10 Features That Will Make Your Website Stand Out From The Crowd

Business

Jul 18

Written By Angela Flowers

Let’s face it- there are a lot of BAD websites out there.

Whether they look like a cluttered mess, lack focus, or have no clear direction, you don’t want your website falling into the “bad” category. Believe it or not, your website has a major influence on making or breaking your business. Having a gorgeous and clean website is a good start, but there are some key components your website needs in order to stack up to the completion. Here are 10 things you can do to make sure your website stands out from the crowd.

Clear and precise main goals
The first thing any website needs are site goals. Get started on clearly defining these goals. 1-3 main goals is a great baseline, but don’t go over 3 because you want to make sure your website isn’t competing for too many objectives. An example of a site goal could be to connect to and book clients. With this goal in mind, you will want to make sure that this action is primarily represented on your website with plenty of “book now” options.
A niche
Getting specific about your target audience can put you a peg above the rest. For example, if you are a hairstylist, it would not be a savvy business practice to market to every person on the planet that may need a beauty service. I know this sounds kind of counter intuitive, but being super specific about you target audience actually increases the likelihood of more business. Here is a great resource for finding your niche/ target audience: The 5-Step Process for Finding Your Business's Ideal Niche Market
SEO
Once you have a niche, you can incorporate SEO (search engine optimization) into your site. If you have no clue how to begin adding SEO to your site, you can dive into more here: Increasing Your Site Visibility to Search Engines. Or, book a pro!
On-brand content
If you want to have an edge up on your competition, on-brand content can really make a difference. First of all, get yourself a logo. This will boost your level of professionalism and credibility exponentially. Need help with a logo? Hit me up!
Next, you want the other visual components of your website to be on brand. Are you using fonts consistently? Are you using your brand colors in a compelling way that helps draw attention to important content and calls to action? Read more about brand colors: How to Choose the Best Website Color Scheme for Your Business/Brand. Are you thoughtfully choosing images and even creating videos (more on this in #7!) to add visual appeal?
Anyone can stick stock images onto a website and call it a day, but incorporating your brand components into these visual elements, like having a specific percentage of brand color overlay on your images, can give them an extra boost of visual appeal.
Finally, don’t forget your on-brand copy! You will want to make sure your written content has a consistent point of view with your brand’s voice and tone.
Prominent CTAs
Calls to action tie into your site main goals. Make sure you have plenty, easy to find CTAs to allow your visitors to act, whether that is to book with you, contact you, sign up for emails, etc. Use a brand color that pops and stands out against your other content to increase the likelihood of a potential client and customer clicking on one of your calls to action.
Testimonials/social proof
Many potential customers and clients will rely on testimonials to see if they want to connect or work with you. Contact some of your favorite clients or customers and see if they are willing to write a short testimonial. Better yet, ask if they will record a video. Video testimonials will really put you above the competition!
Videos
Speaking of videos, this is a powerful use of visual content that will really increase your site visitor engagement. Consider hiring a professional to put together a video of you talking about your brand, your why and how you got started, taking a tour of your facility, or showcase a product or service. Having videos increases the chance of a visitor staying on your site a little longer and acting on those calls to actions.
About page
Make sure you have an engaging About page with images! Don’t be shy to talk about yourself or your brand here. Your visitors want to see who is behind it all, so grab a nice quality photo of yourself and your team and get some faces behind your brand (or even better, hire a photographer to take some professional headshots)!
Clearly listed services and pricing
No one likes mystery when it comes to knowing what you offer and your pricing. It’s always best to be transparent here and it will have more of an impact on your visitors taking that next step. You’d be surprised by how many people (myself included) will quickly “x” out of a webpage and move on to the next if they don’t have services or prices listed.
Branded Blog
Having original content in the form of a blog will really set you apart from the crowd. Determine what problem you are trying to solve for your target audience and what needs can be met with your content, then write about it. Establish a posting schedule and an email opt in. Apply the brand elements we have discussed to your blog to give it that extra edge. Blogs can sound daunting to many, but start simple and don’t overwhelm yourself with a goal of writing too many posts right away. Just start with 3 spaced out over a few weeks or more, then build from there!