How to Build a Powerful Small Business Website
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The workshop focuses on building a powerful small business website, emphasizing planning, functionality, and effective online marketing strategies. Key sections include understanding your audience, creating engaging content, ensuring top-notch site functionality, and considering security and maintenance. Real-life case studies, practical tips, and hands-on activities are provided to assist small business owners in optimizing their web presence.
How to Build a Powerful Small Business Website
- 1. Building a Powerful Small Business Website Mike Baker Real Time Web Marketing
- 2. Welcome • This workshop is for you! • Try not to get overwhelmed • General / not overly technical / fast pace • Ask questions & get involved! • Designed to get you thinking • Some marketing 101 stuff (a must)
- 3. Housekeeping Items • 10 minute break @ half-way • Worksheets, mailing list form • Copy of these slides online • Drawing at the end • Exit interview if willing
- 4. My Introduction: Owner of Real Time Web Marketing MCSE, CNE & was a Microsoft Cert Trainer Last corp. job – Dir of Net & Telecom Mike Baker Degrees in NEM & Web Des/Dev Been a freelancer & biz owner last 8 yrs Taught network engineering & web design
- 5. My Introduction: I love working with small biz owners I’m very hands on in with people & tech: Connecting people with technology I actually build & code websites Workshops / Networking / etc.
- 6. Let’s hear about you now How many own a website right now? How many have built a website? Have a small business right now? How many of you maintain your own site? Are just starting one up?
- 7. Compelling Case Study – MCC Group • Visibility online was only at 7% & only one page getting traffic at all • A non-profit trying to secure funding & find partners • Website was confusing & info was out of date – losing credibility • Ranking for only 2 keywords above 50
- 8. Compelling Case Study – MCC Group
- 9. MCC Group Success Story MCCGroup.org
- 10. Compelling Case Study – MCC Group • Visibility online went from 7% to over 83% in just 4 months • Has secured funding & found partners • Website is easy to navigate, clear messaging, helping accomplish mission • Ranking for over 50 keywords now
- 11. MCC Group Success Story
- 12. How to Build a Powerful Small Business Website
- 13. • Section 1: Planning your website • Section 2: Building your website • Section 3: Hosting, security, maintenance What we will cover today • Section 4: Should I fire my old website?
- 14. What we want websites to do Found in Google search results Collect leads / Provide info Generate calls / sales / revenue Attract new customers Market products & services Give us credibility
- 15. What’s the bottom line? We want results
- 16. A powerful website will… Attract visitors and entice them to interact with it Be built well enough to be a solid foundation for all your online marketing
- 17. Powerful websites • Have well-written, optimized content • Meaningful headlines / Calls-to-action • Built & Optimized to Google’s standards • Speak to your target market • Compelling imagery, graphics & video
- 18. Powerful websites • Are easy to navigate, well organized • Look and feel professional • Have content updated regularly • Are error free, load fast, & are secure • Are optimized for mobile users
- 19. Great, but, how do I do all that?
- 20. Power starts with how you package your business
- 21. Real Life Packaging Example The packaging of this book didn’t sell … “Find out all about your self, your love, your friends, and family!”
- 22. This book sold millions! Same book! Why? Real Life Packaging Example
- 23. Website packaging examples Would you prefer this homepage ..
- 24. Or this homepage for your business? Graphic from Digital Marketer, Ryan Diess (http://www.digitalmarketer.com/) Website packaging examples
- 25. NEVER FORGET! Your website is the virtual welcome mat & front door for your biz online
- 27. If you don’t have plans…
- 28. You might end up with this …
- 29. Understand WHAT you are building And WHO you are building it for! Know what you’re building
- 30. What are you building… this? An International news site, lots of ads & feeds Large scale hosting, streaming video, translation
- 31. Or… this? Ecommerce website, cart, CC processing, Scalable hosting, advanced search, shipping
- 32. Or… even this? A small community website w/ local traffic. Economy hosting, audio, CMS, basic forms, donations
- 33. • What is your desired reach? • Geographics • Where do they live & work? WHO are you building it for! • Languages, customs, etc. • Local, national, international? (Audience / Target market)
- 34. • Psychographics • Demographics (socioeconomic) • Age, income level, gender, etc. WHO are you building it for! • Values, interests, lifestyle, etc. • Reading level of content • Tone of written content
- 35. Your turn to work! • What do you know about your market’s Geographics? • What do you know about your market’s Demographics? • What do you know about your market’s Psychographics?
