No matter how big or small your business, everyone needs a website. Every individual could benefit from a website too! From creating an online portfolio to housing a blog or uploading your resume to your own website, there are actually fewer people who don’t have a website.
But, just because you have a website that’s live on the internet doesn’t mean it’s actually working.
Many websites can’t easily be found on the internet, and some of the ones that can aren’t very good. If you’re going to have a website, you should make it worth your and your visitor’s time.
Here are three ways to make sure you get the most out of your website.
Invest in the Right Hosting Services
Free web hosting is tempting. After all, why pay for something you can get for free! Well, free web hosting isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
By paying for a hosting service, you can increase the security on your website and have access to customer service if you have any questions. Paying also ensures you can design your site how you want without having to worry about file or size restrictions.
Web hosting isn’t expensive either! With a GoDaddy coupon or another special deal you can find online, you’ll pay peanuts to make sure your site is properly hosted.
Make Sure It’s Usable
How usable is your website? If it isn’t usable, people won’t stick around to check out what you have to offer. Usability includes:
- Consistent navigation that makes sense, including clear page names, a home page, and a contact page.
- Make sure the text on your site is easy to read by choosing the right background color, font color, and font size.
- Less is more with a usable website. Go easy on the graphics, slideshows, images, and popups.
- Use simple text, and break up that text with plenty of paragraphs and visual line breaks.
It’s also a good idea to take the time to make sure your website is disability friendly. Many of these principles are just good web design, so your non-disabled visitors will appreciate them too.
Monitor and Analyze Your Website’s Data
If you want your website to be successful, you have to know how it’s performing. After all, there’s no use in maintaining a website that no one is visiting! Fortunately, it’s extremely easy with Google Analytics.
Google Analytics and other monitoring services can help you figure out:
- How users are finding your site
- Which areas of your website get the most traffic
- Which demographics visit your site the most often
- If your SEO strategies are working
You can then use that information to alter your website to make it even better for your target audience.
Don’t just slap your website on the internet and hope it will bring people to your virtual doorstep. With these three tips, you’ll be well on your way to creating a website that people actually want to visit.
