There are many elements of a great website, but most rest on these 10 qualities:
(Please Note: All screenshots were taken from Infusionsoft.com, a website for small business marketing & sales automation)
1) User Experience
If the user is not happy with their experience on your website, they won’t stay. They want information relevant to their needs and they want to find it quickly and easily. A website that takes a long time to load or that is chunky will hurt you.
2) Good Content
Good writing and valuable information is what makes the internet work. People may come to your website for a variety of reasons, but they will keep coming back to your website because of the valuable content you publish through it.
A blog on the Infusionsoft website.
Include information on who you are, what you sell, why you do what you do, why are you the best and why should I buy from you?
3) Lead Capture
When somebody visits your website, you should initiate calls to action that advance the sales process.
A lead capture mechanism on the Infusionsoft site.
Here are some example Calls to Action to test out:
• Request a Free Quote (linked to short easy form)
• Sign-up for E-mail Updates (forms based with text that says “Why your information is safe”)
• Request a ‘no strings attached’ Brochure
• Download Our Price List
• Download Our Free Product List
• Like this blog? Enter your info here & you’ll get info on new stuff just like that!
• Print This Free Coupon for 10% Off Your Next Purchase (include an expiration date)
• Click here to learn the top 10 mistakes every __________ is making
4) Credibility
A good website instills trust from visitors. Good website design takes this into consideration by incorporating items that help identify that you are a legitimate resource, such as logos of publications you’ve been featured and awards you’ve won.
5) Mobile Responsive
More and more people are looking at your site from a mobile phone or web enabled device. If your site is not mobile ready, you are losing clients. You need to have a mobile-ready site not only for your clients, but for your SEO rankings (sites with lower scores get docked down).
6) Clean Visual Design
Design is an all encompassing word for all the visuals elements of your website — logo, font(s), white space, theme/template, layout and colors.
7) Good Navigation
Ever heard of “mystery meat navigation”? It is when there are pretty graphics without text. You have to hover your mouse over each graphic to find out what it is. Horrible! Another bad one to avoid is using vague or non-standard wording for navigation. Use a simple navigation bar to keep your users organized and give them a clear path to what they are looking for.
8) Grabs Visitors’ Attention
On average, you will get less than 8 seconds to grab the visitor’s attention. Think about this: they’ve landed on your page while browsing the web. You know very well what sifting through all those web pages means, right? They’re probably looking for something quick and valuable. If a user does not find value or use in your website within less than 8 seconds, they’re gone.
9) Resources
More than 95% of visitors who land on your website will not be ready to buy. Make sure to have content ready to offer them where they can learn more about what they’re looking for and get more indoctrinated to your content.
10) Customer Proof
Customer proof is a powerful indicator of trust. Include a few of your best (short) testimonials on your front page. Adding names & photos make the testimonials that much better.
What elements do you think are essential to a website? Let me know in the comments below!
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