- 36. WHO are you building it for! Did you know also have an invisible audience?
- 37. Bots, Spiders, & Crawlers
- 38. Bots & spiders? Say what? • Plan your site with Google & other search engines in mind • ‘Bots’ or ‘spiders’ crawl the web • They index pages & rank them • Search engines display results
- 39. Which is more important? A website that caters to robots (SEO)? A website that caters to your visitors? OR
- 40. Who judges if a site is good or not? • Visitors judge with their clicks & wallets • Google judges with search result rankings • Google is always judging your site!
- 41. The Battle Between Humans & Machines Online Directories Search Engines
- 42. One key to a powerful website There needs to be a balance! • Some elements more for Google • Some elements more for visitors • Sometimes they are at odds! • Each business website unique
- 43. Planning your website Choosing a domain name
- 44. Choosing your domain name • Often contains business name • Make it intuitive & descriptive • How people find you by name • What your biz does if possible (https://MyBusinessName.com) • Have someone review it first!
- 45. Tragic domain names Speedofart.com Speed of Art (Speedo’s art non-profit) Tech Company “IT Scrap” Effective Office Environments Effoff.com Itscrap.com
- 46. Domain names good/bad? • PlumbingSuppliesOC.com • AndySmithPhotography.com • ForTheChildren.org • rtwm-oc.com
- 47. • Share your domain name with someone near you, does it work? • If you don’t have one, make one up Your turn to work!
- 48. Planning your website What are your goals?
- 49. What is a conversion? “The point at which a website visitor performs a desired action.” In other words, conversion is simply getting someone to respond to your call-to-action.” • Click • Subscribe • A phone call • Fill out a Form • Watch a video
- 50. What are your goals? What is a conversion for you? • Sale of a product / service? • Get someone to call you? Identify your goals / objectives • Showcase services / products? • What do you want them to do?
- 51. • What do you want visitors to do when they land on your home page? • What are the goals for your website? • What is a conversion for you? Your turn to work!
- 52. Planning your website Functionality & features needed
- 53. • Photo Gallery What features will you need? • Multiple Languages • Online Store / Shopping Cart • Payments / Donations • Database Connections • Audio & Video • Memberships • Private Pages • Blog / Articles • Ads / Monetization • Calendars • Online Forum • Forms
- 54. • Which functions and/or features does your website have now or will need later? • Are there any functions / features not on the list that you need? Share with us! Your turn to work!
- 55. Planning your website Engaging content
- 56. Plan for Engaging Content • Infographics / FAQs • Photo Galleries / Portfolios • Blogs / Articles / How-tos • Social Feeds (Twitter, Facebook) • Social Proof (links to reviews) • Client Endorsement Video
- 57. The Power of Video Bob Chesney
- 58. Planning your website Planning your pages / structure
- 59. Pages you should have • About / About Us • Contact / Contact Us • Terms of Service Agreement • Blog (if you will use it!) • Services / Products • Portfolio OR clients if needed
- 60. Add these pages if you can • FAQs (great for voice search) • Eg. “How do I fix my drain?” • Separate page for each service • A team page if needed • Video or photo gallery • Pages of valuable content
- 61. Pages should … • Have links to other pages • Every page needs a focus! • Page names should reflect content • Important content easy to locate • Content should be easy to scan
- 62. • If I have a website already, are there any pages I think I may need to add? • If I have a website, are there any pages that can get rid of clean up my website? • If I have a website, am I linking to other pages inside my website AND linking to resources outside my website? Your turn to work!
