The 7 Must-Have Elements of a Successful Website.

A great deal of work goes into building your business website and planning its content. The last thing you want is for all this work to go to waste. If you’re not saying the right things to the right people in the right way, your site might not perform as well. as it could.

For most business owners, particularly those service-based solopreneurs, having a good website is a marketing essential, and a significant investment. A great deal of work goes into building your business website and planning its content so the last thing you want is for all this work to go to waste. If you’re not saying the right things to the right people in the right way, your site won’t perform well. Here are the 7 essential elements of a successful website to help you get the most out of what should be your hardest-working brand asset.

A Home Page to Welcome New Visitors

Your home page is the first thing most people will see when they land on your site. It should clearly state who you are and what you do. It should also offer easy, intuitive navigation to the other information the visitor is looking for and clearly positioned contact details to ensure people can contact you by whatever means they are most comfortable with.

Surprisingly, this is one of the most often overlooked items on a website - and one which could cost you business. (Bonus tip: If you are concerned about putting your phone number on your site, consider purchasing an internet phone number that you can divert to your main number, without displaying that number to the world).

Quality Content that Delivers

Content is still king. Your site should be filled with high-quality, value-added content, providing the information your target audience is looking for. Each page should offer content that offers helpful information to build relationships, solve problems, earn trust, and explain your offerings.

The goal is to establish your site as the go-to place for information. Providing useful content is a great way of demonstrating your expertise without aggressively selling to your audience, and much more likely to encourage positive, direct engagement.

Tell Your Story

The tradition of telling stories to embed information and form a connection is one which dates back to the dawn of time.

For this reason, creating an emotive story which appeals to your customers is one of the key pillars to building a stand out brand which is clearly set out somewhere on your site. Tell visitors why you do what you do. Explain to them your core values. Show them how your business attempts to make the world a better place. They will recognize their own values in your story, and this will help to forge a strong relationship.

Social Proof

People will always believe what other people they trust tell them, over and above whatever assurances you want to give yourself. When people share these opinions through reviews, social media commentary, testimonials or case studies, we call this Social Proof.

Well-placed social proof shows that you’re trustworthy and you get results for those who use your products or services. It works because it shows a third party talking about the value you offer, rather than you singing your own praises. One great method is to include testimonials from past customers or clients. If you can get an influencer to leave you a testimonial, this will work even better. Another way to demonstrate your value is to include information about webinars or speeches you’ve given. This will show that you’re an expert in your field, that is recognised by other experts in your industry.

Something to Look At

Your site should include plenty of engaging visuals (just don't forget to add meta-tages for optimisation!). Humanize your business with pictures of its founder or employees. Take the visitor behind the scenes in your life, office or facilities. Present detailed and beautiful images of your products or services in action.

Videos work great as well. A welcome video on your home page is a wonderful way to engage visitors and start building a relationship with them. Sharing video can work wonders for your SEO as well, as filming mini-tutorials, tips or updates is a great way of creating fresh content that ranks well.

Clear Calls-to-Action Never assume your audience knows what to do next. At each point where you want the visitor to take some type of action, give them a clear call to do so. Tell them exactly what they need to do in order to receive the benefits you offer. Actions might include buying products, signing up for your list, following you on social media, checking out content elsewhere, or commenting.

You're wasting a valuable opportunity if you don’t lead your site visitor to action.

The Essentials Finally, ensure your website has up-to-date contact information with a real address, a privacy policy, T&Cs, and whatever certificates you have or need to display. This will show that you’re a legit company offering value.

Do you want to learn more about SEO or creating the right content for your website? Grab our SEO Essentials eBook, to ensure you get the attention you need to put your website to work, rank higher in search and achieve your business goals or book a free consultation to see how we can help.