There are many cases of small business website owners who complain that their website is not successful enough. This can mean many things: they are not getting new customers for their business through a site that displays their company’s online image. When they type their typical services or brand names into Google search, they don’t even appear on the first page of the results.
The fact that a website is not successful in some or perhaps no area is basically due to various mistakes. To find out the problem, we wanted to compile a 10-point list of features for you, which are “must-have” features for every small business website.
Let’s get started!
Table of Contents
1. Have a well-structured homepage
When designing your website homepage, you should have 3 questions in mind that visitors can easily ask themselves:
- What is it?
- Is it good for me?
- What’s next?
While these questions alone tell you a lot, let’s look at what I mean by them in more detail.
What is it?
The very first question your visitors will ask when they come to your website is what it’s about. There are three ways your content can answer this question:
- It identifies what the page is about AND what the visitor is interested in.
- You can identify what the page is about BUT the visitor is NOT interested in that topic.
- You cannot identify what your page is about.
It’s easy to see that if the first section of your page falls into the first category, your visitors will be more likely to want to look around you because they can see that your page is about them. For example, if someone wants to buy a hair care product and your page says “hair care products available” at the top of the page, they are likely to be interested in the rest of your website.
If a visitor is not interested in your business and just stumbles upon your site, they won’t stay long. These visitors aren’t worth worrying about since they’re not your target audience. For example, someone looking for a concrete mixer won’t be interested in a hairdressing salon’s website, no matter how appealing it is.
Where you’re most likely to fail is the third case: when it’s not immediately obvious what your site is about. Typically, website owners fall into this mistake when:
- They put the company brand first. E.g. “We are XY Ltd!” OK, I believe you are, but what do you do? If it doesn’t come out, how do I know you’re for me?
- They start with a block about us. E.g. “I graduated from XY University in 1998, then I thought…”. This is about where the average user runs out of patience and moves on.
Is it good for me?
Once your visitors’ minds have gotten over what your small business website is about, the next question they’ll ask is whether the content there is of enough value to them. Is what you’re offering good enough?
This question will position your website much better because the word value doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone.
What’s next?
If it’s clear that the website is for you and has value to offer you, then you must show how to get that value.
This is usually done through an element that takes you to a further part of the website. It’s best to do this in a prompting way to let your visitor know, for example:
- Scroll down
- Find out more
- Book an appointment (this last one is a strong call-to-action, so only use it so high up on the page where the first purchase is not too risky for the visitor)
Although your visitor may figure out what to do next without it, it’s best not to let go and keep leading them toward your goal. It won’t hurt our conversion, but it can improve it.
2. Build trust with the „About Us” page
An effective company website feature is the “About Us” page. This is always one of the most visited sub-pages, so it’s worth paying attention to its design, as it offers opportunities that can bring in lots of new orders.
When a visitor arrives on the website, 80% of the time the “About Us” page is the first page they look at. If they find a less attractive introduction or company history here, there’s a good chance they’ll move on to a competitor.
A well-designed “About Us” page reflects the company’s identity, which ideally is already represented on the website.
Tell a story!
If you have a story about how your product or service can change people’s lives, tell it here. Feel free to break away from the constraints of marketing copywriting and use a more personal approach. Customer retention for small business websites can be much more effective by using this approach. They are ‘sticky’ – people remember and pass them on more easily, which can bring in new customers.
Showcase your company’s progress, successes, and failures!
As every company is unique and has its own story, here is your chance to tell it. Describe how your organization has developed and evolved over the years. You can illustrate this with pictures and graphs, which can be convincing. Introductions to key team members with photos and bios. If your small business website is so successful that it has won awards, be sure to include them here.
3. Find the most important contact details
One of the most important if you have a small business website is an effective feature that covers the contact page.
Many people ask what should the page be called: contact or contact? I think it essentially doesn’t matter (it’s the content that counts anyway), but for some reason, I prefer the contact name. But it could also be a request for a proposal.
Depending on the size of the company and the number of employees, the following could be a well-structured contact menu item underneath:
- Company details: name, registered office, location, tax number, company registration number, registration number, etc.
- Telephone number of colleagues + e-mail address. Under the photo of your colleagues, you should also indicate the position held in the company.
- Tenderer’s form. The fewer fields, the higher the completion rate. A form with a name, e-mail address, phone number, and message field is great as a base.
