Website design has come a long way. From the bland and clunky, albeit momentous, first web page to go live in 1991 to the cutting-edge functionality of today’s best sites, web design is constantly evolving, and good businesses evolve with it.
If it’s traffic, leads and sales you’re after, simply creating an informative website is not enough. Your website needs to be built for lead generation. That is, converting visitors into leads and increasing inbound enquiries.
Search Engine Optimisation
The latest research (2020) from Sistrix has shown that the first five results of a Google search get 70.4 per cent of the clicks, while results ranked sixth through to tenth receive 17.6 per cent collectively. Suffice to say, you want to be high on that pecking order, which is where Search Engine Optimisation comes in. Commonly known as SEO, Search Engine Optimisation is a collective term for the techniques used to improve a website’s visibility on search engines. SEO requirements change all the time, but there are some consistent factors including website speed, mobile friendliness, optimised content (such as the all-important ‘keywords’, meaning words with good search traffic potential), relevant links and the user experience. A basic understanding of SEO will help build a solid foundation, but a web developer, SEO specialist or SEO-minded content creator can take your site to the next level.
Blogging
Companies that blog generate 67 per cent more leads than companies that don’t. You want in on those figures, right? When produced with the appropriate SEO tactics in play, each blog post you publish is a new opportunity for your site to show up in search engines. The more you blog, the more traffic you’ll get, but there’s a balance. Blog posts should be relevant to your target audience as well as engaging and shareable. For lead conversion, it is important to add a call to action (CTA) on each blog post. You need visitors to click, download, sign up, read more – and if this action includes a landing page, even better. Speaking of…
Landing pages
Love them or hate them, landing pages are formidable lead generators. Designed to procure contact information (IE leads), landing pages present a value proposition aimed at enticing visitors towards the next stage of the buyer’s journey. As mentioned above, it can be the page that follows a call-to-action button, but it can also serve as a website’s homepage or the page on the other side of a click-through advertisement. Opt-in forms play a similar role and should be added to the pages on your website that receive the most traffic. The less information a form or landing page requires, the more willing people will be to part with their personal details. And as for the value proposition, it is important to deliver on this immediately.
Testimonials
An oldie but a goodie, testimonials are still a powerful tool when it comes to converting potential customers or clients. Including testimonials and case studies to your website adds validation to your business and gives visitors confidence to put their trust in you.
Content frequency is important, but did you know churning out low-quality content can hurt your search engine rankings? Click here to read more about creating relevant content that inspires.