As someone who’s spent years helping small businesses build their online presence, I’ve seen firsthand how a good website can change everything. Just last month, I worked with a local bakery that was struggling to get online orders. Once we fixed their website, their daily orders jumped from 5 to 25 within weeks. The truth is simple – people love buying things online because it’s easy and saves time. But here’s the thing – if your website is hard to use, people will leave faster than you can say “click here.” I’ve watched hundreds of website recordings where visitors get frustrated and leave because they couldn’t find what they wanted.
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1. Domain Name
As someone who’s spent years helping small businesses build their online presence, I’ve seen firsthand how a good website can change everything. Just last month, I worked with a local bakery that was struggling to get online orders. Once we fixed their website, their daily orders jumped from 5 to 25 within weeks. The truth is simple – people love buying things online because it’s easy and saves time. But here’s the thing – if your website is hard to use, people will leave faster than you can say “click here.” I’ve watched hundreds of website recordings where visitors get frustrated and leave because they couldn’t find what they wanted.
A domain name is the URL of your website, and it appears in the navigation bar. You need to make sure that you have a domain name that’s easy to spell. It’ll ensure that visitors can find your website without any trouble.
If your domain name is taken, try getting creative with it. While you consider this step while starting your website, don’t hesitate to change your domain name if you get something better.
2. Descriptions
Writing good descriptions is like having a helpful conversation with your customers. Last year, I redid all the descriptions on my website to be more straightforward and clear. Instead of saying “We utilize innovative methodologies to optimize your digital presence,” I changed it to “We help your website show up on Google when people search for your business.” The results were amazing – more people started contacting me because they actually understood what I was offering. I also made sure to include local information since I mainly work with businesses in my area. For example, instead of just saying “web design services,” I say “web design services for local businesses in [your area].” This helps people find my business when they’re searching online, and it feels more personal and trustworthy.
Descriptions play a crucial role in explaining to customers your products and services. However, they also have an underlying purpose. You can use these descriptions for Search Engine Optimisation which means it can get your website discovered on Google.
Therefore, if you’re a business in or around Northampton, we highly recommend hiring a local SEO agency to work with you on your descriptions. They can assist you in finding the right balance between providing the right information and website optimisation to rank better on search engines.
3. Search Bar
Let me tell you about a frustrating experience I had last week. I was trying to buy some art supplies online, and the website had thousands of products but no search bar. I spent 15 minutes clicking through different categories, getting more annoyed by the second, until I finally gave up and went to another store. That’s exactly what your customers will do if they can’t find what they’re looking for quickly. When I added a search bar to my online bookstore website, the change was dramatic. People who used the search bar were four times more likely to buy something than those who just browsed around. I noticed that customers started buying more unusual items too – books they probably wouldn’t have found just by browsing the categories.
The best part was seeing the search terms people used, which helped me understand exactly what my customers were looking for. For instance, I discovered that many people were searching for “beginner gardening books,” so I created a special section just for that. The search bar isn’t just a convenience tool – it’s like having a 24/7 sales assistant who helps people find exactly what they want.
You need a search bar for your website if you’re selling multiple products or services. People will come to your website knowing what they want, and the search bar is the best way to take them to the right page quickly.
It gives more freedom and convenience to visitors, helping them purchase products on your website with ease. The search bar provides a better customer experience and helps in increasing your sales.
It also works wonders with your website navigation as visitors don’t have to beat around the bush to find what they are looking for.
4. High-Quality Images
Think about buying a cake online. Would you order from a website with dark, blurry photos where you can barely see the frosting? Neither would I. I learned this lesson the hard way when I first started selling my handmade pottery online. My early photos were taken with my phone in poor lighting, and hardly anyone bought anything. Then I spent a weekend learning basic photography and bought some simple lighting equipment. My sales tripled the next month.
Good photos don’t just show what you’re selling – they help build trust. When I browse online stores, I want to see clear, bright images that show me exactly what I’m getting. That’s why I now take multiple photos of each product from different angles, making sure the lighting is bright and natural. The difference in customer response has been incredible. People spend more time looking at my products, and I get fewer questions about what things look like in real life.
