A good website is just the beginning
If you’re a small business owner or sole trader and you’ve launched your website that includes all the major elements, including ease of use, quick loading times, sleek design and a consistent message, you’re probably feeling good about it and might be moving on to other areas of the business. But, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you can leave your website alone.
The first step is to put your site together and if in doubt always get some expert assistance. But, that’s only half the battle because you must maintain your website in order for it to remain dynamic and gain the returns on the investment you’ve made in it.
Here are a few tips to help with upkeep:
Ensure the content is up to date
When someone visits your website, they expect to see content that is completely up-to-date. If you have a ‘blog’ or ‘latest news’ page it looks unprofessional if you haven’t posted anything for a few months. It makes a similarly poor impression if you have, for instance, out-of-date promotions listed.
It’s important that you find a way to ensure that your site looks up-to-date at all times and regularly contains new material. As you’re most probably busy taking care of your business, it’s a good idea to delegate someone to do it for you, and the good news is, it doesn’t have to cost you a fortune with Force Communications.
Monitor and manage feedback
One of the best measures of an effective website is that it allows room for customers to engage in a dialogue with you and your business. This could be as simple as a suggestions page, a comments section on a blog or, a link to one of your social media sites where feedback can be provided.
The key thing to remember is that once it’s in place, you must keep track of all comments and respond to them in a timely fashion. The benefit of doing this is that you build a loyalty between you and your customers and, it allows you to make tweaks and improvements where needed based on the feedback. It’s extremely important that you manage all feedback otherwise customers will simply feel that you don’t care about them and will take their business elsewhere. Once again, delegation is a good idea if you need more time to focus on actually running your business.
Is it working for you?
If you haven’t maintained the admin side of your site for a while and something isn’t working, it could be costing you a lot of money and worse still, annoying potential and existing customers. This is especially important if your site provides download facilities or areas for customers to buy products or services. Get into the habit of checking daily that everything is working properly.
The best websites can tell as much about a business as a visit to the business itself so, don’t sit back once your website is built. Think of it as an employee that needs to be trained in order for them to thrive and give you and your business the support that it needs.
If you might be thinking about outsourcing the maintenance of your website, or want a site developed from scratch, then get in touch and I can offer a free no-obligation consultation to discuss the most effective way forward. I aim to keep the process short and sweet as I know that your time is precious.