Quick Nontechnical Fixes to Improve Your Website

Time and expertise. You need plenty of both to create the kind of excellent website that ranks well and generates leads. But chances are you and your staff don’t have both in abundance. Fortunately, there are some relatively simple improvements you can make that won’t require esoteric technical knowledge.

Make Sure Your Header Is Clear and Shows Success

Humans are wired to make snap judgments based on visual information, but many business sites send the wrong message with their homepage header visuals. They feature photos that are beautiful or (for example) show the building they operate from.

Opening visuals should preview the success customers will experience from working with you. For example, an obstetrician will be much better served with a photo of a smiling mother and baby than by a photo of the clinic she practices in.

Reinforce Success and Clearly Describe Your Offering in Your Opening Text

Keep the confidence-building process going with your opening copy. Include a brief, clear tagline that mentions what you do and what success is, and a longer subhead that mentions what sets you apart. For example, consider these taglines you might see on a real estate agency website:

“The Acme Agency in Rockford, Illinois”
“Welcome to our Website”
“The Agency That Gets Your House Sold”

Only the third makes a promise. If they add, “With the right advertising, social media, and experienced agents, we sell more houses than anyone in the Rockford region,” now the visitor knows how they can make that promise, all in ten seconds.

Fix or Eliminate Dead Links

As we mentioned in a previous blog, links that go nowhere are poison for your SEO rankings and frustrating for customers. Looking through the site and making sure each link goes where it’s supposed to is well worth your time. Your webmaster can install a plug-in on the site that automates this process if you wish.

Use More Visuals and Video

Adding more visuals to your site is not just a great design choice, it can boost effectiveness.

• According to a study by Skyword, articles and blog posts with visuals get 94% more traffic than those without.
• Studies show readers retain information better if it is presented in a visual format. The average reader can remember 65% of the information in an infographic three days later, compared to 10% of what they read.
• A recent study from MassPlanner found that infographics are liked and shared three times more than other types of content.
• Videos increase the amount of time users remain on your site and increase conversion rates on eCommerce sites. For example, A/B testing by a fitness product company found their page with an introductory video sold 46% more product than a text-based page. Simply Piste, a ski equipment retailer, saw conversion rates increase by 25% when they added demo videos to each product page. These results carry over to B2B marketing: The HR management software company Rypple added demo videos to their site and found their conversion rate climbed 20%, while their customer acquisition cost dropped.

Use CTA Buttons and Plenty of Them

You really can’t have too many calls to action, especially if they take the form of a simple, repeated visual element like a red button. In fact, CampaignMonitor found that buttons increased clickthrough rates by 28% over link-based CTAs, Copyblogger found that rate to be increased 45%, and Quicksprout found that red buttons performed 21% better than other colors.

Consider a Secondary CTA for Lead Generation

Some prospects won’t be ready the first time they visit. To keep them engaged, consider giving them an opportunity to download a guide, case study, or other useful information, collecting their email address as part of the process. This will allow you to nurture them with occasional emails, building credibility and keeping top-of-mind awareness for your product or service.

Digital Marketing for Businesses in the Rockford, Illinois Area and Across America

Not every company has experienced web designers and digital marketers in house or the time to create regular content. We follow the most up-to-date practices and achieve the metrics that matter. Get in touch with Cain & Company for thoughtful, strategic marketing that boosts your bottom line.