Why Do You Have A Website?

Do you really know why? Is it because you need to have one for credibility? Do you have one because you generate sales leads on the web? Do you sell (ecommerce) on your website? Does your advertising drive people to your website for more information? These are just a few examples of why you need a website.

Website Basics
Your website is a vehicle for delivering information. The Internet is a place where people can find your website. You should also drive potential customers to your website through advertising both on and off line. Visitors who come to your website are looking for information. Your website must provide that information in a fast easy to use manner. There is nothing more frustrating than a website that has it's information hidden. Many websites do a poor job at organizing and labeling the information contained on the site. A good website should have clean and obvious navigation.

Hey, your website is a marketing tool too.
In addition to being a vehicle for delivering information, your website is a marketing tool first and foremost. That means that your company and brand image is at stake here. An ugly, hard to use website can often hurt your organization more that it will help. Would you leave your house with food on your face and without combing your hair? I doubt it. So why would you have your website look like a mess? There is no excuse for a poor website in this day. An unprofessional website reflects an unprofessional company or brand. You must balance the delivery of information with the branding and image of your product or organization.

Give Them What They Want
Do you know who is coming to your website and what they want? Think about it. No, really think about it and then make sure that information is easy to find. People do not have the patience to try to figure out your cute or cryptic categorization. Don't overthink your navigation choices. There are basic rules you should follow. You should have an "about us" and a "contact us" page. And they should be easy to find.
In reality, your homepage content can include the details that are often buried in your "about us" page. You can also put your contact information on every page, so in reality you do not need an "about us" or "contact us" page, but you should include them on your site, because people are trained to look for these pages.

What we are saying is that your website should serve a purpose and that purpose is to help bring in customers and grow your business, so make sure that you take the time to make it look good and make it easy to understand.