So, which side of the bandwidth does your business fall in?
Do you have a website under your business’s name or not?
It’s 2019, and the statistics suggest that a significant percentage of business still don’t have a website of their own, which is a matter of concern for those trying to build and survive themselves in this aggressively growing economy of cutthroat competition. But an equally important question in this regard is, what has been built, is it being attended to properly?
What I mean by this is, do you practice redesigning, or are you still relying on the decade-old website design techniques?
If not, then you certainly would be noticing a gradual decline in your lead generation?
Every business that is leveraging the power of online presence has a primary mutual goal and a year-round contention; which is generating qualified leads as it is necessary to steer the business ahead. From all the determinants of quality and quantity of leads being attracted by the business, website design is crucial as it is one of the foremost lead generation strategies used by marketers.
Do you know how much time it takes for a visitor to form an impression of your business by looking at the website?
- It is your website design that peaks interest in a visitor, escalating their potential to be a customer.
- It is your website design that makes people want to talk about it and recommend it to their peers.
- It is how your website functions that will decide whether or not a visitor will come back or not?
- It is your website that will define your business’s legitimacy and credibility.
- Your website design is 94% accountable for the first impressions and negative feedback.
Staggering, I know!
Which is why just like any other critical digital marketing elements, upgrading it is necessary to strengthen the relevance and stay in the competition.
If despite your potent marketing strategies, you don’t see any increase in leads, or worse, there has been a decline, then you are unable to establish a connection with your potential audience. But to determine that you need to know how your website design is negatively affecting the lead generation:
- A VAGUE ABOUT PAGE:
Visitors are quick on clicking on that “About us” button, to know how your business can resolve their issues. It is unprecedently one of the most visited page on the website but is often overlooked. Writing it without the human element and authenticity won’t build the trust you need for lead generation and conversions. You will be perceived as just another money minting business and will have high bounce rates.
- OVERLOOKING THE MUST-HAVES:
A particular segment of people are visiting your site are looking or three things in your business; the affordability, tackling the honest pros and cons of the services they are offering head on and demonstrating how their services stand out from the crowd. Overlooking these aspects will foreshadow your intent of being perceived as a trusted authority, which is essential in boosting leads.
- NO LEAD MAGNET:
Do you have nothing to offer your visitors to make them stay or return to your website? No, we are not talking about the “subscribe to my newsletter”; we are referring to giveaways that add value to your customer’s life such as whitepapers, reports, cheatsheet, checklist, etc. Since most of the visitors don’t purchase their first visit, having lead magnet is crucial to attract and engage them.
- GHOSTED SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
Customers look for social media icon on the very first page. If you have social media icons that link to blank or half-heartedly done facebook, linkedin, Instagram profiles, then you will lose your credibility and the prospect of any lead generation.
- OBSOLETE TECHNIQUES:
Using old and obsolete web designing techniques will drive traffic away from your website, which would lead to a significant loss of revenue as more than 50% of the website traffic is brought in by the search engine. This means not only will your website be no longer attracting any leads, but the SERPS will be adversely impacted, leading to the low return of investment. Speaking of, redesigning is an investment which, when aligned to the consumer’s demand and technological advancement, will yield positive results.
Redesigning website is vital for your business, no matter the scale.
Redesigning website is the need of the hour. If you want your business to outshine in the market, start with your online presence i.e., website design and development.
Allow me to throw light on the signs that will better help you determine the importance of website designing:
- When was the last time you update your website? Technology is continuously evolving, and so is consumers expectations and demands from the business. Are you still hanging on to the old tricks or do you update it as and when the need arises?
- Does it put out your marketing message in the most comprehensible, subtle yet aesthetic way possible? You must have visited several sites whose messages are murkier, and you can not just determine what and who they are catering to? Does your website give an authentic, considerate, and cohesive message?
- Ask a friend to navigate through it and observe their experience? Do you find them struggling? The people with your best interests in their heart will give honest opinions. Give them a few minutes to go through your website and jot down their feedback. Did they complain about your website having too many navigation items? Did they ask you to get rid of generic navigation labels? Or were they annoyed by the drop-down menu (which for your information, makes it difficult for the search engine to crawl if designed wrong)
- Is it getting the right SEO traction that a business of your niche should? Little to no SEO movement on your website could bring all your website designing efforts to dust.
- Were you able to browse your website with the same ease across all devices? Does your site offer a seamless experience across all devices? Does it quickly load according to the screen size of the equipment or you have to scroll through to read more about it horizontally?
Did this reality check help you establish the significance of redesigning in this time and age?
Assuming the answer to be affirmative, we are going to discuss some redesigning tips that can help your business with attracting and engaging qualified lead:
- Tell your unique story:
Every business has a story, and if you want to draw the attention of your audience, you need to put that out in the most compelling manner possible. No matter how feature-rich your website is, if there is nothing that can get your audience hooked, then they won’t stay longer. Articulate your business story so that the audience hopes their queries will get answered and wants to dive further.
- Strategic contact forms:
If your contact page is getting more views than the other section, your audience is interested in knowing what you have to offer. Revamp your contact forms by minimizing the field numbers, which is the primary reason behind stopping generation and conversion rates; asking too many questions. Get rid of the submit, download, and register as customers perceive the business as being an authority which will have an adverse impact on the lead generation. Similarly, make contact number field option or better still, do not ask for a contact number, as no one wants to be bothered by the class of the salesperson. Furthermore, keep a check on our field labels dimensions and alignment as they influence the readability.
- Ensure smooth navigation:
No one wants to navigate through a complex website. Keep it simple and utilize the data you get from Google analytics to determine where your audience is looking for. Once you have that established, you should work on designing a page that is even more smooth for the audience to navigate through.
- Content for buyer persona:
With real data on customer demographics and online behavior in your hand, you should create content specifically for the buyer persona. A persona targeting content is the one whose page categories, messaging, and content caters to the needs of different buyers. Segmenting demographics such as job, age, industry; identify what exactly is each segment looking for and buying and then designing a page pe the findings for increasing lead generation possibility.
- A responsive web design:
You must have been tired of reading this, but there is no stressing enough on its ability to enhance your lead generation. The increasing use of smartphones and content consumption through it by seconds, you can not take a chance. After all, 8 in 10 customers stop engaging with a content that does not display well on their website, and 83% of mobile users say a seamless experience across all devices is critical.
Redesigning, in its entirety can be overwhelming, let alone specifically for lead generation and the little hesitation businesses operators have is understandable, but you have to look at your long term goals and stay prepared for it. These tips can help you make a good head start.