Your website is a digital sales tool
What is the first place you visit when you are looking to buy something? 8 out of 10 people browse the internet before visiting the store. If you have something to sell, merchandise your products and don’t forget to publish a price wherever possible. Offer supporting tools, such as easy contact initiation from anywhere on the site, comparison functionality, shopping carts, my favourite list, finance calculators or a finance application functionality – if it helps the customer in the buying process, it will help will add value to your business too!
Your website is a digital data source
Your website can become an incredibly powerful source of data so you should spend some thought on this topic in advance. Your website not only allows you to interact and engage with the largest prospect audience possible but also with your current and past customers. Every contact provides you with consumer information – make sure you collect the right information and integrate it in your CRM programme! This is the only way to properly segment your prospects, plan contact management and marketing automated activities in a relevant and meaningful way for the customer!
Your website is the glue between different retail channels
Consumers use omni channels to buy what they want – a website can be the common ground or the glue that connects these channels! A telesales agent or sales person on the floor should be able to use the website as a tool to explain products and services to the consumer. A customer might prefer to shop digitally or seek human interaction before concluding a purchase, either via a telesales consultant or by contacting the closest mortar and brick retail store.
Search Engine Optimization
SEO is crucial from the very start! Site architecture, content and HTML code are just a few search engine success factors. My favourite example are keywords, as they are often overlooked when generating the content for a new website, which can result in a lot of editing work post go live of your site – so remember to research keywords relating to your business as early as possible to incorporate them in a sensible way.
User Journey and Experience
It is not enough to just provide access to a lot of information along with some funky online tools – it’s the HOW that matters. Does the website allow for easy user navigation, is it obvious to the consumer how to get from step A to B and are there clear calls to action where it makes logical sense to the consumer? Is your site responsive and how does the experience differ on various devices? It is also important to do regular check-ups or so called UX audits of your website, as any and all changes or added functionalities over the course of time will impact on the user’s experience.