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How a user friendly website generates more business?

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It is far from difficult to create a user friendly website, and the benefits in doing so for your business are endless.

Stuck for what a user friendly site should be like? Just consider some of the sites you enjoy using, and then consider some that you don’t enjoy so much. The reason you enjoy using the first sites is because they are far more user friendly than the latter.

Obviously you are more likely to spend time using the sites you feel comfortable with and enjoy navigating, and you want your potential customers to get the same feeling from your site.

What makes a user-friendly website?

Simplicity is the key: For your site to have a user friendly web design, everything should be nicely spaced, not too busy, and simple to find your way around.

Don’t Overdo It With Graphics: Your site should tantalise the eyes with SOME graphics rather than being a full on assault of Flash and other forms of web graphics cluttering every inch of the page and that draw attention away from the main purpose of the site.

Easy To Navigate: If people can find exactly what they are looking for in a minimum number of clicks then your site is easy to navigate, and this will please users.

The most valuable navigation tool is the search box, as it allows people to go directly to what they want, or the area in which they are likely to find what they want. If however you have off putting extras such as ‘doorway’ pages, things become far less simple and it puts people off.

Allow Movement Back and Forth: There is nothing worse than realising you clicked the wrong thing and has to go right back to the start. Offer users a way to go back to where they previously were in a convenient fashion.

‘Breadcrumb trails’ are popular as they show users where they are and have been, and can easily take steps back, e.g. Home > SEO > Why choose us as your SEO Company?

Structure: Ensuring the most popular or attention grabbing site content is available at first glance, such as best sellers or current offers, will lead to more sales.

Having basic information about your company and contact information in a prominent place on your homepage is reassuring to browsers in an age where internet scams are everywhere.

Testing, 1,2, Testing: Ensure you test your website for functionality and appearance on all popular browsers and devices. Does you website work on Internet Explorer, Safari and Chrome?

Is you site mobile and tablet friendly? All these things must be tested regularly as devices and internet browsers are constantly updating and changing.

Keep Up To Date: People don’t want to see out of date information and offers on your site, so make sure you are regularly giving your site a spring clean to ensure its kept fresh and up to the minute.

Not only will this help keep customers happy, but it keeps your web design search engine friendly.

Be Clear: Be clear about costs, whether they include VAT, how much delivery will cost, any all other relevant information regarding your products and services.

Also be clear on policies such as shipping, returns and refunds, etc. If information is ambiguous and unclear then people will instantly be put off.

Design to Impress: When having a company site made, it needs to look 110% professional, and so it is advisable to call in some web design experts.

Give them a briefing on your target audience and brand, and they will be able to provide you with a professional design that is aimed to attract and impress your target customers and let your brand shine through in all areas.

Home » Business

How you can use internet marketing to help grow your business

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The internet has become the driving force of marketing for many companies, and although traditional marketing methods will never and should never be replaced, they have somewhat taken a backseat to the phenomenon of digital marketing.

The following are just some of the main ways in which you can utilise the powerful tool that is internet marketing to help grow your business:

The Website

The heart and soul of your company’s online presence should be the website. It is the place where everything will centre back to and it will be the hub of information regarding your brand, products and services.

You don’t have to accept sales transactions online; the need for this will depend on your industry and the services or products you sell. Ensure you have prominent contact details somewhere on the homepage of your site, as people like to know they can contact a real person at some point when dealing with companies online.

Email marketing

Gaining prospective customer emails and current/past customer emails is a great way to keep the sales relationship fresh. There are many ways to gather this, be it from them contacting you with a query, them signing up to an email database to receive a newsletter or offers, gathering business cards at networking events, any way in which they surrender their contact information.

You can send emails regarding current offers, news and updates, etc.

Press releases and Content Marketing

Online press releases work in the same way as print press release would, its emailed to news publications and contains interesting information about your brand that could be considered newsworthy.

However with online press releases you have the freedom to include multimedia attachments in addition to the traditional images. This could include video, audio, and more, and you then send this to online publications.

Content marketing involves writing about your industry rather than your company itself. Popular topics include ‘how to’ articles and informative articles relevant to your products or services.

It is advisable to enlist the services of an internet marketing company regarding the writing of this articles as they will know what is required to create an article made for the internet, and will be able to improve your search engine rankings through SEO in the process.

Market Research

You can also use internet marketing as a means of researching your target markets. Conducting online surveys, making use of your email marketing database to ask for feedback, encourage comments on your website and blog, etc.

Doing market research on the internet can be cost effective and reach a wider audience than traditional market research.

There are many other ways in which internet marketing can help you to grow your business, and for it to be effective it is advisable to enlist professional internet marketing services from companies who have experience and proven track records.

Home » Business

The Impact of Digital Marketing on Your Business

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In the age of digital it is imperative that businesses, no matter how ‘traditional’ they may be, start to consider their online presence if they don’t want to lose valuable customers in the long run. The internet is fast becoming the go to for our every want and need, and if businesses don’t keep up with that they will get left behind as other businesses draw in their customers online.

But the digital marketing shouldn’t only be seen as a must have to prevent losing customers, it is a new and exciting place to explore and expand your business, reaching entire new markets and using new tools to give your business a depth like never before.

With the help of professionals in the form of digital marketing companies your business could soar to new heights. Here are just some of the many ways digital marketing could impact on your business:

Increased Exposure

Digital marketing is one of the best ways to increase exposure for your business. Using various channels such as social media and blogs, search engines, online directories and many more you can get your company name out there to audiences you never would have reached before, both locally and globally.

For example, if you posted a blog post that was seen by 20 people on a social networking site, and each person enjoys this and decides to share it with their 100 connections, who share it with 100 more, your blog post on your company blog has potentially been seen by 200,000 people.

Better ROI

Digital marketing will bring a far better return on investment for business than many traditional methods, due to the cost effectiveness of the digital methods used.

Social media can be run for very little cost and allows you to connect and potentially impact on millions of internet users every day.

Advertising online is far cheaper than in print. Having a large and commanding advert in a newspaper or phone directory would cost a bomb and potential customers would have to pick up the phone to ask you more about your services and products.

Online however you can place ads and links in online directories for next to nothing, some are even free and direct customers to a wealth of information about your company, much faster and easier than having to call to ask.

Takes the Pressure Off

Because digital marketing is a new and quite specialised area, many companies feel they benefit from bringing in digital marketing companies who can either help with creating and implementing a strategy or taking the workload altogether.

This takes the pressure off you and your team so you can focus on other areas of the business while knowledgeable specialists an agency provide digital marketing services that ensure your company is ahead of the game.

It Sticks Around

Everything your company posts onto the internet whether it be via a blog, social network or directory, it will remain searchable and viewable for years. So on one hand, you much be careful that what you are putting on is well thought out and displays your company in a good light.

And on the other hand, it is advantageous for exposure purposes as the more information you post in relation to your brand, the larger your online presence becomes over time.

There are many more ways in which digital marketing could impact on your company, all of which reinforce why a large proportion of UK companies have already taken to the internet with the help of digital marketing companies in the UK. The question is, will you?