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Elements of a Great Website

Last month, our very own Brian Getz was a featured speaker at Spectrum 2009, a one-day workshop and conference on business communication and fundraising for nonprofit professionals, sponsored by the Community Service Public Relations Council. Brian's knockout presentation laid out the basic elements of a great website for the crowd in attendance and now we're happy to help everyone else get in the know too!

As any business owner can attest to, these days it's simply not enough just to have a website. But what may not be so obvious is that having a website that you like and having one that is effective aren't necessarily mutually exclusive objectives. So, just what are the elements of a truly great website?

Awareness

A great site increases awareness for your business by establishing your brand identity and clearly definining what you have to offer potential clients or customers. Increasing your brand awareness helps you establish your online reputation

Differentiation

There are nine new websites created every two seconds - yeah, you read that right. Whether it's through design, content or messaging, finding a way to stand out in the crowd is vital.

Context

Everything about your website from the design and layout to the copy and content should connect with your target audience. The likes, dislikes and needs of your clients and customers should be the driving factor in every decision you make for your site.

Design & Layout

You have less than three seconds to make a first impression on the web. An intuitive, organized and consistent layout that doesn't distract or detract from your messaging is the key to getting users to stick around.

Calls to Action

You already know that online clients and/or customers have a short attention span, so providing clear calls to action on your site is the best strategy for achieving your desired outcome (Hint: the more obvious, the better).

Analytics

How can you know whether or not your site is effective if you're not measuring its effectiveness? Installing analytics not only gives you valuable insight into who your customers are and what they want, but it also flags potential areas for improvement so you can tweak as necessary.

For more information about what it takes to put together a great website, give Brian a shout. But don't forget, simply building a great site is no guarantee that clients and customers will beat a path to it. No worries though, we can help in that department too...

 

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