
Back in the day, simply seeing a business online, in any fashion, was enough. Nowadays, today’s audiences simply want to get where they are going and the expectations for a website are higher than ever.
We’re going to teach you how to meet those expectations with 3 simple tips and make sure that you are providing your customers with the information they require in the best way possible, to help you make conversions either on your site or in person.
1. Business Contact Info
This is the most important information you can have on your website, and make sure it’s accurate! Seems simple enough, yet many well-intentioned websites make this information difficult to find. Studies show that people will tend to look at the top left corner of your website first, like they’re reading a book. This is where the most important information should be, your contact info—don’t make customers scour the page looking for a way to find your business.
There is a lot of data you can include in the contact information section. The trick is finding the balance of information overload vs. unnecessary vagueness. There are three things you need to specifically include:
- Opening and Operating Hours
People seeking this information are likely close to buying, so having your hours of operation listed accurately and in a fashion that’s easy to read is a huge priority. Here are two examples to showcase how your hours should be listed online:
Example 1:
We are open Mondays – 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Tuesdays – 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Wednesdays – 8:00 am-7:00 pm, Thursdays – 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Fridays – 8:00 am-7:00 pm, Saturdays 12:00 pm-5:00 pm and the service shop is also open until 7:00 pm.
Example 2:
Sales:
Mon 8 – 5
Tues 8 – 5
Wed 8 – 7
Thurs 8 – 5
Fri 8 – 7
Sat 12 – 5
Sun Closed
Service:
Mon-Sat: 12 – 7
Which one did you find easier to read?
We know, the second one. That’s understandable. The second example is a lot easier and clearer to read and find the information you need. The first one easily tires your eyes, it just doesn’t look nice, it’s hard to look at specific days, and you don’t know if the service shop is just open on Saturdays, or if it’s always open until 7:00 pm every evening.
The most important part is to make sure the hours are accurate. Even if it takes an extra line to better explain a confusing set of hours, customers greatly appreciate knowing when they can expect your business to be open.
- Address
Unless you’re an online retailer, your address is an essential part of your contact listing. And just like hours of operation, there are a variety of ways to share your location.
Here is how we recommend it: provide enough information so that Google maps can locate the business. For people in major cities, often times just your street address is sufficient. But if your business is a little tricky to find, consider linking to a map application, or have the map directly on the website. If you’re going that direction, make sure to use an accredited map engine like Google Maps, instead of a hand-drawn creation. People tend to be a lot more familiar with popular map formats and might get confused at the sight of your artwork.
- Mobile and Office Number
This is the number where customers can most easily reach you. Businesses with multiple departments equipped with individual phone lines might want to stick those on a “Contact Us” page. There’s no sense in cluttering your home page with 30 different phone numbers. Businesses should have one phone number on the homepage display to be a catch-all for any inquiries. Don’t forget an area code for those out-of-town customers. Make it easy for on-the-go customers to hit a button and have their mobile device ring the business instantly.
2. The Story Behind Your Business
You likely have a lot to say about your business so the real challenge here is a distillation of your story. Think of the company from the customer’s perspective, ask yourself “What makes you unique? Why are you better than their competitors? What do you do for customers?”. These questions will likely shed light on the most important information to share, at least at the top of the page.
Once you’ve got your most important information cased, consider designing a way for interested customers to learn even more about the business. There you can dive deeper into your history, philosophy, and share any achievements or media coverage your business has had in its past.
3. Business Description
This is where functionality needs to be the highest priority. Customers are looking for confirmation that your business is what they are looking for at the moment they are searching. This information has to be concise, easy to find and extremely helpful. It’s challenging to know the exact right strategy for your business but a tactic we recommend is taking a look at your closest competitors for insight.
Look at those websites and assume the perspective of their customer. If you like something about the way their website works, make a note. If you find something super inconvenient or confusing, again, make a note. Have these notes inform your approach.
And last but not least...
A lot of people think a website should be an online version of your business. In reality, this is virtually impossible. A website is more like a messenger for your business. It’s a tool for relaying information about the business to potential customers. If your messenger is long-winded, confusing and tries to use flashy bright colours to grab attention, the customer is not going to be engaged. If your messenger relays all the information in a simple, concise and memorable way, customers will be much more likely to engage. It is quite likely a website is the first impression the customer might have of your business—remember, you only get one chance to make a first impression.
A useful website is nothing without a high search ranking, here are our SEO must-dos for a higher search ranking. To find out more about SEO and how it can help grow your business, book a consultation now.
