Whether you’re a designer, a businessperson, a tech professional, or even a writer, it’s important to have a website which not only showcases your products and skills, but also gives an immediate impression of professionalism. Your web-page is the first face you present to your customers, so it’s just as -if not more- important as a well-made business card or friendly manner.
Getting the Look
The first thing a visitor will notice is your website’s design. This means everything from font sizes and typography to colour schemes and stock photos. Sites should be laid out appealingly and easy to navigate. For accessibility and search-engine friendliness, mobile accessibility is increasingly important – this means optimising your webpage for mobile visitors. If you’re not a web designer or tech professional then consider hiring a professional to design and code your web-page for you. If this isn’t an option, there are a profusion of decent webpage creators available online, many of which have a host of features for a premium.
Refine Your Copy
Next up is content: the copy on your page does as much work as the design in making your page friendly to search-engine algorithms, thus making it available to your potential customers.
Building the trustworthiness of your site is essential, and the best way of doing this is by building a network of links with other trustworthy websites. If your content is relevant, well-written, and digestible, other pages are likely to link to it. The more links to your page, the more likely people are to land on it. This also works in reverse, so make sure to link to high-quality content elsewhere on the web. Curation is just as important as content for maintaining a reliable reputation in whatever field you choose.
Domain Names
As simple as it may sound, choosing a reputable, relevant domain name helps ensure people land on your page when they’re searching for services you offer. Avoid misspellings or alternate versions of your organisation’s name which may confuse browsers. Try to select .com domain names wherever possible, as this is the most widely used ad trusted top-level domain name. If your site isn’t based in the United States, do some research to see which is the most highly sought-after domain in your region.
A great way to instil trust in your website is to get your domain certified by a Certification Authority. Certificates can be purchased online, and come in a variety of styles at a range of costs. Unless you’re a corporate entity or high-margin business you won’t be going for the most expensive and rigorous certification options; instead you’ll be looking for quick, inexpensive security certificates. These cheaper Domain Verification Certificates simply confirm that you’re the rightful owner of the domain, and most modern browsers will have visual cues to demonstrate the trustworthiness of your site. Certificates like the GeoTrust QuickSSL Premium Certificate let you immediately verify your page for years at a time.
If you’re looking to make an impression with your webpage you need to make sure you have excellent, relevant content presented professionally. Technically optimising the page by ensuring it’s fully secured and mobile-friendly, as well as ensuring it’s visibly secure, allows visitors and customers to feel safe transacting with your business.