Your website is your first line of communication with many potential customers. But, is it doing the work for you that it should?
Here are three tips for getting your website working better for you.
1) Self-critique The first step to solving a problem is admitting you have one. Ask yourself these questions:
- What do you want your website to do?
- Is it doing that as well as you would like? Is it doing that at all? How do you know?
- Is your website easy to navigate?
- If you could change anything on your website or add anything to your website, what would it be?
- Can you find yourself using a Google (or other search engine) search? If you are beyond the first three pages (maybe five), you won’t be found.
2) Survey your customers
- Ask your customers if they use your website, why or why not? Don’t guess what your customers want, ask them either as they walk in or via a print and electronic survey.
- Ask them what they would like to be able to do on your website that they currently can’t do.
- Have a computer set up in your store and ask your current customers to find something specific on your website and see how long it takes, what problems they have, and how long it takes them to be successful. Don’t help them! Give them something if they are willing to take a few minutes to give you feedback.
3) Do something now!
- You can make small tweaks to your website that are neither costly nor time-consuming, but that can make a big difference in getting customers into your store or contacting you, and ultimately buying your products. Some things to make sure are prominent and easy to find:
- Contact information.
- Store hours.
- Directions and/or map to your location(s).
- Product information.
- Updated copyright in the footer (tells folks you don’t ignore your website).
- Dealer locations or locator.
- About Us (people like to read about who they might do business with).
