After having created more than 50 websites myself since 2015 with my special clients, I have seen similarities between the few common hurdles that my clients have come up against! Here is a list of these top difficulties and my own hot tips to working through these issues to make sure you don’t fall into the same trap!
PREPARATION IS KEY!
Prior Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance, or the good ol’ 6 P’s, as I like to call them! I have found a lot of clients reach out and want to work together but all they really know is that they want a website. They haven’t given much thought on what content they are going to use, nor what their main aim of the site is. Here are my top tips on making sure you’re prepared:
This is a great starting point. Think about who in fact is your dream client and how do you want them to interact with your brand new website. Are they tech savvy and intuitively know where to click? Or do they need some guidance throughout the site to get them to the intended destination? Knowing who your dream clients are and speaking directly to them will return much higher conversion rates, than just casting a net out wide to see what you catch!
Once you’ve got who your dream client is sorted out, we can start to look at how we want these users to interact with the site and what information you want them to find. This way we can ensure that we tailor your own “call to action” information. It is also important to make these measurable goals. For example, you may want to build your email list. If this is the case, we will make sure there are plenty of opportunities for your visitors to sign up. You can then also track this goal with metrics and data to see if you’re hitting the nail on the head.
Copy is the text that is going to be on each of your pages. Are you going to write this yourself? Or did you totally suck at year 10 English and need some help getting your words and thoughts together? There are plenty of incredible copywriters around that can help you get the words together for your brand new website. You can check out some of my faves, over here on my resources page {{create and add resources page}}. You want your copy to be enthralling and to be on brand. Speak to your dream clients, use language they can connect with and feel drawn into.
If you don’t have the budget for a copywriter and you want to capture your true authentic voice, why not record yourself speaking or use voice to text to really capture the essence of your story and message.
Another key tip here is to focus on storytelling. Humans connect with stories, so be sure to infuse your story into your copywriting. Your dream clients want to learn all about you, as well as why they should support and trust you. Don’t we all love a good overshare! Share something that is memorable, something that your dream client can connect with on a personal level.
The number one thing that kills a beautifully designed website is terrible photos. Please, please, please don’t use blurry iPhone photos in your brand new website! Professional photography and images really well elevate your business and website to a whole new level. Getting some custom images created for your new website is a must do in my book. This designer right here will tell you that old nugget of a picture tells a 1,000 words. Preach! It really does! So go on, schedule in that brand photo shoot or get in touch with one of the talented photographers on my Resource Page.
If you can’t afford a custom brand shoot, then make sure you use high quality stock photography. Be sure that they are on brand, the colours and tone match your visual identity. If you use premium stock images, you’re less likely to see the same picture a million times all over the internet too! My favourite premium stock site is Stocksy
If you’re a service provider start to gather the following:
If you’re an online shop or sell products, start to gather the following:
I have put together all these tips as I really want to make sure that your new website is working for you! After all you’re putting your hard earn crackers into this, so you want to make sure it saves you time!
Think about what other systems or process that you can integrate into your new website. Do you use a scheduler or booking system? If so, we can most likely embed this into your new website, keeping everything in the one spot for your clients.
Or maybe you want to book in a kick-off call with your clients and you want them to be able to make an appointment. Let’s cut out all the backwards & forwards emails and have everything at your clients fingertips on your website!
Now I just can’t wait to see how your content comes together and watch you bring your new website to life!
Back to the garden now I go… Kate xoxo
