Essential Features Every Small Business Website Should Have
A small business website might seem to be just a place to park your business online – more of a necessity than something that can actually help you, perhaps – but the reality is that this is your chance to make a fantastic first impression and to do some extra business that you wouldn’t have been able to do otherwise. That’s why, no matter what kind of business you run, your website needs to do so much more than just exist; it’s got to grab attention, build trust, and make people want to work with you (and buy from you, come to that!). With that in mind, keep reading to find out what essential features every small business website should have and how you can make yours shine.
A Clean, Professional Design
Your website is generally going to be the first interaction people have with your business, so it’s got to look exceptionally good. Of course, good can be a subjective idea, but making sure it’s clean, simple, and easy to work out and get around is definitely something you’ll want to make happen.
For example, if you’re working on a website design for cleaning company, that design needs to reflect the qualities of your business and showcase what it offers – it’s got to be clean, organized, and professional, and it’s got to make sense for the business you’re running. Don’t have any cluttered layouts and always use a calming color scheme and you’ll be on the right track.
Mobile-Friendly Functionality
This is something to consider – most people are browsing on their phones, and if your website looks wonky on a small screen, you’re in trouble because you’re bound to be losing plenty of potential customers. On the other hand, a mobile-friendly design will help to keep those same people on your site, and ideally turning them into actual paying customers, which is, of course, the ideal way to run a business.
You’re going to need to make sure your site adapts well to any different sized screen someone might be looking at it on, and on top of that, the text needs to be readable, buttons should be easy to tap, and the menus should be simple to navigate. If you’re not sure you’ve done it, just test it on your own phone before the site goes live and you’ll soon see where the issues (if any) are.
Clear Call To Action
What is it you want your visitors to do? Call you? Book a service? Buy a product? Well, whatever it is, your website should guide them to do exactly that, and it can happen with clear calls to action, or CTAs.
This might sound complicated at first, but the truth is that you can use simple phrases like ‘get a free quote’, ‘schedule an appointment’, or contact us today’, and these can work wonders to get people to take the next step. And to make sure your CTAs stand out and get noticed, it’s a good idea to design them to be bold and perhaps even be separate buttons with contrasting colors and in that way, no one’s going to miss them.
About the Author: Garlak Theodorakis
My name is Garlak Theodorakis, I am graphic designer with almost 10 year experience in the field. Founded Tooft.com in january 2010 with idea to share my knowledge with the world.
