All businesses, even small ones, need a website in today’s online market. However, to make sure your website is aiding your small business rather than hindering it, you need to make sure you’re not making the mistakes detailed below.
Poor security
Every website needs good security as there are all kinds of things just roaming the internet waiting to find a weakness to exploit. Yes, website security tends to cost extra, but it’s most definitely worth the investment in the long run not only for peace of mind, but to ensure you can act fast and effectively if your site is attacked by malware, hacker, or a virus.
No credibility
Anyone can have a website and make it seem as if they have an official business these days. Yet a website alone is not usually enough to convince customers to buy into what you are selling. You’ll also need to demonstrate credibility to show your business is legitimate. This means doing things like showing independent trust review site scores with links to your business’s page on those sites, adding pictures of your team, and displaying your social media links and contact info.
Stock images
Including images on your website is crucial, both to break up and illustrate your text as well as to make it interesting for the reader. Unfortaly, many small businesses make the mistake of using generic stock photos which don’t say a lot about their company, staff or values. In the worst cases, stock images can hurt your website because readers will have seen them in so many other places that it lowers their trust in the information and image you are portraying.
Happily, there is a solution to this and it’s to invest in a skilled personal branding photographer to take some images for you. The advantages of including authentic and high-quality brand images that will draw in new customers by helping them connect to your values and story.
An awful CTA
Last of all, let’s not forget that a poor CTA or call to action as it’s also known, can be just as bad if not worse than having none at all. Remember a CTA should direct website visitors to the action you want them to take next, whether that’s booking a consultation, signing up for a newsletter or even placing an order.
Of course, you should always have a CTA on your site, but at the same time they need to be fit for purpose and get your customers to do what you need them to, otherwise, you have wasted all that effort and time. With that in mind, a good call to action should start with the verb you want them to do such as Call, buy, or sign up. Next, it should contain words that evoke positive emotions such as Call our dedicated and reliable team. A good call to action also encourages immediate action with words like now or today, and lastly, ensure you include a reason why a customer should do what you are asking like saving money! For example, the CTA below includes all the features described –
“Call our helpful team to start saving money today!”