Checklist: 10 Key Things Every Small Business Website Needs Checklist: 10 Key Things Every Small Business Website Needs
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Checklist: 10 Key Things Every Small Business Website Needs

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19 Jun 2020
8 min read
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Are you going to develop a website for your small business? It’s likely one of the best decisions you could make for your company in the new normal. Digital presence has become uber-important for all businesses today. In challenging times, when people are locked down at homes during the Coronavirus pandemic and while the whole world is quickly entering the new digital economy, building a beautiful and functional website has become the forehand need.

In this article, we would like to share ten key things small business owners must know to make a website work like a revenue-generating machine. 

Clearly Describe Who You Are as a Brand and What You Do

Checklist: 10 Key Things Every Small Business Website Needs 2
Design by Victor Nikitin for Fireart Studio

Actually, this recommendation is relevant to all businesses regardless of their types and scales. It might seem to sound too obvious, but we should mention it here anyway introducing who you are on your homepage is critical for your online business. You can be surprised by the number of websites that don’t have a clear description of their companies and the services they provide. The content can be about something around the topic but not tell users how a company can help them. Your conversions can significantly suffer from this mistake.

Commonly, a great website must provide brief and key information about the company on a homepage. There is no need to place a lengthy description of your brand’s history, team, processes, and services. All this can be described on the “ About Us” and “Our Services” pages (you can check these links as the content examples). The content on your homepage should obligatory include your brand name, logo, your definition as a company, and a few words about your values and mission. 

Let your potential customers see that they have entered the right website and can find here what they’ve been looking for by entering a specific search query on Google, Yahoo, Bing, or any other search engine.

Use a Simple and Sensible Web Address

When choosing a domain name, keep in mind that it should be as simple as possible and include your brand name. It should be easy to remember and easy to type. We recommend using the .com domain as people are conditioned to type that extension when they enter a Web address. Don’t use slashes, numbers, or any other specific symbols not to harm your SEO or confuse users.

Develop a Straightforward and Intuitive Website Navigation

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Design by Adarsh Goldar for Fireart Studio

Nice web design is good, but it should also be functional. It’s advisable to pay particular attention to creating a clear and simple on-site navigation to avoid any user’s confusion. The links to the most important web pages must be located in well visible and expected spots in the website’s header and footer. 

In rare cases, companies also place them in a side panel. A site map is a must-have for every website. It helps users easily navigate and find what they are searching for. You can also use dropdowns in the navigation menu to ensure that web visitors will find what they intend by reading headings of the web pages.

Checklist: 10 Key Things Every Small Business Website Needs 4
Design by Kostia Varhatiuk for Fireart Studio

Provide an Easy-to-Find Contact Information

Don’t lose your customers just by locating your contact information in inappropriate places on a website. Make it easily accessible to users on the top right or top left of your homepage. It’s also advisable to place contact information on every page in the footer or sidebar.  

Users might not be so patient as you can expect it. If they can’t find your contact information on your site within several minutes, they are very likely just to switch to your competitor’s website. So, you must be sure that your contact details are well visible and easy to find.

Add Customer Testimonials

Most of your future customers are those who once trusted to your previous customers. When looking for a product or service on the Internet, people always check reviews and customer feedback. That’s why it’s crucial to put them on your site too. 

You will be amazed to see how your conversions are increasing if you add customer testimonials. They shed new light on your company and introduce it as the best product or service provider in the market. It’s excellent for your online brand image. Moreover, customer reviews can mention positive things about your brand that you haven’t written on your site before.

Use Hot Call-to-Actions

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Design by Den Klenkov for Fireart Studio 

Formulate engaging and obvious call-to-actions to let your customers clearly understand what actions they are expected to take on your site. Do you probably want them to call your expert for a free consultation or sign up for your newsletter, book a meeting, or add a product to a shopping cart? Just ask web visitors to do it in your call-to-action phrases. 

Learn and Apply the SEO Basics

You mustn’t be an SEO pro to be able to set up basic SEO settings on your site appropriately. Of course, SEO services and recommendations would be beneficial, but if you can’t afford them at the moment, you must become familiar with some SEO fundamentals and apply them before launching your site. 

Make sure your website is well-visible to search engines. It means using the right keywords throughout your website content, putting in plenty of links, naming your page titles and URLs correctly, and using the power of engagement of images and videos.

Publish Only Fresh and Unique Content

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Design by Valeria Rimkevich for Fireart Studio

Your audience likes fresh and original content that is never met anywhere before. Google likes it too. That’s why web pages with interesting and unique content rank so well on Google. Fill your homepage, pages with services, “About Us,” and other primary web pages with engaging content saturated with hot triggers, call-to-actions, and keywords. Try to make it non-ordinary and eye-catching to evoke the user’s interest in your brand. 

You can also write articles on the topics related to your product or services, include keywords that are relevant to your brand, and publish this content on your website blog. It will help you boost your website in search engine rankings.

Use a Secure Hosting Service

It’s essential to have a secure and reliable hosting service provider that will help your website run smoothly and continuously without any threats to your content and sales. Unfortunately, cyberattacks have become a common thing in today’s online world. Having your website information hijacked is a nightmare that may cost your customers. So, it’s critical to find a trustworthy hosting company to protect your site.

Reveal Your Brand’s Unique Style in Web Design 

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Design by Sajon for Fireart Studio

Your website UI design must be like a cherry on the top. It must be sweet, beautiful, unobtrusive, and maintain your brand style. It is the first thing that shows your company’s personality and unique character in the digital space. It’s recommended to hire a team of experienced web designers who can help you create a perfect UI and UX design for your future site. It will make a brand look professional and more authoritative online.

To Wrap It Up

We are happy to provide these insights about how a small business website shoud look like, and honestly hope they will be helpful to you. In case if you’re already looking for experts to consult you on the issue and develop a robust website for your small business, we at Fireart Studio are open to new collaborations. Let’s discuss your business needs and how our expertise can help you boost your company in the digital era.

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