Archive for the “Why have a Website” Category

Here is a link to another great article from Entrepreneur magazine about why you need a website if you do not already have one and how you can use it to get traffic in your door.

Turn Web Traffic into Foot Traffic

Any website design company that does not give you statistics and reports for your site may be trying to hide the actual amount of traffic you are getting. All of our web sites come complete with a full google analytics account that shows you details such as visits, pages viewed, time on site, location of visitor, keywords and much more.

In addition to this, we also give you server log reports which tell you the exact amount of traffic you are getting each and every day. We give you direct access to these files and you can view them from any web browser.

8 Things you do not want from a website and how you fix them.

1. Registration: A lot of web sites require registration. Although this may be a good way to create a mailing list and keep your customers close, nothing annoys users more. When is the last time you went to a web site that required a login and you forgot the password or user name? Offering the ability to register is great but do not require it or you will lose customers.

2. Long Domain Name: When you have a domain name that is long it becomes hard to remember. You will also want to keep complex words out of the name. Many people have trouble remembering how to spell a word or in what order a word is so keep it simple. The shorter the better and try not to use more than 3 words. 2 is prime.

3. No URL: Many websites will allow you to change the page you are on but the URL stays the same. What if you find something that you want to send to a friend but do not remember fully how you got there? Usually you can just copy and paste the URL but if the URL is the same for every page this becomes impossible. Flash sites are known for this.

4. No Search: Many sites do not offer a search feature and are losing clients even though they may have the information or product the client is looking for. If a site cannot be searched, it becomes a game of hit and miss for customers finding what they want. You should always have a search feature.

5. All Flash: Flash is a wonderful thing for giving you that added wow factor. The problem arises when the entire website is designed in Flash. When the site is written all in Flash it limits your update ability and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). There is nothing more annoying than a web site that reloads that big flashy banner at top every time you go to a new page. Use flash as it should be used to highlight, not to run everything.

6. Lack of Contact: Many sites hide their contact information to only their contact page. Your contact information should be on every single page that you have. This is usually done in the footer of a page at the bottom. If done properly it will be expected. If you are on the page of a product you want to buy the phone number, E-mail etc. should be on the same page. This will keep your customers from going to the contact us page then refinding how they got to the product in question. Do not hide your contact information.

7. User Names: Many sites allow customers to make a user name. This sounds great but who can remember all of the different user names that they have for each site they visit? Always use the customers e-mail address as the user name. Customers know their e-mail addresses so use them.

8. Confirmation E-mail Signatures: Many sites just list their name in their signature. This is not enough information. You want to make it as easy as possible for customers to contact you. Make sure that you use a complete signature file in every e-mail you send. List your name, web site address, e-mail address, contact phone and any other pertinent information about your company.