In the digital age, every business needs a website. Having an online presence is more important than ever, and both big-name brands and small, local businesses can see a dramatic increase in profits if they are easier to find online. So, while having a website is vital, having a website that gets you seen is the key to business growth. The difficulty is that there is so much conflicting advice available, much of which requires some extensive and specialized knowledge. However, it might be easier to improve your online visibility than you might think. If you want to be found by every potential customer, here are some of the best ways to make that happen.
Register your Website
If you want search engines to display your website on a results page, then they need to know that you exist. This is a very quick task that anybody can do themselves. All of the big search engines have webmaster tools, and these are intuitive and very simple to get used to using. Start with Google’s Search Console and fill out the available template. This is the first task that should be done for every single new website, no matter what type of business you run.
Be Mobile Friendly
More searches are carried out on a smartphone than ever before. It used to be that you could assume that your website was going to be viewed on a big screen, but that’s not the case any longer. Now, all websites need to be just as easy to view on a mobile device as they are on a laptop or PC. You can do this by:
- Putting essential information at the top of the page
- Ensuring button sizes are suitable
- Using larger font sizes
- Compressing any images using the available online tools
There are many websites that will show you exactly what your website looks like on a variety of devices, so always make sure that you make use of those.
Think about Design
A poorly designed website will not help you make sales and can even negatively affect your online visibility. Search engines will punish a website with weak design elements, and you will find that not tackling the issues will mean you gradually drop lower and lower on search engine rankings. There are many elements that will need to be used if you want your web design to work for you, but even a basic understanding of those design essentials will make it clear where you are currently going wrong.
Using Content
Content marketing is the most effective way to ensure that your website performs more effectively online, but it can be time-consuming to get right. Not only do you need to be aware of what your keywords are and how to use them, you then have to take the time to create the content that uses those keywords. It can be very easy to make mistakes. However, when done right, content can be a huge boost for your online visibility, especially when it comes to sharing information on social media. Never underestimate the value of the right content at the right time.
Whether you’re launching a business from scratch or you’ve been trading for a few years, a website should be one of your priorities. With so many ways that building a website can affect your brand negatively, getting things right has never been more important when it comes to being seen and making sales.