Five Practical Tips to Improve Your Website Results

Five Practical Tips to Improve Your Website Results

Shane Fell

How many times have you visited a Website and backed out almost immediately?  Most of us come across ineffective Websites every day.  In too many cases, manufacturers make it difficult for Website visitors to engage with them online and suffer the consequences of lost opportunities.  The five strategies below will help ensure that your Website is on-target and poised to deliver great results.

1. Lead with a clear message
   Website visitors scan content before they commit to a deeper site visit, and they leave in under eight seconds if they have not connected with your Website in a meaningful way.  It’s critical that site users quickly see that your company offers the products, services, or capabilities they are looking for.  Here’s a quick self-test: look at the most prominently displayed text on your home page.  If you were to ask someone less familiar with your business to read this text, would it give them a clear indication of what your company does?
2. Provide simple, intuitive navigation
   Is it easy for Website visitors to find key content on your site? Look at your Website’s navigation links and ask, “If I were one of our target customers, would I immediately know where to click to find what I’m looking for?”  Use clearly-labeled navigation links that are understandable and relevant to your site users.  Then, apply this navigation in a consistent manner throughout your Website.  Don’t be afraid to ask for outside feedback from someone less familiar with your business.  Observe them as they interact with your Website and note where any points of confusion occur.
3. Offer compelling calls to action
   From each page of your Website, visitors should be able to answer the question “what now?”  Once they read about your products, services, or capabilities, they should be presented with easy next steps throughout your Website, such as:
   • Request a Quote
   • Ask an Question
   • Download a White Paper
   • Read a Case Study
   • Find a Dealer
   • Sign up for our Newsletter
   • Watch a Video
4. Maximize your reach on search engines
   It’s critical to leverage the power of search engines like Google to connect with customers.  Research how your target markets search online in your industry.  The Google keyword tool offers some great, free data about the keywords people are using.  Qualified site visitors tend to search with specific, multi-word search phrases.  Use these words within the content of your Website, particularly in page titles and headings.  Also, look for opportunities to acquire links to your Website from other sites.  Consider taking a class to learn more about search engine optimization (SEO) or engage with a professional SEO firm to help you maximize your results.
5. Measure your results
   Using Web tracking tools, you can measure the success of your Website and identify areas for improvement.  Many powerful tracking tools are available, and are easy to setup on your Website.  Google Analytics is a free tool that provides detailed reports on your site traffic sources, keywords, conversion actions, and more.  When measuring results, look beyond the quantity of traffic and focus on the quality of visits.  How many of your Website visitors are spending time on your site and taking meaningful actions (requesting a quote, completing a contact form, placing an order, downloading a drawing and technical data, signing up for a newsletter, etc.)?  Adopt a mindset of continual improvement.  Your Website is never really “done.”  It’s a dynamic marketing tool that should be consistently updated and improved.

Shane Fell is vice president of business development for Top Floor Technologies of Milwaukee.  He writes and lectures extensively on electronic marketing. sfell@topfloortech.com