A website is a fantastic way to promote your message all over the world. As Internet use expands globally, your website can reach a broad audience. Creating a website can be frustrating and time-consuming if you don’t know where to start.
Use these tips to make smart choices about website development.
Your website’s purpose
Start off by thinking about the purpose of your website. Who are you trying to reach?
You also want to decide on a call to action. What would you like people to do, once they find your site? Your call to action may be: “Email us for more information”, or “Please complete this survey”.
Here are three broad website categories to consider:
– Business: Your business website is designed to attract customers and prospects. The goal of your site is to educate your audience about your product or service, and motivate them to buy. Your may want the person to buy through ecommerce functionality on your website, or simply to call and place an order.
– Nonprofits and political organizations: These entities are formed based on a certain mission, not to generate a profit. Their websites are designed to find people who are interested in the same mission. Ultimately, these organizations want individuals to volunteer, donate money or take some sort of action (voting, lobbying for a cause).
– Creative: If you’re an artist, writer or pursue a hobby, you may want your website to display your work. Your website can promote where your work can be seen or where you will perform next.
Getting help
Once you decide on your website’s purpose, you’ll need to determine how much help you need to build the site. Fortunately, there are a variety of great tools you can use to get started.
WordPress is a web software program you can download to create a website or blog. You can use thousands of plugins and themes to create a unique looking website. While you don’t need to be a programmer to use WordPress, it will take you some time and training to navigate the software.
You also may consider a web hosting company. These firms store your website on their servers. They can help you with website design and customize software for your needs. Bluehost explains that a web hosting firm can migrate your existing website to the hosting firm’s servers. Web hosting moves the responsibility for maintaining your website to an outside firm.
Website design
The explosive growth of the Internet use gives you some great opportunities to attract your audience. You can design your website with a focus on a blog. Consistently posting interesting content to your blog can help you build a website audience.
Google remains the biggest search engine on the web. Google has recently changed their search criteria and placed a bigger emphasis on content. Adding good content to your website can improve your site’s Google search performance. When people do a keyword search that involves your site, you can move up in the search results.
The importance of mobile devices
In 2014, Smart Business Trends pointed out that 60 percent of all online traffic came from mobile devices. That percentage continues to grow. To address that change, make sure that your website in mobile friendly. A hosting company can help you create a site that is readable on a mobile device.
Use all of these tips to create a compelling website that attracts your audience.