Set Up for Digital Marketing Success at the Early Stages of Your Business
So you’ve just started your new business and have poured your heart and soul into creating a visually stunning website that showcases your brand’s story and values to your customers. At first glance, you’ve done everything right. However, as time passes, you notice that your website isn’t converting visitors into customers as you had hoped. And when you do some keyword searches, you can’t see your website listing anywhere, or if you do, it’s very far down the rankings list.
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. While having an aesthetically pleasing website is incredibly important, and approximately 38% of users bounce from websites they don’t like the look of, it’s just one piece of the puzzle. In fact, there’s so much more to digital marketing than what initially meets the eye.
If you’re frustrated by the lack of conversion and ranking results for your website, this could be for many reasons. Are you effectively connecting with your target audience? Have you optimised your website with the right keywords in the right place, i.e. title tags? Is your website running seamlessly without error pages or slow loading page speeds? And does your website offer compelling and original content to your visitors?
We’ve helped countless clients who have come to us after realising their website isn’t performing up to par. Sadly, this often results in more time and money spent on fixing avoidable errors that could have been prevented if they had reached out to us sooner. The good news is that with our guidance, you can avoid these issues and get your new business website on track from the very beginning.
What We Look Out For:
When inspecting a client’s website, we often find user experience is a major issue. Slow loading speeds, poor usability and functionality can all contribute to low conversion rates. Usually, our first order of business is to optimise their website for a seamless and intuitive user experience. Sometimes this also requires more technical optimisations, such as ensuring that targeted phrases are included in <title> tags and verifying that their site is easily crawlable by Google.
Other times, our clients may need more comprehensive guidance to help them achieve their digital marketing goals. For instance, we may need to revisit their keyword selection or develop a digital marketing strategy tailored to their specific industry.
We recognise the importance of allocating your resources wisely, especially if you’re a new business or small startup in the initial stages of growth. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of recommendations to help you get your website primed for digital marketing success:
1) Pick the Ideal Website Platform:
If you’re starting from scratch with your website, choosing the right platform to bring your vision to life is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. With so many content management systems (CMS) available, ranging from those that offer greater coding flexibility and plugin functionality like WordPress to the simple drag-and-drop builders like Squarespace or Wix, it’s best to choose one that aligns with your preferences and technical abilities.
We highly recommend WordPress for a brochure-style website. It’s a CMS that every developer knows like the back of their hand, so the handover will be a breeze if you ever need to switch to an agency or developer. Plus, it’s super easy to set up and incredibly user-friendly.
For eCommerce sites, our go-to is WooCommerce, which can be integrated into a WordPress site. However, if you plan to sell lots of products and expect a high traffic volume, Shopify is the way to go.
2) Conduct Meticulous Market Research:
A common mistake we see is clients using irrelevant keywords or those with low search volumes. To avoid this, we recommend using Google Keyword Planner to identify high-value keywords to incorporate into your website content and meta tags.
You should also scope out your competition to stand out in your industry and attract customers. What strategies are your competitors using to reach their target audience? What keywords are they targeting? By conducting meticulous market research, you can gain valuable insights into optimising and elevating your website for maximum impact.
3) Finesse the Design and Layout:
Your website plays a critical role in building your reputation, with approximately 75% of consumers admitting to judging a company’s credibility based on its website design (Stanford University). A striking interface with captivating visuals, clear fonts and consistent branding are vital elements of a successful website.
And don’t forget the essential pages like Home, About Us, Products/Services, Meet the Team, Blog, Contact Us, Terms of Use and Privacy Policy to enhance user experience.
A responsive design that adapts seamlessly to different devices is also a must-have feature, especially since most users access websites on their smartphones.
4) Don’t Forget Social Media Integration:
Linking your social media accounts to your website allows users to seamlessly navigate between your various channels. This is vital as businesses with multiple digital touchpoints are more likely to be chosen by consumers. Similarly, including a link tree in your social media bio that leads to your website can further strengthen the integration between your social media and website.
5) Regularly Update Your New Business Website:
Keep your website fresh and up-to-date by regularly creating high-quality content. Not only does a frequently updated website rank well on Google, but it also shows visitors that your business is active. You can achieve this by refreshing your landing page with new information, publishing insightful blog posts relevant to your industry or showcasing recent reviews and testimonials from happy customers.
Be sure to include relevant keywords in your content to help boost your search engine rankings. This will help potential customers find your website when they search for products or services related to your business.
6) Stay on Top of Your Analytics:
By utilising Google Analytics, you can get a bird’s-eye view of user behaviour and gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of your digital marketing strategy. Whether it’s detecting high bounce rates or pinpointing conversion dips, analytics is a powerful compass to help guide your website optimisation efforts in the right direction.
7) Include Clear Call-To-Actions (CTA):
The ultimate goal of your website is to convert visitors into customers. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by including clear and compelling CTAs that prompt users to take specific actions. Whether it’s filling out a lead form, making a purchase or signing up for a service, a well-placed and user-friendly CTA can mean the difference between a visitor leaving your site and becoming a customer.
8) Set Up a Google Business Profile:
Setting up a Google Business Profile is an excellent strategy to boost sales while you wait for your website’s organic rankings to improve. This approach caters to businesses with a physical store aiming to attract local foot traffic. With an easy setup process, a Google Business listing can rank highly in Google Maps within a matter of days. It’s a quick win that yields fantastic results!
9) Have Patience:
We get it, waiting for results can be tough. We all want to see quick results from our hard work. But the truth is, some digital marketing strategies need time to mature and show results.
As a new business, you’re competing with companies that have invested in SEO, PPC and social media for years, so catching up can take time. But don’t feel discouraged; you can catch up and surpass them with a solid plan and consistent effort.
Instead of aiming for short-term gains, focus on creating a digital marketing strategy that will yield results over an extended period of time. A well-planned 1-2 year strategy can help you achieve your goals and establish a strong online presence.
Need more digital marketing advice? Schedule a call with our Business Development Manager today to discover how we can support your new business venture and propel it towards success.
