Back to Basics: No one’s visiting my business website!

August 21, 2014

Every day, thousands of new websites are launched and indexed. That means new competition comes to the Internet every day.

No matter how cool or smooth your business website looks, it’s not worth much if no one knows it’s there. So how do you get more people to visit? Keep reading to get some cool ideas for your website design!

Start a creative blog

If you aren’t already blogging, you’re missing out on an invaluable opportunity to connect with your clientele. Blogging is a highly useful form of content marketing that gives consumers a great reason to visit your site several times a week for the latest information and advances in your industry.

Most people associate blogs with diaries, but a professional blog is a little different. Rather than talking about your day or your feelings, your blog articles focus entirely on your industry, what’s going on and any changes or advances that occur.

For example, a clothing store might post a variety of articles about fashion and the latest trends. When fashion weeks in Milan, Paris, London and New York roll around, the blogs might offer their own comments on the clothing and highlight some of the biggest trends that are emerging. Even if the industry is quiet, articles about wearing a certain style of scarf or the season’s hottest colours would attract visitors.

Your posts don’t always have to be text heavy. Post photos and create visually stunning graphics that showcase your work. Videos that offer how-to tutorials are a great way to teach your readers something new. This gives your blog a little variety and makes it stand out from your competitors.

The goal of the blog is to establish yourself as an expert in the industry and keep your viewers coming back to your business website for more updates.

Give a little bit of the milk away for free

You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?” Artists and small business owners tend to be very protective of their work. Even if they blog, they’re less likely to post too many photos of the work for fear of piracy and content-theft.

What it boils down to is either people know who you are and copy your styles because they’re good or they have no idea who you are because you’re virtually obscure. Being obscure is far worse than being copied. At least if you’re copied, you know you’re doing something right and people like your work.

So while you shouldn’t give away your clothing store’s merchandising plan for the next season, you should be willing to give a little bit away for free. Here are a few examples from all different industries:

• High resolution images of your new designs
• Templates for one or two designs
• The first chapter of your novel
• A popular track from your album
• An eBook or report full of good information
• A few tutorials
• Helpful videos that anyone can embed
• A partial photo of a new piece of art

With any industry, it’s important to show off your talent and creativity. You have to first convince people that your styles are worthy of purchase so give a little away and save the best for the paying customers.

Invest in Google Adwords for your Business Website

For any site that is sitting in a remote corner of the Internet, no other program will bring it recognition and attention the way Google Adwords will. With this pay-per-click service, Google allows you to run ads on Google search pages as well as other sites that host advertisements. Each time someone clicks on an ad, you will be charged. By targeting industry-specific (high heels, skinny jeans, blouses, etc.) keywords, you can be sure that the ads are going to people searching for your business type.

Because Google has such a strong online presence (and about 70 percent of the market), this is one of the quickest ways to get an audience. However, some people compare it to renting out a crowd. As you stop paying for the service and start using other forms of marketing, your crowd may start to shrink.

You can, however, use tools like Google Analytics to measure the success of your Adwords campaigns. If you’re generating a positive return on investment (ROI), then you’re doing something right and you don’t necessarily have to stop. The data collected can also help you come up with new marketing tactics or focus on different keywords.

Have a social media personality

One of the best ways to drive traffic back to your website and create a healthy link profile is through social media. By having a Facebook page, a Twitter account and possibly a Pinterest or Instagram account, you’ll be able to tap into your audience and show them how cool your business is every day.

Social media goes hand-in-hand with blogging. After creating a post, you can share it with all of your followers across social media platforms. As people start visiting and reading your content, you can install social media share buttons on your blog, which will allow users to instantly share your work on their own social media accounts. Your customers will do a little bit of marketing for you and spread a positive message about your business to their friends and contacts.

Did you also know that Google is now factoring in likes and shares when ranking a site? Sites that are shared more are getting pushed higher and higher in search results. By allowing users to easily share your content, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favour and boosting your search engine optimisation (SEO).

Double check your design

If you’re engaging with your audience and blogging or posting regularly and still seeing no results, the problem might be with your website.

Ask a group of friends or family members to access your site using different devices and give you honest feedback on its design and usability. Was it easy to navigate? Did it come up okay on a mobile device? Was the design too busy?

Having good feedback from reliable people can help you decide what, if anything, to change about your website. Though you may love the design, if your customers don’t love it, then what’s the point?