By Debbie Gregory.

As a small business, you need to maximize your business site’s value as a marketing tool. Your site needs to attract visitors, build their trust, engage and inform them and finally convert them into customers.

Part 1 of this series covered your images, calls to action, your about us page, and the importance of FAQ pages. We will continue in Part 2 of this series by going over your value proposition, trust signals, social proof, and why your site should have separate landing pages for important services or products.

5.) A Clear Value Proposition Is Essential To Your Website:

Your website also needs to clearly and quickly spell out why a consumer should buy your product or service. This is best done with a quick tag line, slogan, or proposition statement that is included on every page of your site or alongside your company logo. The best value proposition statement will target your ideal customer, define the problem you solve for them, and explain what makes your solution unique.  It will also create your own identity.

Some Good Corporate Examples Include:

• Geico’s old slogan “15 minutes could save you 15% or more.”
• WalMart’s “Save money, live better.”
• Allstate’s “You’re in good hands.”
• Disneyland’s “Where dreams come true.”

6.) Make sure to Include Trust Signals and Social Proof:

Both trust signals and social proof are critical for small business websites and can impact whether or not someone chooses to conduct business with you and generate revenues for your business. These two items are the best way for your business to build credibility and boost sales.

A few examples of trust signals include:

• Badges/logos for accreditation bodies
• Money back guarantees
• Payment assurance certifications

A few examples of social proof include:

• Case studies
• Customer Reviews (ideally from third-party platforms such asYelp)
• Testimonials

7.) Optimizing Your Landing Pages:

A landing page is a page that is designed to be a place where a visitor “lands” after clicking a link in an ad or social post.  A landing page is designed with a clear goal, minimal distractions, and leads your website visitors to call, visit, or purchase from you. A landing page can be your site’s homepage but it should ideally be a separate, highly focused, sales tool page.

Just like your overall website, your landing page should include:

• A compelling headline
• High quality graphics
• Your value proposition
• Clear benefits to the customer
• Social proof
• Trust signals
• A strong call to action

As you can see, your website can be a powerful marketing tool as long as it contains the right mix of essential elements. Your site needs to build trust, educate, entertain, inform, and guide prospective customers.  Your call is to lead visitors to call, visit, or purchase from you. Incorporating these seven essentials on your website will certainly provide your small business site a boost.

By Debbie Gregory.

Today, having a quality website is the cornerstone of your business’s online presence and overall marketing efforts. Your website should attract visitors, build their trust, engage and inform them, and finally convert them into customers. Keeping all of this in mind, there are key elements that your business website needs to be competitive in today’s marketplace that include:

1.) High Quality, Clear, Clean Images:

The first thing a visitor to your site will see are the visuals displayed on the pages. These visuals include your logo, header images, product photos, portfolio pieces, etc. The human brain is wired to notice and remember images much more than text. Make sure that every single image on your site is crisp, clean, and interesting. Carefully selecting the right images and taking the time to take high-quality product photos will really bring your site to life and engage visitors.

2.) Include a Minimum of One Call to Action on Every Page:   

A call to action is critical to have on every page of your site. Most businesses have one or two on their home page but often forget to include them on the other inside pages of the site. A call to action is designed to help guide your prospective customers to reach out to you or make a purchase.

Calls to action are usually buttons that include phrases such as:

• Buy now
• Call today
• Click here for more information
• Get in touch
• Get offer
• Send us an email

Placing multiple calls to action on pages such as blog posts, about us, single-page landing pages, portfolio pages, testimonial pages, and other pages on your site will help reduce the number of visitors who navigate away from your website without taking further action.

3.) An About Us Page Is Essential to Your Business Website:

The second most viewed page on your website will be your About Us page. This page needs to be carefully worded so that it clearly spells out how your company can help your prospective customers as well as informing them about your business history.   Often it is most engaging when you tell your story in an interesting way.

4.) FAQ Pages Must Be Included on Your Business Website:

Most people like to do their own research before they reach out to a physical person. Having extensive FAQ pages that clearly answer the most common questions your business receives enables you to establish your company as an expert in your field.  It also saves you money on support costs as well as helping your customers ease their valid concerns on their own.

Stay tuned – Part 2 of this series on  “Essentials for Your Small Business Website” will review your value proposition, trust signals, social proof, and why your site should have separate landing pages for important services or products.