Creating a Website that Connects
While there are many best practices for building a great website, a website should achieve a few high-level goals:
Keep it simple. People don’t read long blocks of text on websites. By scrolling through your home page, someone should be able to understand what you do and why you are different in under 10 seconds.
Give someone a taste of the experience of interacting with your business in a way that builds credibility and trust. An effective website replicates the experience of conversing with you about what you do and how you can help the potential client.
Demonstrate that you understand their pain points and have a solution that is easy to digest. Keep it simple and concise, and use more visuals and fewer words as a rule of thumb.
Use visuals throughout the website that reflect your ideal client so that it is easy for them to see themselves in your imagery.
Provide a good navigation experience. You can have the most breathtaking site, but if it is difficult to find your way around, people will become frustrated and leave.
Make it easy for them to engage with you and take the next step by providing a singular and directional call-to-action like “Book a Meeting” or “Shop Now” that is very prominent on the site.
You have several options for developing a website, many of which are affordable and user-friendly for new business owners. Your website can be developed on a platform like WordPress, which often requires the assistance of a website designer and developer and is hosted by a website provider. Or you can create your website through a subscription-based all-in-one solution like SquareSpace.com, which allows you to build and host the site and pay a monthly fee.
Whichever direction you choose, invest in creating a website that makes a great first impression and works for your business. You can start with a more basic but professional site and build over time, adding elements like a blog as a second phase.