Teresa

Today’s online ecosystem is overflowing with casual and serious writers. Are you ready to invest a few hours of every week writing articles that promote your products or services? Do you have the first couple articles already written? If the answer is yes to both of these questions then you are definitely ready for a WordPress website with full blogging.

For some of us this writing isn’t an easy task. If you don’t have the meddle to keep it up for the long run then don’t do it. Instead be a contributing author elsewhere and build a static website that puts your products and services in the best light.

• Research your industry to see what others are doing.
• Be honest about your writing skills.
• Be sure you have the time and energy to invest in the writing.
• Make a list of topics and see how much content you really have.
• Test your content on some current clients.

The most successful blogs in my experience have had a dedicated content writer on staff. In fact, the ideal marketing team has a dedicated person for social media, a dedicated person for writing content, a web developer who is savvy in Search Engine Optimization techniques. This is more than the typical sole proprietor can handle so consider these points carefully as you develop your marketing plan.

In very rare cases, an owner wears the hat of content manager and provides regular updates to the website. With a little bit of tutoring this client can be self sufficient. My favorite success story for WordPress websites and the non-blogger is the restauranteur who is empowered to update their own menu and post special events and seasonal offerings. Please don’t post a pdf! It just doesn’t add to your online find-ability.

Your website still needs a periodic tune up much like we do on our cars. Mileage may vary but most importantly any WordPress website requires regular updates for security. It is also important to keep up to date with Search Engine Optimization because there are always updates to standards, directories, and the search engines. Even if you have a static billboard website or a DIY site, it is a good idea to have an occasional find-ability review by an expert.

• Is your website usable on mobile devices?
• Does it load fast enough?
• Have you checked your directory listings?
• Have you updated WordPress and all plugins?
• Are you measuring your website traffic?
• Do you need rich snippets?
• Are you checking in a filter bubble?

There is so much more to website than the content. Even the hosting you choose can make a difference in the success of your website.

A proper website design starts with good branding, clear product or service strategy, obvious target customers. If these elements are in place then the site architecture and the visual design come together easily. This is a simple description that is particularly easy to implement for a start-up company with a blank slate. Larger companies with a history of product evolution can be a bit more complicated.

• Discovery process: what, who, where, how, etc
• Branding if necessary
• Visual Design
• Site Architecture
• Development
• Launch

The Discovery Process

Every website design project has a much better chance at successfully meeting everyone’s expectations if the initial research is done correctly. This research sets the scope of the project by defining what you have now, who it serves and how the website should be built. It is valuable to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the full product line so that the website features the best of what you have to offer. If you feature everything from a product line that has evolved over the years, the message gets muddy and it typically does not promote your current strengths. It is okay to let go of the older products.

Branding

How much brand recognition do you have today? Typically, smaller companies spend very little time on this when they are starting out. And if you started out ten or more years ago then it is great to update the brand. Look at the evolution of some bigger brands over the years, like Coca Cola.

In a highly competitive market it is a good idea to trademark your brand when you are ready. In the meantime, your brand needs to be consistent and readable not only on your website but across all of your social media channels, email, and print collateral.

Visual Design

A compelling website starts with a cohesive look from the branding, to the font, to the page layout and colors. We are pattern makers and we need to see the information in a meaningful grid that considers todays online paradigms.

Today’s websites are viewed on devices that range from roughly 400 pixels wide to roughly 1920 pixels wide. It is critical to intentionally design for mobile and desktop so that the most important information is immediately accessible on all devices. And page load speed matters to the potential customer as well as the search engines. As of 2015, Google started counting page load speed in their ranking. And that extra second of page load time because of improperly optimized images can make the difference between gaining new customers or not.

Site Architecture

Start the site architecture discussion with:

• “What does your viewer want to find?”
• “What is the priority on each of these?”
• “How are they using the site?”
• “How many clicks does it take to get to the information?”
• “How can you make it more obvious?”

The site architecture development can be an iterative process on a more complicated website. But keep in mind that this effort pays off with a higher quality solution. User testing can help you see things that you hadn’t considered.

Website Development

A well-coded website is important for maintainability, functionality, usability, and find-ability. Don’t skimp on this step. Regardless of the kind of website you decide to buy or build, make sure you are getting good, semantically correct code. We use tools that help determine the quality of the site and we have done this enough to know what we are checking. So if you opted to build your website elsewhere but have doubts about the quality then schedule a review.

Website Launch

When the website is finished and signed off, it gets moved from a development server to your production hosting. This doesn’t mean the work is done. This is just the foundation. Now it is time to get the site verified by the search engines, get some analytics in there so you can measure your marketing efforts, get listed in all the appropriate directories, and get your online presence noticed. This is just a brief summary of the process. Some of our recommendations come from years of experience and other recommendations come from the discovery process for your particular industry.

Color is a powerful tool in your website design and in your branding. The website should follow the branding colors closely and set the appropriate tone for your products and/or services. That being said, there are important design guidelines using color online because of readability across a full range of displays. Consider contrast and accessibility for your viewers when picking colors.

• Blue: Promotes calmness and serenity and is often associated with security and trust.
• Orange: Cheerful and confident, often associated with enthusiasm but can also suggest caution. UX studies consider the combination of blue and orange as more memorable than other combinations.
• Yellow: Another cheerful color but use it carefully when it comes to text. Some shades actually cause eye strain.
• Green: Obviously a nature color suggesting growth it suggests health, serenity and tranquility. Let’s not forget that it is also associated to money so it can also suggest wealth.
• Red: A strong color that is powerful in small doses. For some it means stop, for others it means good luck. Always consider your audience when it comes to color.
• Brown: A friendly and earthy color best used in combination with a stronger color.
• Purple: Often associated with royalty, it suggests wealth and success, sometimes creativity.
• Turquoise: A sophisticated color associated with healing.

Most importantly, let the content of your website shine above the colors. Today’s minimalist trends with black or shades of white backgrounds make much more effective visuals across the variety of displays being used to view your site.

We …stats for shopping online before making a decision. The best way start the sales process is to build trust by demonstrating product knowledge. Showing a range of solutions in doors and windows works for this company.