Create a Successful Website:
So, do you want to start your own website? Oh, great! It’s a great way to put your business online, create credibility and have something you can really own. As with any project, it helps to first have a framework to get your idea out of the way. Therefore, for maximum success, I have compiled a list of useful articles to consider when planning, launching and maintaining your site.
Delete messages:
Being able to distill what you do as an individual or company is a sure way to attract people’s interest. In other words, it is better to get to the point. The goal is to explain what you do in as few words as possible, but as many as you need. It can be a complicated exercise at first, but it will pay off in the long run. And it will help you write a large section “About” and control other content on your site. In a previous blog, I covered the concept of “starting with why”. It is a great approach to optimizing your messages and finding something too understandable that has a purpose.
Great Navigation:
Needless to say, people who visit your site should keep up to date. The menu structure and clearly organized navigation options are like well-designed signs as they help you get to where you need to go. Combine this with your clear news and you’ll have a winning combination.
When you design your navigation menu, start with a “less is more” approach. You can always add more options later. If your site is still in the planning phase, you probably have already thought about which pages you want to send to users. If you’ve already started your site, you can see which pages users end up on, see what to prioritize in the menu, and whether they are copied throughout the site. Read this guide for website navigation.
High Performance:
When uploading images to your site, pay attention to the resolution of your website. If they are massive even with a high-speed Internet connection, your visitors will have to wait for them to load. Keep the slim file size by resizing images before uploading.
If your site also uses WordPress or other content management system that supports plug-ins, you need to check what you really need and disable what you do not need.
Proper Call to Actions:
Give your visitors the address of what needs to be done. This could be adding something to your shopping cart, subscribing to a newsletter or starting a live chat. Using a clear call to deal with your sophisticated messaging can increase conversions on your site and also satisfy the user because you helped him find what he wants.
Avoid calling action links or buttons that are vaguely or worse misleading! Instead, focus on words that explain how to perform an action such as Create, Sign In, or Request More Information.
Mobile optimisation:
When optimizing your site for mobile use, think about how the user will interact with your site. They hold it in your hand instead of looking at it on a large screen, so logos, navigation menus, text, and images need to be resized for easy viewing and interaction. Check out this article to optimize your website for mobile devices.
Keep your site up to date:
Your site is online, copywriting is clear, navigation is smooth and you have a killer call to actions throughout the site. Oh, great! But don’t rest too much on your laurels. It is important to have a plan to update your site regularly. Keeping your site up to date, whether it’s new pages, regular blog articles (or even visiting and updating old blogs) means your visitors can consume new content. Most importantly, you also need to index new content for Google.
It is understandable that it can be daunting to develop new ideas for content, especially if you just put your best ideas into the launch of your website.
You’ve probably noticed that a common thread through all these tips is the user experience. Optimize your website so visitors can experience easily and enjoyable. So when you browse the web or visit your favorite sites, pause for a moment and make an inventory of what you like and don’t like about the experience. You can use this knowledge and apply them to your own website to make incremental improvements.
Bonus for More reading:
These sites provide more useful tips, guidance and resources to help you improve your site.
Moz Blog – From blogs to branding, SEO to user experience. The Moz blog contains thousands of articles to help you improve your site.
HubSpot Blog – Inbound Marketing pioneers, HubSpot, have written articles on nearly every aspect of digital marketing.
Search Engine Journal – Find out everything you need to know about Search Engine Optimisation for your website.
Smashing Magazine – Get the low-down on more in-depth web design subjects such as accessibility, CSS and Javascript.
UX Collective – Learn from some of the best designers out there and take inspiration from web design, product design and beyond.