Although a complete overhaul of your website might not always be necessary, it is true that all websites need a certain amount of TLC in order to perform to their maximum potential.
The following tasks are simple but could go a long way to increasing both traffic and client enquiries coming through your website.
1. Review all textual copy on your website
When was the last time you reviewed and updated the text on your website? The reality is that many people rarely (or never) update the copy on their website after it launches. Doing a quick review of your website’s content will highlight any areas which may be out of date or have changed. It would also ensure that you include all relevant and up to date information in order to appeal to your current target audience.
In a nutshell, refreshing your website’s text content with current information about your business will help significantly in reconnecting your business with your potential clients.
2. Update and improve your imagery
Good imagery and photography is integral for your website. High quality and high resolution images give a professional gloss to your website which attracts visitors to your website and to your business brand, therefore helping them choose you over the competition.
You may also have a gallery page or portfolio of previous work on your website. Updating these with images of your latest projects will not only showcase the quality of your work but will also highlight the fact that you are currently open for business. Images are also great for sharing across your business’ social media pages to help promote your business.
3. Do a 5 minute DIY SEO review
Doing a DIY SEO review could be as simple as typing a few searches into Google and noting down the position at which your website appears in the results pages. Doing this will highlight which pages are performing well and which pages could do with improving.
For example a landscape gardener might test the following search terms:
- “gardener in Gloucester”
- “gardener in Gloucestershire”
- “landscape gardener in Gloucester”
- “lawn mowing services Gloucester”
Looking at the position of the website for these terms would give a good indication as to what content could be added, changed or removed from the website in order to improve ranking. For example if the gardener’s website appeared on page one for the first three search terms but was on page three for “lawn mowing services Gloucester”, they may decide to add a new page focussing specifically on their lawn mowing services.
It is also worth noting that keeping a record of this information would be invaluable if you decided to go to a web developer to help improve your website’s search engine optimisation (SEO).
4. Link your website to a Google My Business page
I have written previously about the importance of a Google My Business page for local businesses. If you are a small or medium local business I will say again how important it is to not only set up a Google My Business page, but also link it to your website.
Linking your website is telling Google that your website is the same business that appears in search and map results pages, adding more weight to your Google ranking and therefore pushing your business higher up the search results pages.
5. Send an email newsletter
Reconnecting with past clients may prove the difference between them coming to you for business again or them looking elsewhere. Email can be a great tool to remind previous customers that you are available to provide the same great services as before.
This could be in the form of a ‘newsletter’ type email sent to multiple people, or could simply be a few lines sent to a couple of customers you haven’t heard from in a while. It is essentially a friendly reminder that you are open for business.
By taking the steps above you will be significantly improving your website. This in turn will improve your chances of getting more traffic and more sales enquiries coming through your website. If you would like to discuss anything in this article please don’t hesitate to contact me.