Google processes over 3.5 billion searches every single day. That's 1.2 trillion each year and 40,000 every second.1
In 1999, Google crawlers took an entire month to index 50 million website pages. In 2012, they accomplished the same task in under 60 seconds.2
Why is this info important? First of all, that's a lot of websites! But even more crucial is this: How do you make your website the one that stands out?
When you are on a website, ask yourself: Why am I here? What do I seek? You’ve got a need for something, right? You’re looking for a solution to a problem.
Don’t you love when a website greets you with an opening statement that basically answers the question you have on your mind? Then you scroll down to find a quick video (now you don’t even have to read anymore) that further tells you that this company has all the answers to everything you need. In that same line of sight, you see a button that says “BUY NOW" and you say to yourself, “Sign me up, baby, because you just solved all my problems! Take my money!” You click that glorious “BUY NOW” button and are taken to a page where all you have to do is select your options, add them to your cart and check out. Boom. Done. Happy customer.
When a visitor is on your website, do they have that same great experience? Your customer is on a journey—they have a problem and you have the solution. Your website should guide them to that solution with uncomplicated ease and leave your customer delighted (and hopefully wanting to share with their friends).
It takes 2.6 seconds for a user’s eyes to land on the area of a website that most influences their first impression.3 BE THE GUIDE.
Here are some key elements to consider so you can build a killer website that provides the ultimate customer experience:
A Great Headline
Come up with a headline that is like a promise. Show the visitor you understand their needs and challenges so they know that you understand what brought them there in the first place. It takes about 50 milliseconds (that’s 0.05 seconds!) for users to form an opinion about your website that determines whether they like your site or not and whether they’ll stay or leave.4
Clear Navigation
Keep it to one menu, if at all possible and keep it logical. Navigations can get out of hand when there are too many options or 12 ways to get to the same place. Thus, frustration ensues and visitors leave your site and head to your competitor to find an easier/quicker solution to their problem. 88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experience. 5
Clear CTAs
The customer is on a journey and you are their guide. A call to action (CTA) tells them what to do—it’s the clear direction of the action they should take while on your site. It can be an image with text or a button to click, but it needs to be an action item: “Call today”, “Schedule a consultation”, “Download Our Guide”, etc. Lead them to the solution by making it obvious. 70% of small business websites lack a Call to Action (CTA) on their homepage.6 Y’all—this is bonkers.
Incorporate Video
Videos give people a great idea of who you are. Videos also allow you to show your personality and tell your story. 80% of video marketers claim that video has directly increased sales.7
Up-to-Date Content
It's imperative that you keep your content relevant and current. Content is king and search engines eat it up. When you have engaging and shareable content, your users may even be compelled to share links to it on social media, driving more organic traffic to your site. Over time, you’ll see yourself crawling up the Google rankings like the Sherpa, Kami Rita, reaching the summit of Mt. Everest. 51% of companies say updating old content has proven the most efficient tactic to implement. 7
Last, but certainly not least...
Responsive Design
If your site doesn’t work on mobile, stop right here and contact us. For real. Don’t ignore mobile design. Google recently moved to mobile-first indexing which means Google considers the mobile version of your website as the most important version (not desktop). If your site isn’t performing well on mobile and isn’t designed to be responsive, that's where you should start.
Still not convinced?
- 88% of consumers who search for a type of business on a mobile device call or go to that business within 24 hours and in 2020, 50.3% of all traffic worldwide was conditioned on mobile phone devices.8
- Over half of all Google search visits (56%) take place on a mobile device.9
- There are 4.28 billion mobile Internet users.10
Let’s play a game:
Pull up your website on your phone real quick…(please).
Go ahead—we’ll wait…
How does it look?
Is it good to go? GREAT!
Not so good? We can help. Contact us here.
Check out our DIY Website Audit to help you do a quick assessment of your website and get you moving in the right direction.
Sources:
1 Broadband Search
2 Internet Live Stats
3 CXL
4 Taylor & Francis Online
5 inVision
6 Business 2 Community
7 HubSpot
8 Netcafy
9 Statista
10 Statista