6 Things Your Website Should Have

by Kristal Reagan

I tried to make this just 5 especially since so many coaches use 3 or 5 when pointing out what you need or what you should omit in an area of business.  I just couldn’t keep it to 5 so I had to go with 6, plus I like even numbers.  Keeping it at only 6 was hard as well and each point has other points to consider and elaborate on.  So let’s start with #1:

1.  Contact Information-People need to know how they can get in touch with you.  The very least you need is an email address or contact form.  It’s best to include a phone number and if you have a brick-and-mortar office/store make sure you include your physical address with a map would be ideal.  Also, include all your social media connections and I don’t mean in the sidebar or in your header but put these within the page so it’s easy for people to find you.  *Note:  When putting your email on a webpage to keep the spam bots away make sure you load it as an image or type is like this, Kristal(at) simplifywebsites(dot)com.  Ascetically it would look better as an image. 

• • A good alternative to a business number is Google Voice.  You can get a free local number with the option to forward it to the phone of your choice.  You can even text from your mobile or computer using Google Voice.

 2.  Add Images or a Video(s)-to your home page.  I can’t stress this enough!  If you are selling something you should have photos of your products.  It may even be a good idea to have them in a slideshow that auto-scrolls.  It’s super easy to add a slideshow in WordPress® without adding a plugin.  If you want more features that a plugin usually offers NextGen Gallery is a great one to install.  If you offer a service then you most certainly need a video whether it’s a welcome video introducing yourself or you giving your signature speech you should have a video!

 3.  Clear Navigation-Your menu and site structure must make sense.  Simple and less is best.  Make sure that your menu labels are concise and depict exactly what they will find on that page.  If I go to a website and I click a menu label of “Portfolio” I’m expecting to see pictures with descriptions of what you’ve created whether your product is digital or physical.  Make sure you know your target market and what they are looking for and whatever those things are should be front and center meaning they should be the top menu item and less vital information can be a submenu item.  Your business model will depend on what your most clicked menu items will be but as a rule make sure it’s easy to find Your Contact info, FAQs, Pricing/Available packages, Calendar or booking/your availability, and your signature solution.  When setting up your navigation think like a customer….what do you like to see and find easily when going to a website?  

4.  Call to Action/No Obligation Invitation (NOI)-People need to be told what to do!  What do you want your website visitor and clients to do when they get to your site?  Do you want them to subscribe to something?  If that answer is yes then make sure that is front and center, in their face, and give them a free gift in return.  The free gift could be a free report of some kind, or an ebook about a subject your target market struggles with.  A video giving them some great information, and for retail it may be free shipping or a discount that they can receive AFTER they have subscribed to your list.  This needs to be easily seen, it needs to have a catchy title and it needs to be seen without having to scroll.  It also needs to be easy for them to enter their information, the easier the better.  There are many great email marketing software plans out there.  I recommend Aweber as a good paid service ad MailChimp is a great free service.  I have personally use(d) both.

5.  Analytics-Using Google Analytics is a must for all websites.  Using this to gauge your internet traffic you can see what works and what isn’t working.  It will help you make improvements to your site.  Watch my video to see a 15-minute explanation of how to use and read GA in the WordPress dashboard.

6.  The Legal Pages-You should have and we often forget.  They don’t necessarily need to be front and center and often work well in the footer of your website.  You should have a Privacy Policy page as well as a Terms and Conditions page.  The Privacy Policy page should state how you value the collection of personal information, what you do with it (or better yet what you don’t do with it), and how you protect it.  The Terms and Conditions page will depend on your business model and here is a good example of a Terms and Conditions page.  Here is a Free tool to create your own Privacy Policy today.