vividcontext.com

Most companies have Web stats for their Website and some provide more data than others. The problem for many people is they either don’t ever look at their stats, they aren’t sure what the stats mean and therefore they don’t take the appropriate action to improve the performance of their site. Here are 3 ways that you can use Web stats to improve your Website performance and gain and advantage on your competition:

1. Keyphrases
Knowing the keyphrases that are bringing traffic to your site will help you to understand how you are being found today, what search engines are the most effective for your site and the types of terms that your are most relevant for. What the stats will NOT tell you are the keyphrases that are NOT finding your site. I usually provide additional research to determine the best possible keyphrases and then optimize the site accordingly. By measuring the effectiveness of your search engine optimization efforts every month, you can make informed decisions and improve the site’s performance.

2. Entrance and Exit pages
Knowing the pages where most users enter your site will help you understand the “first impression” that many people have when landing on your site. Many companies have a very limited amount of text on their home page. As a result, your subpages are more likely to bring traffic to your site through the search engines. Looking at the most frequent exit pages will help you to understand what pages are most likely to make people leave your site. Ask yourself why people always leave the site from this point. Make sure that the page is working properly, the content is relevant and current and consider putting a testimonial or offer on that page.

3. Conversions
So, now you know what keyphrases are bringing people to your site, what page they are entering and exiting the site. What you should do next is create a call-to-action. Provide a white paper download, a form to fill out or something that they can “order now”. These successfully completed transactions are “conversions”. Track your users from keyphrase that brought them to the site, what page thy landed on, what path they took through the site, all the way through to the “thank you” page they see after filling out your form.

Learning more about your site usage will help you make smarter decisions and will ultimately improve your Website’s overall performance.

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At social events, people often give me their company’s URL and ask me to “check it out and tell them what I really think.” In agreeing to review their site, I usually ask for the truth behind their question. Eight out of ten times, they tell me they don’t think they’re getting good results from their Website and they want someone to tell them what to do about it. There are many things I can recommend to promote a website through search engine marketing, social media or email newsletters, but to get things started; I usually focus on the site itself. I’ve found that these three things will improve your Website:

1. Reduce the choices

If your corporate site has more than 7 main navigation buttons, including home and contact us, you may have too many. I always tell my clients that if you offer people too many options they will choose none and leave. You need to remove the clutter. Here are the main options you should provide your online prospects. You may call them by other names, but these are the basic topics:

1. Home
2. Who are you (background info)
3. What do you do (services and products)
4. Who do you do it for (clients)
5. What successes have you had (case studies)
6. How we help (customer support, tools, resources)
7. How to contact you (forms, address, phone)

2. Put the proof in their path

You will notice that I dedicated two of the seven pages (above) for showing your client list and case studies. However, users are not likely to hunt around for your bragging page unless they are already seriously considering hiring your company. Put relevant testimonials on your “what we do pages” or offer a case study on the home page. By putting your successes in front of your users they are more likely to read them.

3. Tell them to dance

So now you have streamlined the options, you’ve shown your prospects that you have the capability and capacity to handle their project, or that your wonderful suite of products is loved by many reputable companies. What’s next? You need a call-to-action. If they can buy online, but a “buy now” button whenever you talk about your product. If your sales cycle is longer, then encourage your users to call you or provide many links to a form so you can call them.

Following this plan for improvement makes a positive impact… I’ve seen it work hundreds of times.

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I was looking at the Answers section of Linked in and noticed a friend of mine, Ivan Schneider had asked what advice should be given to small business owners hoping to build a presence on the Web? What should they look for when hiring someone to set them up?

I read through long check lists of smart criteria that people had thought up. Everything from, years of experience, the largest project they’ve ever completed, the largest client company they’ve served and to ask for examples of their work.

One guy listed the more technical details like, XHTML, CSS, SEO, AJAX, PHP, ASP.NET, Java, or Ruby on Rails, saying that, “every web designer should know a scripting language and a framework”.

I felt that something was missing so, I added in my two cents:
It is easy to find a decent designer with enough technical capability to put together a Website within a reasonable time frame. Design and development skills are a baseline commodity. No need for the long check lists of questions. Look at three of their web pages. You will see in a NY minute if they can do the work or not.

You know it when you see it.

The real trick is finding the right chemistry with someone you like. Someone who is excited about your business and will serve as an extension to your creativity. I’ve seen plenty of train wreck projects with the wrong skilled designer. If there is good energy and a good partnership from the beginning of the project, the details will take care of themselves.

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