Social media is the first thing most people think of when they want to boost their online presence. It is absolutely imperative to embrace sites such as Facebook and Twitter, but it’s even more important to ensure that your website is solid. After all, at least 81 percent of consumers conduct online research before making a purchasing decision, but 60 percent have fears about eCommerce related credit card fraud.
The best way to ease the mind of a nervous customer is through building credibility, and a website is a huge part of that. There are also several other reasons that a website should be the main focus of your online presence, and relying too heavily on a social media only approach could seriously hurt your profits.
Therefore, the most important tip for improving your online presence is to build, and maintain, a well-designed website that contains high-quality content. Let’s take a closer look at how a website impacts your overall online visibility and the many ways that can boost your traffic and sales!
1. Websites are SEO Gold
Google has confirmed that producing quality content is one of the top three ways to get a better search engine ranking. In other words, one-third of your SEO comes from the content on your website and blog. Companies that only use social media are at a huge disadvantage because a competitor that has a website and a Facebook page can easily score a higher ranking.
Keep in mind, though, that to get the most out of your website’s SEO potential, you must have well-written content that provides value for visitors and isn’t overly stuffed with keywords.
2. Take Control of Your Message
If you want to have a better online presence and build credibility, you need to control what people find when they search for your business. Of course, anyone can write a review or mention your company on another site. However, if you have a high-quality website, it’s typically going to appear first in the applicable search engine results.
3. Sell Items Directly from Your Site
Once you build credibility, consumers will want to purchase items directly from your site. Giving them this option will help your online presence grow. Keep in mind that no one wants to visit one site, get sent to another and then finally complete their purchase somewhere else. The good news is that you can make the process seamless by utilizing Squarespace’s all-in-one online store platform. Choosing to sell items from your website will also increase your profits because you won’t need to take a cut from third-party online stores such as eBay and Etsy.
4. Appear More Legitimate and Boost Your Ranking
Studies have shown that having a credible looking website is one of the best ways to build consumer confidence. When you combine this with the fact that Google’s search engine ranking is also partially based on quality, truthful content, it’s clear that building credibility is crucial.
Failure to have a website or, perhaps even worse, relying on an old, outdated looking site will make your company appear suspect to many consumers. As you can imagine, that’s one of the quickest ways to sink your sales and damage your online presence.
5. Offer Everything in One Place
Have you ever searched for information about a small business that didn’t have a website? If so, you’re probably very familiar with all of the hoops consumers have to jump through to find basic information online for these companies. Unfortunately, a lot of the details that are posted by other sites will no longer be accurate, which makes a bad situation even worse. Consumers are quickly turned off by this issue, and rightfully so.
By building a website, you can ensure that all of your company’s most relevant details can be found in one place. Yes, you can, and should, also put this information on your social media profiles. A website needs to be available too, though, and it will give you the perfect place to provide everything in one convenient online spot.
6. Build Customer Loyalty and a Customer Database
Consumers are more likely to be loyal to a company that offers quality products, good customer service and an easy shopping experience. Putting everything into your online store helps you achieve part of this equation. You can also build a consumer database by having people provide their email address in exchange for a first-time shopper discount. Give people an easy way to share your page and products on their social media profiles to boost your online signal.
7. Blog Regularly for Increased Visits
Blogging from your website can have a huge impact on your online presence and sales. Google will index more of your pages when you put up regular blog posts, and this alone can help drive traffic to your site. Blogging comes with the added benefit of helping you build credibility, and companies with a blog experience an average traffic increase of 55 percent. Each of these visitors may become a customer, and they also all have the potential to share one of your blog posts with their social media network.
8. A Website Provides a Firm Place to Link To
Another big piece of the Google search engine ranking puzzle is inbound linking. All of your social media profiles can link to your website, and you can also seek out inbound links from high quality sites. Directing this traffic to your website is a smarter choice than sending people to a social media page, and it’s also going to be easier to get other websites to link to a high quality, credible looking site.
Boost Your Online Presence Now!
Whether you currently have a lackluster website or have been relying solely on social media to capture consumer attention, now is the perfect time to harness the power of the Internet with a well-designed site. Using simple tips such as blogging, offering everything in one place and operating an online store via Squarespace can instantly increase your credibility and give your business a stronger online presence.
Read More at 8 Tips for Improving Your Online Presence with a Website
from Web Design Ledger https://webdesignledger.com/8-tips-improving-online-presence-website/