- Bank details: bank account number, account holder name, bank name, IBAN, BIC (SWIFT).
- Map, even with multiple locations/businesses. The map is required if there is a personal customer service at the head office.
- Opening hours – if relevant.
- Virtual tour, if available.
- Other data
4. Create engaging blog articles
When designing a website, it’s important to build professional credibility and expert status. A blog helps achieve this by providing regularly updated, relevant content that both Google and visitors appreciate, increasing conversions.
For a small business, blog content should align with your niche. For example, a hair care product website should feature articles related to hair care.
A well-structured blog boosts SEO
Use internal links, similar article sections, image galleries, and videos to engage visitors and increase time spent on your site. Include offers in blog posts and interlink them with static content. Display recent articles, category lists, or a tag cloud in the sidebar to enhance navigation and engagement.
5. Focus on customer support
When you launch your small business website, you should put special emphasis on other effective features, such as customer support.
The consumer expectation of customer support is increasing year on year. According to Microsoft’s 2018 Global Customer Service State of the Industry Survey, 59% of consumers have higher expectations of customer service than they did a year ago. 61% have even switched companies due to poor customer service. An overwhelming 95% of survey respondents said customer service is important in brand choice and loyalty.
Because customer service is an integral part of the customer experience (CX), improving it is effectively enhancing the experience for your customers. It is key to increasing satisfaction, retention, and revenue. Here are 6 key ways to improve customer experience by delivering better customer service:
- Scale the support option to meet your customers’ needs
- Never ignore customer requests for support
- Increase first contact resolution
- Provide an omnichannel service experience
- Switch from reactive to proactive customer support
- Invest in your customer support team
Customer service goes beyond solving product issues; it significantly impacts customer experience. High-quality service shapes brand perception, leading to better customer experiences, long-term loyalty, and sustainable growth. Consistently excellent service can also boost your small business website’s conversion rate.
6. Increase your website traffic with social media
Although many business leaders are still averse to social media and see it as a necessary evil, in the right hands it can make a quantifiable contribution to increasing organic traffic to your website.
In a 2022 study, Social Media Today tested whether memes – which are known to promote follower engagement and thus increase social media reach – can make a measurable contribution to increasing website traffic.
After integrating memes into their social media strategy for 1 month, they saw a 12% increase in website sessions and a 16% increase in visitors from social media. Although this was only a small test, it suggests that engaging content can also increase website traffic.
Add links to your social media posts
Every social media post or story can drive traffic to your small business website. If users engage with your content, guide them to your site for more.
Capitalize on their interest and curiosity by including a CTA or link in your posts or stories, directing them to your website for further information. This leverages their attention and makes visiting your site the next logical step.
Use techniques that encourage click-throughs
The way social media visuals are presented and the text used in posts can also help drive traffic. Find ways to pique your audience’s curiosity and encourage them to want more. Here are some techniques you can use:
- Hook: Hook your audience’s attention with something interesting before the click-through phase.
- FOMO: People’s fear of missing out and being left behind (i.e. FOMO) can also be a huge pull.
- Use emotion: Emotional messages or provocative images not only grab attention but also support the emotional engagement of your target audience.
- Use negative language: previous research concluded that including negative words in headlines and headlines increases click-through rates by 2.3% per negative word.
- CTA: A simple and effective way to encourage your social media followers to check out your website.
When using the above techniques, make sure that you always deliver what you promised in your post after the click. Also, be sure to avoid misleading or sensationalist headlines that lead to poor-quality websites.
7. Apply security features
Many people do not pay enough attention to the security of small business websites, even though it is of paramount importance for businesses and users alike.
Data protection is crucial for website security. Users share personal and financial information when shopping or registering, and inadequate protection can lead to data breaches, harming individuals and businesses.
A secure, trustworthy website encourages users to share data and builds trust, essential for long-term customer relationships and business success. Frequent security incidents can erode trust and damage a business’s reputation.
Website security is not only an ethical and business issue but also a legal requirement. Many countries have data protection laws and regulations that set out the responsibilities of businesses to protect users’ data. Data breaches can have serious consequences, such as fines and litigation.
So pay as much attention as possible to the security of your website.
8. Focus on the performance and analytics of your small business website
Yes, this may not be the first time you’ve heard about responsive web design, the speed at which your website loads, and the importance of web analytics, but these three are effective features without which your website would not perform as expected.
