Having a professional website is certainly important. But, having an engaging professional website is what’s going to make the difference between success and failure in many cases, especially with the way people are making decisions in the age of social media.
To ensure that your site is engaging, consider the following five tips: always maintain some section of your site that promotes free learning, always promote transparency within your company within the constructs of your web presence, give easy ways to connect whenever possible, make your site accessible by laptops, computers, cell phones and tablets, and listen to any user feedback immediately.
Have a Section About Learning
One thing you’ll notice about all the best websites is they’ll have a section about learning in them somewhere. Law websites will have a learn the law section, entertainment websites will have a background information section; music websites will have a free lessons section. It’s one of the best and simplest ways to engage your typical web browsing personality.
Always Promote Transparency
People are becoming more suspicious about business and corporate activities and associations these days, so if you promote transparency in your website, people will trust you much more quickly. This means having links to parent companies, lists of founding members, any sort of public finance information that should be available, and anything else that may suggest a partnership that you have. One lapse of trust and you’ll lose customers for life.
Give Easy Ways to Connect
If a person is at your website, they should never be more than a scroll and a click away from contacting someone at your company. This could be an e-mail address, a phone number, or an internal feedback application you have installed. The ease with which people can contact you translates into the ease with which they will do business with you.
Make Your Site Accessible By Any Device
How does your site look when people access it on a computer or laptop? Now what about a tablet? And finally, a smartphone? If it doesn’t look perfect, it’s time for you to do some design homework. Find a way to make all of your organization and images look great across all devices, and you’ll be past a giant hurdle in maintaining customer contact. These may be difficult to create from scratch, however, so installing a template or hiring a consultant may be necessary to get started.
Listen To Feedback Immediately
And the last tip for maintaining a responsive and engaging professional website is to respond to feedback immediately. If someone takes the time give you input that may help, it’s in your best interest to get back to them with thanks and also consider if you should adjust your website to their particular needs.