Therefore, we recommend hiring a professional photographer to take care of the service or product pictures you post on your website. Visitors will learn more about your products and services as it’s easier to comprehend a visual than a chunk of text.
5. Internal Links
Here’s something interesting I discovered while running my cooking blog. At first, I just posted recipes without linking them to related content. Then one day, I started adding links to similar recipes at the bottom of each post. For example, on my pizza dough recipe, I added links to sauce recipes and topping suggestions. The change in how people used my site was amazing. Instead of reading one recipe and leaving, visitors started clicking through three or four related recipes. My average visit time went from 2 minutes to over 10 minutes. But here’s the important part – you can’t just throw links everywhere. I tried that once, putting dozens of links in each post, and it looked spammy and confusing.
Now I follow a simple rule: I only add links that truly help the reader. If I’m writing about making coffee, I’ll link to related posts about choosing coffee beans or cleaning coffee makers. It’s like creating a natural path for visitors to follow, leading them to more helpful information they actually want to see.
The purpose of your website isn’t only to get people to your website; you should also be able to take them to different pages. It not only helps increase your on-site time but also leaves a better impression on visitors.
If you leave relevant links to other products and services on different pages, users may buy more products from your website. However, avoid spamming internal links everywhere on the page, as it will have the opposite effect and drive people away from your website.
6. Testimonials
The power of real customer feedback hit me hard when I was shopping for a new laptop online. I was about to buy from one store until I couldn’t find any customer reviews. It made me nervous – what were they hiding? I ended up buying from another store that had plenty of genuine reviews, both good and not-so-good. That experience completely changed how I handle testimonials on my own website. I started asking every customer for honest feedback about their experience. The responses were incredible – not just generic “great service” comments, but detailed stories about how our products helped solve real problems.
For example, one customer wrote about how our accounting software saved them 10 hours every month on payroll. These kinds of specific, detailed testimonials do more than just build trust – they help potential customers see exactly how your product or service could help them too. I make sure to update these testimonials regularly and include specific details about what problems we solved or how we helped improve someone’s business.
We recommend including the positive things people have said about your company on the homepage. You can get these testimonials on review sites and choose the ones you like on the page.
If you can’t find reviews, you can personally reach out to customers and ask them if they can talk about something good about your company. It’ll leave a good impression on people, especially if it’s from someone they know.
7. Contact Information
When I first started my online consulting business, I made the rookie mistake of only putting an email address on my contact page. Big mistake. I quickly learned that different customers prefer different ways to reach out. Some want to call right away, others prefer email, and many like using a contact form. Now I provide multiple ways to get in touch, and it’s made a huge difference in how many people actually contact me.
I remember one client who told me she’d been on the fence about reaching out until she saw our live chat option – she had a quick question and didn’t want to wait for an email response. She ended up becoming one of our biggest clients, all because we made it easy to start a conversation. I also learned to put contact information on every page of the website, not just the contact page. Sometimes people want to reach out while they’re reading about a specific service or product, and making them hunt for contact details is a sure way to lose their interest. The key is to be available where and when your customers need you.
Giving your contact information is one of the most crucial features you can provide to your website. It gives customers the ability to give feedback or book meetings with your company. It also gives visitors a sense of involvement, a way to ‘get in touch’ if need be with you and by extension, your business.
You can also use it to provide support to customers who are experiencing issues with your product or service. You can add a contact form that gathers an visitor’s information and lets them ask questions or voice their concerns.
To Sum Up
Looking back at all these features, they might seem obvious, but I can’t tell you how many businesses get them wrong. Every single one of these elements works together to create a website that actually helps your business grow. I’ve seen it happen time and time again – when you make your website easy to use and helpful for visitors, they turn into customers. When you show them real proof that others trust you, they start trusting you too. And when you make it easy for them to reach you, they actually do. It’s not about having the fanciest website with all the latest bells and whistles. It’s about creating a space where your customers feel comfortable, understood, and confident in doing business with you. These aren’t just features – they’re the building blocks of a website that works hard for your business every single day.
It’ll help you gain more sales and take your business to new heights.
