You’re starting a new business and know your website needs to be fire. But how exactly do you achieve that? What pages and what elements does your new website need to have, and why are they important?
This article will help you plan out what your website needs to give you a helping hand while planning. Whether you are DIYing your website or hiring a copywriter and web developer, you need to ensure your website has these essential elements.
Homepage
This is where your customers will land when they research your business. Your homepage will determine whether a customer will click onto your other website pages or not. So if you want your traffic to make it onto your product pages and click buy, you need to really wow your audience.
Your home page should include:
- Eye-catching visuals
- Media like images or videos
- Information about who your company is (brief)
- Information about your product (brief)
- Why you stand out from competitors
The first paragraph of your website needs to be compelling. Your customers will decide if they want to keep reading or not in the first 8 seconds on the website. Address customer pain points and how you stand out from competitors.
About Page
Your customers want to know who you are and what you will do for them. As the saying goes, “people buy from people they like”, so you need to make sure you are likeable. Everyone writes their About Us page differently, but as a copywriter, we request the following information from startups:
- Your brand story (how and why did you start)
- Information about your team
- What background do you have that makes you an expert/gives you credibility (if applicable)
- Why are you passionate about the product or service
- Funny stories or anecdotes about your experience with your topic or business
- Brand values
- Company or product USPs
From there, a copywriter will be able to whip your story into a compelling About Us page that allows your customers to connect with your business. Your About Us page is a huge element of your brand voice, so it is important to get it right.
Products and Services Information
Your home page will briefly touch on your products and services, but this page is an in-depth look into the products or services you offer. Whether this page is an online store where customers purchase your products or a page describing your services so customers can contact you to book, you need to compel the customers to give you their money.
This page should focus on the benefits of your product and service and deal with any doubts your customers may have. Consider having a frequently asked questions section either for each individual product or for working with you in general. This allows you to address any doubts or questions a customer may have that will prevent them from clicking book. You should think of this page as the final step in your sales funnel that will make or break the sale. If they have made it to this page (from an ad and potentially a sales funnel), they should have all the information they need to make a buying decision.
Blog Posts and Articles
No matter what type of product or service you offer, you should have some blog posts and articles on your website. They serve three vital purposes:
- Allows you to show your expertise
- Boosts your website’s SEO
- Provides your customers with vital information
If you are selling a simple product, these may be inventive ways to use your product, like recipes. If you are providing a service or a more complex product, then you may write a number of articles about your niche. Your blog can also be an income source if you are able to secure sponsorships from related companies.
When writing blog posts and articles, think about what information your customers will be searching for. Also, consider your brand voice. If you are a professional B2B company, then you should stick to informative articles. If you are targeting customers, then you might write your blog posts or articles in a more light-hearted, humorous way.
Testimonials or Customer Reviews
Customers put a lot of value in hearing the honest reviews of other customers. That is why Trip Advisor does so well. You should include testimonials or customer reviews on your website and allow customers to review your product or service after they buy.
When you launch your business, contact people you have worked with in the past to gain genuine reviews. You may also consider offering discounts or promo codes to customers who leave a review when you first open.
Portfolio or Media Gallery
Service-based businesses need to have a portfolio or case study page on their new website. This is where customers can see previous work you have completed. You should include screenshots as well as some basic information about how you helped the company. If you have statistics about the results you achieved, then you should include that information. Consider including the customer testimonial in your portfolio too.
If you are selling a product, then you should include a media gallery of people using your product. When you first start your business, these may be influencers using your product, but you can add customer pictures or videos over time.
Social Media Links
If your brand is active on social media, then you should include links where people can follow your business on social media. This way, they can keep up to date and see any new promotions or products you offer. As an entrepreneur, social media should be a vital part of your customer engagement strategy, especially if you are working with people under 40.
Contact Information
Allow your customers to contact you through your preferred methods. A contact form will be perfectly acceptable, but you can also provide telephone numbers and email addresses if you are equipped to deal with customer queries through those channels.
When adding your contact information, you should consider the type of business you run and the industry practice for customer contact. You should also consider if you are equipped to handle those customer contact methods. If you are a solopreneur, for example, you should probably stick to email until you are ready to hire a customer representative to take calls. Otherwise, your work will be constantly interrupted by phone calls. Email is easier to manage when you have time, and people tend to expect a 24 hour response time.
Terms and Conditions
You need to ensure your terms and conditions are displayed on your website. This page will tell customers what to expect when working with you or purchasing your product. Information may include:
- Refund policy
- Shipping information
- Payment policy
- Customer complaint policy
- Terms of service
- Legal policy
This will often be an online version of the contract you will use with your customers (for a service-based business), so you should seek legal advice when creating a terms and conditions page. It is not 100% necessary, but an attorney would recommend one to give you a strong legal standing if a customer were to sue you. If you use a contract with your customers (you need to if you are a service-based entrepreneur), then it may not be completely necessary to have a terms and conditions page. However, it is good to have, and you can point your customers there when you are quoting them or negotiating your service.
Your terms and conditions page should be easy to find if you have one. Most businesses will have it on their footer menu.
Privacy Policy
A privacy policy is a website essential. Most customers will not visit it, but your website must have one that customers can access easily. Basically, it just provides a statement of how you use any data that you collect from visitors to your website. If you are not planning to do anything with user data, then you can find templates online for how to write a privacy policy. Just make sure you find one suitable for your business location. If your business is a little more complex, you might consider legal advice when writing it to ensure your bases are covered.