Few things annoy me as much as a shabby website. It’s your business’s window to the world or at least your virtual window to the virtual world. Don’t you want it to look good?
Today’s web-savvy consumer is extremely likely to look up business information on the Internet. How likely? In 2012, nearly 90% of people surveyed said they use the Net to research purchase decisions, according to this report by Fleishman-Hillard.
If your site is still rocking the 00s, or even the 90s, it’s time for a change. Fortunately, you don’t have to spend the big bucks to do it.
Changing Things Up on Your Website – Minus HTML
The websites of yesteryear were all about the text: a minimum of a couple hundred words per page, please, and go light on the pictures. Now, with our faster Internet capabilities, it’s all about the images. Even if you’re in a non-visual industry (writing comes to mind), your site had better have some form of the graphic arts featured prominently.
So, your first order of business should be to review your text. Make sure it’s accurate. Cut out the excess verbiage. Brush it up to match today’s more casual business culture, if that’s appropriate for you.
Next, add pictures. Lots of big, beautiful pictures. You can pay for usage rights to some gorgeous stock images on sites like Shutterstock. Or, if you’re on a budget, shop around Wikimedia’s free media repository or use sites like Pixabay and Pexels for free, high-quality offerings.
If you use a service like WordPress.com, Weebly, or GoDaddy, you can also modernize your site simply by changing the theme. In my experience, Weebly is the easiest to use. Just select which among its free or paid themes catches your fancy and – wham! – you have an instant update.
Yes, these suggestions may be the equivalent of updating your kitchen by painting the cabinets and changing out the hardware. But don’t knock it. When you’re crunched for time or cash, a quick upgrade can be the difference between attracting new customers and leaving them slightly repelled.
You’ve just read another of Techsperts Services’ blog posts. If you think you might be missing out on the latest tech news – or ideas curated for businesses like yours – feel free to check out our previous articles. And don’t forget to call us for your IT needs.
Featured image credit: 123rf.com