Responsive web design
Responsive web design is essential for a consistent user experience across different devices, using techniques such as media queries, flexible grids, and fluid images to adapt the website’s look and feel to different screen sizes.
Mobile-first design is key in the digital age, focusing on content and interactive elements on small screens and broadening the spectrum of experiences on larger screens.
Fine-tuning responsiveness includes selecting content-based breakpoints, testing on multiple devices, optimizing images, implementing adaptable navigation patterns, balancing design and performance, and using advanced CSS and JavaScript.
Page load speed
The page load speed depends on several factors:
- Server:
The quality of the server that provides the hosting is very important for the website’s loading speed.
- Website encoding:
CSS coding of the website and the use of Java scripts are also important factors.
- File size:
Files that are too large, such as large images and videos, can affect the loading speed of your website. Therefore, it is important to optimize the size of files before uploading them to the website.
- The cache settings of your website:
Your website’s cache settings are designed to shorten loading times. There are WordPress plugins for this purpose.
Website testing is a simple process. There are many tools available to test speed. Here are some of the most common ones:
- Google PageSpeed Insights:
Google speed test tool. Google website speed test tool. PageSpeed Insights helps you understand how your website performs on PC and mobile devices.
- GTmetrix:
Website testing tool to identify errors that affect speed.
- Pingdom:
This tool is used to test website load speed.
The importance of web analytics
Web analytics are essential for measuring the effectiveness of your small business website. With tools like Capturly, you can track specific user actions through custom events, providing detailed insights into how visitors interact with your site. These events can be easily monitored through the acquisition menu, allowing you to filter and funnel this data into session recordings. This process helps you visualize the user journey, understand user behavior, and identify areas for improvement.
Capturly offers features like heatmaps, conversion funnels, and real-time analytics, ideal for small businesses. These tools help you make data-driven decisions to optimize website performance, enhance user experience, and boost conversion rates.
With Capturly’s web analytics, small business owners can gain a competitive edge by understanding their audience better and tailoring their strategies to meet user needs effectively.
9. Make customer reviews available
Did you know that nearly 90% of customers read reviews of products before they decide to buy?
It’s easy to think that you’ve missed out on a lot of successful purchases because your customers have gone elsewhere to get information about your product. In the end, they went with your competitor who took the trouble to display customer reviews on their site.
An elegant and practical solution could be to place buttons on the page that automatically take the visitor to a website where they can review your service.
We can offer a star sticker where the customer can indicate their satisfaction, or we can place widgets to display the text of the most recent reviews.
If there is no other reference, Google reviews can do the best service, as it is a popular platform among users.
Of course, it’s not worth overdoing it, lest too many badges and stickers slow down the site. If the proportions are right and the settings are correct, you will get aesthetically pleasing results and make it easier for your customers to make a decision.
10. Summary
No, don’t be frightened by all the information you have just received in this blog article.
So my last tip, the last effective feature for every small business website is to start using the above-mentioned.
Take it step by step and you will find that a successful and well-built website will result in the right conversions if you follow and apply what I have described. Be it web analytics, customer support, the importance of web design, security techniques, or anything else.
Apply it yourself or hire an expert to help you become a successful small business website owner.
A mobile-friendly design is essential as a large portion of web traffic comes from mobile devices. A responsive design ensures your website looks and functions well on all screens, improving user experience. This leads to higher engagement, lower bounce rates, and more conversions. Additionally, Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in search rankings, boosting your visibility.
A blog is crucial as it keeps your site updated with fresh content, improving search engine rankings. It establishes your business as an industry authority by sharing insights and updates. Blogging engages your audience, answers their questions, and builds a loyal community. Regular, high-quality posts can drive traffic and convert visitors into customers.
An SSL certificate protects data transferred between your website and users by encrypting sensitive information. It builds trust by showing your site is secure and improves your SEO rankings, attracting more organic traffic.
A contact form allows visitors to easily get in touch with your business for questions, quotes, or feedback. It captures leads, streamlines communication, and reduces spam compared to listing an email address.
Customer testimonials build credibility and trust by providing social proof of positive experiences. They influence purchasing decisions and increase conversion rates. Authentic testimonials highlight your business strengths, improve your online reputation, and enhance SEO performance.