- 64. Meta Data & Tags • Pages have info you don’t see • Meta data, html tags (alt tags, h1, etc.) • Google uses this information • Webpage readers use it too (accessibility) • Ignoring it will affect your SEO • This is part of what an SEO experts do
- 65. • How do I plan to deal with the ‘invisible stuff’ that my website needs? Hire an SEO expert to help? Watch some videos / read online? Visit Yoast.com to learn more I’m not doing anything! If I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist! Your turn to work!
- 67. What visitors want most! When asked, “What do you want most in a website?”, 9 out of 10 respond … “I want to find what I’m looking for … and I want to find it quickly.”
- 68. TIP: Get feedback from others …
- 69. Website Usability Cardinal Rule
- 70. What poor website feels like to a visitor
- 71. What a poor website looks like NOT!
- 72. Here’s another one …
- 73. Building Your Website Homepage
- 74. Elements most homepages need • Clear messaging – who you are & what you do • Clear, visible navigation – don’t make them think! • Relevant content, optimized to include your business name & service area • Supporting images, video, graphics (relevant) • A primary call-to-action
- 75. Clear Messaging Examples • Starts with your branding • Logo should be in header • Good tag lines help clarify • Place important content near top • Include location(s) & phone
- 76. Tag Lines 8-12 word catchphrase or slogan “We build brands that build business” • Good tag lines help clarify • Becomes part of your brand • Imparts a positive feeling
- 79. • Does your website have name, address, and phone number (NAP) in the footer (or header), and on the contact page? • What is your business tag line? Share it with us! Your turn to work!
- 80. Elements most homepages need • Clear messaging – who you are & what you do. • Clear, visible navigation – don’t make them think!
- 81. Navigation • Don’t get clever with location • Should have good contrast • Don’t make text too small • Plan ahead for pages & navigation • Short, but descriptive names
- 86. Elements most homepages need • Clear messaging – who you are & what you do. • Clear, visible navigation – don’t make them think! • Relevant & useful content, optimized for your business name & service area
- 87. Relevant written content • Service areas if relevant • Contact info easy to locate (NAP) • Use business name in text • Products / Services clearly listed • Need links to interior pages
- 88. The Awareness Ladder Do they know they need it? Do they know you offer it? Do they know you are the best person to buy it from?
- 89. Services Listing Example “What we do”
- 90. Benefits Example “What we do for you”
- 91. Use Leading Questions - Links to inside content -
- 92. • What services do you offer? • What benefits do you offer your clients/customers? Your turn to work!
- 93. Elements most homepages need • Clear messaging – who you are & what you do. • Clear, visible navigation – don’t make them think! • Relevant & useful content, optimized for your business name & service area. • A primary call-to-action
- 94. Call-to-Action (CTA) • An image or line of text (or both) • 70% of small biz sites have no CTA • How you get people to buy / act • Include a offer or enticement
- 95. Good call-to-action elements Mailing list opt-in’s with offers / loss leaders
- 96. Good call-to-action elements Exit Intent Pop-Ups CTA Buttons / Offers Countdown Offer Timers
- 97. Button “A” Button “B” Which button is better?
- 98. • Which calls-to-action elements do I use, or would like to start using? • What is my call-to-action text going to be? • What is/are my call-to-action element(s) going to link to? Your turn to work!
- 99. Elements most homepages need • Clear messaging – who you are & what you do. • Clear, visible navigation – don’t make them think! • Relevant & useful content, optimized for your business name & service area. • Supporting images, video, graphics (relevant) • A primary call-to-action
- 100. Supporting images & graphics • Compelling images evoke emotion • Images can be tagged for SEO • Images reinforce what you do • Good imagery reinforces brand • Graphics make lists interesting
- 101. Are these CTA’s better? Why? Use CTA Blocks w/ button for max results!
- 102. Supporting images Which is better? This one…
- 103. Supporting Images Or this one? Why?
- 104. What’s wrong here?
- 105. What’s Wrong Here?
- 107. When building interior pages • Google wants headings! • Know that people scan webpages • Include images if relevant • Break text up w/ headings • Make it easy for them to find what they want
- 108. Which page seems more readable?
- 109. Which page seems more readable?
