Creating a Clean and Organized Site

The saying “The first impression is a lasting impression” is as true in building an online business as it is in many other aspect of your life. When someone clicks onto the link in their google search to open your website you have seconds to catch their attention before the reader or potential client decides if they want to stay on your site or go to the next one.

What are some things people are looking for?

Speed – We live in a world of I want it now! because of this people searching on the web have little to no patients for things like waiting for the webpage to load. There are many things out of your control that can effect that, for example signal strength and the devise the consumer is using. But there are also many things you can do as the website developer and business owner to help assist with loading speed.

1. dont over load your website with plugins
2. try and avoid graphic over use
3. make sure your site is user friendly to different devises

Clean and Clear – Someone did a google search for keywords that you have in your content to attract that traffic. Make sure that when they get to your site they can easily find what they are looking for. Have an initial website plan and build off of it. Nothing is set in stone, and things are sure to change as your site builds out, but having a good foundation to build off of can make all the difference.

Make sure your menus are neat and well maintained and there is a good flow to the overall site. Ideally you want the visitor to stay on your site and search through other post and pages as well. Incase your wondering what I mean when I say make sure your menus are neat and maintained, I mean make sure they make scene. You wouldn’t add a page about puppies under a heading titled car parts. Things like this make the visitor loose interest and trust in your authority. Impressions are everything…

Blogging type website are really gaining popularity, there is a lot of money making potential once they are monetized and they start to gain rankings online in the search engines. Im not sure what platform you are thinking of using or are using right now, but I use WordPress. Heres a quick link if you want to build a free website to try WordPress out…

When using a blogging type website you will have the option to create pots and pages. Posts will be in a blog real on the main home page, and your pages will be added to your menu. Plan ahead and decide what content will go where. Its one extra step that will make such a difference.

Stay away from to many graphics!! – this is a big big mistake I see people make all the time. When I started to build my online business I started my learning on a platform called Wealthy Affiliate, on this platform I was given the opportunity to get feedback on my website along with offer feedback to others. Was a great learning experience and a really big eye opener for me. I learned a lot about how people saw my site, and learned a lot about how others didn’t realize how much graphics and other things on their sites like random ads and images pulled away form the message they were trying to send rather then add to it.

Graphics can be super powerful,  some people want more of a quick visual to help tell the story, others will take the time to read more depth into things. The important part here is to create both dynamics together. You don’t want your graphics to over power the written text and you don’t want the written text to seem like it will take hours to get through. It really is a dance trying to find the perfect balance. But please, take the time to find that perfect balance…

Advertisements – this is a bit more of a sensitive one. lets be honest, the entire reason you spend so much time researching, creating content and building out your site is in the hopes to do what you love to do but also have the power to create some income while doing it. There is nothing wrong with that at all, its great! just don’t go crazy.

I have see many many sites where the creator loads their home pages with google ads and click promotions. The visitors eyes are so busy trying to figure out where to look they forget why they went to your site to begin with.

Adding ads and promotions within your content is another popular way to integrate monetization into the website. That is ok to do, but make sure it makes sense, make sure that it doesn’t completely interrupt with the flow of the writing and the experience of our visitor. You want traffic to grow and you want people to come back, maybe even share some of your content on their social media or with friends.

You are creating an authority site, a place where people trust what you have to say, part of that trust is built when they don’t feel like your only intention is to sell them on something.

Overall layout and feel – you want the overall layout and feel of your site to tell a story without having to say anything at all. If your site is about dogs and cats, you may want the impression to be fun and lite. The font, the color story, the graphics, all have to play into that. Lets create an example… If the website is talking about playful pets and products, but the site itself is black and white and has victorian wallpaper as the background, the visitor will be very confused. That doesn’t sound like a playful pet website to me. Take that same website idea and have the same elements speak to the overall theme of the site, the impression becomes completely different, the overall experience has more charge.

Think about all the websites you have ever visited that you really enjoyed being on, or you purchased something from. Be it your favourite clothing label or purchasing a service, Im sure part of the trust you had in that site came from the first impression.

Always start with a plan. Have an idea of what message your are trying to send with your site. Create that foundation and build out form that.

If you have any questions about anything please leave a comment below, lets talk about it…