Make a decision about whom your website will target. Who’s your ideal site visitor?
Think about what you want your visitors to do on your website. For your site to be a success, what action do you want your visitors to take? What you decide upon will be your “call-to-action.”
Settle upon some keywords to target on the search engines that will pull your ideal clients to your website.
Map out your Information Architecture. If this sounds hard, that’s because it truly can be. Take some time to sketch out the paths by which all of your website’s pages connect. Visually, think of it as a tree, or like a blueprint for a house. You want your site navigation to be easy for your visitors, so keep user-friendliness in mind.
Your site needs to be simple to manage and easy to update, so look into which type of Content Management System (CMS) is best for you. CMS’s range from very expensive to free, all depending on which features you feel you need.
For the key pages on your website, sketch out your Graphic User Interface (GUI). Basically, this is your site layout, before all the pretty pictures are there. This step will help you to make sure that all the necessary elements are included in your site design, and it will help you sketch the best layout to deliver valuable content while emphasizing your call-to-action.
Design your graphics, making sure they serve your GUI, not the other way around. A user-friendly GUI is the higher priority.
Implement any of the programming that your site needs.
With your ideal site visitors in mind, write copy that is targeted to them. While the content needs to be genuinely useful and well-written, it also needs to lead users to your call-to-action.
Test your site extensively. Enlist the aid of family and friends, if possible.
Launch time! Put your website out there, and be ready to adjust to any issues that arise.
You can discover the details of the step-by-step process as well as tips and tricks that you can use to make your website successful. Reserve your seat for the “How to Make Your Website Earn its Salary and Get Clients” teleclass and workshop!
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Warmly,
Jennifer
Wow dude, that is very helpful info, thanks.
Brent,
My pleasure. You should check out my “How to Make Your Website Earn its Salary and Get Clients” seminar next time I offer it. I think you would enjoy it!
http://jjscoaching.com/website-earn-salary-clients-teleclass/
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Maegan,
I am glad you enjoyed it!
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Excellent. Thanks so much for the post. -Kate
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