- 110. Making Lists Stand Out
- 111. CMS, WordPress & other platforms What should I build my website with?
- 112. What is a CMS? • Content Management System (CMS) • Doesn’t require a developer for every change • Needs more maintenance (updates) than a traditional, non-CMS site • Website software that makes it easier to add content & edit
- 113. Some Popular CMS Choices • Most popular is WordPress (25%) • Other CMS offerings are: • Drupal • Shopify (ecommerce) • Joomla • Magneto (ecommerce)
- 114. Why I recommend WordPress • WordPress is open source (free) • Tons of meetups & user groups • Plugins (extensions) are inexpensive • Large support community • You can learn to use it yourself! • Can grow with your business
- 115. Other Options • Build on a hosted environment • GoDaddy, BlueHost, HostGator, etc. • Wix, WordPress.com, SquareSpace • Offer do-it-yourself websites • Limited expandability / not great for SEO • Only if you have a very limited budget
- 116. Other self-hosted options • More expensive to build • Have your website custom built in a non-CMS platform • Ruby, HTML/PHP, ASP.Net, Perl • Need developer to do updates or add content
- 117. SECTION 3 Hosting, Security, & Maintenance
- 118. Your choice of website hosts matters… a lot! Cheap is NOT better; Invest here! Big names do not = good service Should spend at least $30 month Google will dock you for poor hosting Performance, uptime, security
- 119. Website Security Matters! Over 30,000 sites hacked each day! Mostly want access to your resources Cost to recover your site is high Loss of reputation & trust Google wants all sites to be https:
- 120. Ways to Secure Your Site Use a secure website host Make sure you use complex passwords Get a digital certificate (https://) Use a firewall (like Sucuri) in front Get a professional security review
- 121. Maintain your website Most sites require maintenance now Plugins, scripts, code, & core updates Links go down & things break Brower standards change Hire a professional to maintain it Make regular backups!
- 122. • Who is your current website host (if you have a website) • Have you secured your website? • Do you maintenance your website (perform regular updates, check for outdated code, perform regular backs, etc.)? Your turn to work!
- 123. SECTION 4 Should I fire my old website?
- 124. Test responsiveness & performance Is the site mobile responsive? • testmysite.thinkwithgoogle.com • Penalty for sites that don’t pass • Over 50% of site views mobile
- 125. Test responsiveness & performance Do pages load within 4 seconds? • https://tools.pingdom.com • Penalty for slow sites • Users abandon after 5 seconds
- 126. • Slow or non-responsive sites should be fired! A decisive verdict! • Out-dated, non-professional looking sites should be fired! • Sites that have outdated code should be fired! (vulnerable to attack!) • www.w3.org/developers/tools
- 127. Other important tests • Is the site ranking in Google? • Are people using the site? • Can it grow with your business? • Does it look up to date? • Site: YourDomainName.com • Use the free SEMRush.com tools
- 128. Other important tests • Can you update content yourself? • Does everything work? • Is most of the content good? • Does it look & feel out of date? • Can you it update yourself?
- 129. • If you answered “no” to most of the questions, fire your old website. More reasons to fire it! • If the site isn’t ranking well, and the issue is the way the site is built, fire it! • If it will cost as much to update as to rebuild, fire that old website!
- 130. • If you answered “yes” to most of the questions, an update may work well. When to keep it … • If you just need to update content and have someone help with SEO, keep it! • If the site ranks well & works well, it may be best to just update it!
- 131. • Based on my answers, should I keep or fire my old website? • If I keep my site, what do I need to improve? • If fire my old website, what is my next step? Your turn to work!
- 132. Questions? Your turn to work! Your biggest challenge will be gathering valuable & compelling content -
- 133. “6 Reasons Your Website is Ineffective” On my website’s marketing blog 6 Reasons Series For more details, read my series of articles on holistic web design
- 134. Mike Baker http://twitter.com/realtimewebmktg http://facebook.com/realtimewebmarketing https://www.linkedin.com/in/realtimewebmarketing# Thank you! (714) 662-2203 https://realtimewebmarketing.com