Whether you’re building your website from scratch or working from an existing template, there are a few key points to look for when conducting your own website audit.
- Is Everything Speaking to Your Ideal Client?
In our Brand Guide for photography clients, we send out an extensive workbook on how exactly to pin down your brand’s ideal client: the client you’re gearing your business towards serving. All elements of your site should be crafted to speak clearly to your ideal client, and to ensure their experience on your website is friendly & intuitive.
- Are Your Goals and Services Clear?
When a visitor lands on your website, it should be instantly clear what kinds of products or services you offer. If someone has to go on a journey to find this information, they’re going to feel frustrated—and you may lose a potential client before they’ve even learned what you can provide for them.
Your website should have 1-2 main goals (the booking of a service or buying of a product), and that should be clear throughout every single page of your site. Imagine that each page of your website tells a story about how you’ll enhance your dream clients’ lives.
- How Mobile-Friendly Is Your Site?
Having a mobile site that is easy to navigate and visually appealing is so important these days. While we’d definitely all prefer for our audience to see our perfect desktop design, the reality is that sometimes up to 50% of our visitors are landing on our websites using their phones.
Depending on the product or service you offer, they may send themselves a reminder to revisit your website on a desktop when they get a chance, but it’s likely that a lot of first impressions you give will be from a mobile site.
- Do You Have an SEO Strategy?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has everything to do with how high you’re ranked on search engines—like Google, for example. It plays a massive role in how many people will find your website in the first place, and the goal is to be ranked at the top.
To increase your overall ranking, there are specific steps you can take, but it’s an admittedly slow process. Patience is key with anything SEO! Start with regularly updating and posting content that is relevant to your dream client, and then do a little research to put a solid plan together.
- Are Your Images Cohesive with Your Brand?
One of the best ways to set yourself apart from others is through your visual branding. Your website’s visual presence is arguably the most important part of what will make your visitors stay on your site long enough to realize why they need your products or services.
Keeping all your brand images cohesive and high-quality will subtly persuade your website’s visitors to stay on your page and read all about what you have to offer. We strongly encourage you to work with a brand photographer who knows just what to do to elevate all your visual content. Because, let’s face it, you don’t want to brand yourself as chic & modern, and then use outdated or shabby photos on your website.
- Do You Have a Distinct Tone of Voice?
While a picture may speak a thousand words, your website is still going to need tons of textual content, or copy, to explain things and hook your readers. Part of your brand is your tone of voice: Are you conversational and full of personality, or do you prefer to define yourself as more formal?
You want the word choice you use to reflect the tone of voice you’re hoping to achieve, and a copywriter is exactly the specialist you’ll want for this work. They’ll think about how clear and concise all the phrasing is on your website, and they’ll also consider content breaks, purposeful headers, bullet points, and image placement.
- Do You Have a Blog?
Because if not, you absolutely should! A blog is a great way to offer valuable ideas and information to your audience, as well as giving them a chance to get to know a little more of your personality. Blogs are also instrumental in increasing your SEO score because they give you a chance to use keywords and phrases that your audience is looking for.
You can also choose what kind of angle you want your blog to have. Will it be purely educational, or will it offer some personal stories about your business? The key thing to remember about your blog is to maintain regularity. You’ll benefit from a plan to post weekly or bi-weekly content, and this regularity will captivate your audience so they keep coming back.
And there you have it! Seven easy checkpoints to see how your website is serving your audience. Still feel like your website needs a little love, but not sure what next steps to take? I offer comprehensive website audits, and would love to give you a list of actionable steps to start reaching your dream clients today!
