Social Media profiles are websites by definition, but they aren’t business websites. Social media is a great tool for showcasing your company culture and engaging with your customers; but these social platforms come with great limitations of creating a customer journey or marketing funnel. Not to mention that 48% of users cited web design as the number one factor in deciding the credibility of a business.   

Over the past 2 years, mobile is on the rise and Google continues to roll out mobilegeddon. However, despite the ample warnings, websites fail to become mobile-friendly. If your business has yet to adapt a responsive web design to become mobile friendly, it’s time to stop procrastinating because according to a recent Mobile vs Desktop Usage Study comparing 2017 to 2016…

• The % of visits from mobile devices grew from 57% to 63%.
• The % of time on site from mobile devices grew from 40% to 49%.

Failing to adapt could result in the worse case scenario of becoming non-listed on Google or becoming outranked by competitors. Unsure if you website is not mobile friendly, test it with Google’s Mobility Test.

• Influence users to fill out a form for further information
• Influence users to sign up for a newsletter
• Influence users to download a resource
• Influence users to read your content
• Influence users to make a purchase
• Influence users to make a phone call
• Influence users to visit your store
• Influence users to return to the website later

Whatever your business goal may be, your website should clearly deliver the right message to influence that action. Not every customer journey is linear, but every business should optimize for conversions and constantly analyzing for improvement.

One does not need to possess the detective skills of Sherlock Holmes to discover an outdated website. Here are questions to ask about your website.

• Does the website have long and unattractive URLs?
• Are there 404 pages and broken links?
• Are there empty image boxes?
• Is the website in sync with the branding?
• Does the site contain outdated information?
• Are there broken and visual <tags>?
• Is the site not mobile-friendly?
• Does the site not have SEO best practices?
• Are the landing pages unappealing? Cluttered?
• Is your bounce rate over 70%?
• Are users spending less time on the website?
• Are users not converting?
• Does the website takes too long to load?
• Has it been a few years since it’s last design?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, a web design refresh or maintenance plan may be worth considering.

Web design agencies have the advantage of taking an idea/vision and crafting them into reality. These web designers have the first hand knowledge of knowing what elements work and which to avoid. Most businesses can’t afford to wager their business’ success on cookie cutter sites from DIY website builders. If you provide a quality product or service, your site must mirror that quality by setting an upscale tone. Not to mention, DIY website builders can handicap any future marketing services such as SEO in the future with their limitations.

Too often business owners decline professional copy-writing or content marketing packages because of mis-perceived value. Of course the business owner (or employee) contains a wealth of knowledge in their respected industry, but …

• Are they writing to their ideal customer?
• Is the language too advanced or too technical?
• Are they using the right keywords?  

Content is key to discovery, education, and providing credibility. It’s a controlled message and become a clear distinction between your business and your competitors.  

Imagine throwing a party. The invitations are your marketing services, but your website is the food, drink, decorations, venue, party favors, and all the other festivities combined. You’ve attracted your guests (users) and as the host your website is entertain them. Impress them with fresh food (content) to stay at the party and become a regular guest (loyal customer).

• How many pages is the site going to be?
  • Do those pages have content?
    • Do those pages need updated or expanded content?
• Does a domain need to be purchased?
• Does the design need to equip special features?
  • Event Calendar
  • Custom Calculators
  • Online Booking Feature
• Does the designer need to purchase stock photos?
  • Does the designer need to provide photo/image editing?
• Does the designer need to design a logo?
  • Does the designer need to create custom graphics?
• Any third-party integrations?
  • CRM Integration
  • Email Marketing Integration
• Does the site need e-commerce functionality?
  • How many products?
    • Are they variable products?
• Does the site design need to be expedited?
• Does the designer need to purchase hosting services?
• Is site migration included?
• Is there any monthly maintenance fees attached?

Every project is unique, which makes it different to generate a fixed cost to build a website. Big Surf Media offers competitively priced web design services.

If the company is providing SEO best practices, the timeline will designate time to properly optimize the aesthetics of the site. Testing and debugging the site is recommended to diagnose and fix any issues before launch. Site migration is unpredictable as the bulk of the migration is out of the web designer’s hands and relies on the online servers to handle the exchange.

Big Surf Media offers web hosting with SSL certificates and maintenance packages to ensure your website loads faster, minimizes downtime, and is secure against cyber attacks.