Robyn Rivera
There are a lot of things that go into building an effective website, but one of the most important factors is how engaging it is.
Think of engagement as action. When someone comes to an engaging website, they feel more compelled to take action.
If all of your visitors come and go without taking action, it doesn’t do you much good. That’s why, at the end of the day, an effective, successful website is also an engaging one.
A lot of businesses are under the impression that, the more information they can provide, the better. And, while — in a way — that’s true, it’s more about how you present the information that matters.
Let’s put it this way. You can provide the best possible information, but your readers will only be able to benefit from it if they actually read it. If your website is formatted in a way that confuses the message by overloading your visitors with too much in one small space, they probably won’t stick around for long.
Keep your website clean and simple by leaving plenty of white space around the most important elements of your page, like your main call to action (CTA).
Your website will look more attractive and you’ll be able to guide your visitors to fill out a contact form, sign up for your newsletter, visit your services page or whatever the next step is.
When people visit your website, they do so with a specific goal in mind. Maybe they’re shopping for a specific product or looking for a local service. Or, maybe they want to learn more about your team and whether or not you’re a good fit for what they need.
Whatever your visitors are looking for when they visit your site, you want to make it easy for them to find it. That means that your site needs to be intuitive and easy to navigate.
There’s a strong possibility that you have competitors out there who are offering similar services or products at similar prices. If someone comes to your website and can’t find what they’re looking for, they’re going to move on to your competition.
Make it as easy as possible for your visitors to find what they need by keeping your navigation simple. It’s also a good idea to add a search feature.
When you’re creating content for your website, you always want to do so with your target audience in mind. Don’t use a lot of industry jargon or tech speak, and don’t talk down to them, either. Reader-friendly content is always respectful and informative without being condescending.
Content that is reader-friendly is more likely to actually be read, which means that it’s more likely to actually be beneficial for those reading it. When you can write in a relatable way that’s easy to understand, you’ll be able to better educate your customers and build trust.
In addition to making sure that the content itself is reader-friendly, make sure that your content is formatted in a reader-friendly way. That means breaking up longer paragraphs, breaking your content into different sections with headlines, etc.
If someone visits your landing page and is convinced by what they’ve seen to take the next step, it’s important to make it as easy as possible for them to do so. That means that you should guide them to the next step in how you design your website.
A conversion can mean something different for one website than it is for another. For instance, for an e-commerce website, making a sale is a conversion; whereas, scheduling a free estimate or signing up for a newsletter might be conversions for other businesses.
Whatever the next step is in the sales funnel, guide your visitors to it by highlighting the main CTAs on your website.
In some cases, people are visiting your website because they want to learn more about who you are or what you have to offer. Other times, your visitors will be farther along in the sales funnel, and they’ll be looking to get in contact with you directly.
Finding contact information is one of the main reasons why some of your visitors are coming to your site in the first place, so make it easy for them to find that information.
Make sure that you have a dedicated “Contact Us” page on your website, and link to it in many different places throughout your website. You’ll also want to include your contact information throughout your website, typically in the footer.
In order for a visitor to engage with your website, they first need to be persuaded to stick around. They’ll often make the decision on whether to stay or go in the first few seconds of getting to your website, and the images and videos you use can help to push them in the right direction.
When someone visits your website, they want to see more than just a wall of text. Text — while important for delivering information to your visitors — is boring. Quality images and videos can catch the attention of your visitors and convince them to stick around and give you a chance.
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Originally published on 6/29/20