11 Must Haves When Building a New Website

Your hosting provider can make or break the success of your website. Not only will your host impact the experience that your users get, but hosts with excellent customer support can help you improve your website as your business grows and your needs change. Some popular hosting providers include WPEngine, HostGator, Bluehost, Hostinger, and InMotion.

Of course, you’ll also need to select a domain name. Make sure your domain name is brief, relevant to your brand’s voice, and easy for your customers to remember. After all, you want people to remember where they can find you! If your potential customers can’t find your website, you’ll be losing out on untold sales.

There are platforms that allow you to integrate your domain, hosting platform, and CMS software all in one place. These platforms, such as SquareSpace, can be great for those just starting out or for business owners looking into automation. Having everything in one place can do wonders for organizing the most essential parts of your website.

The user experience is crucial when you’re creating your website. If your site is slow to load, difficult to navigate, or generally unpleasing to use, your customers will quickly go elsewhere. User experience extends beyond just the layout or imaging of your website but also extends into the backend.

First and foremost, every aspect of your website should be functional. Make sure you have no broken links on your website and that all forms and submissions are secure. Check the functionality of your site regularly to make sure everything is running as it should be.

When it comes to designing your website, keep your brand’s identity in mind. For example, if you’re going for a streamlined, professional appearance for your brand, you don’t want a cluttered website. You may be able to find a template that suits your needs, but if not, consider hiring a website developer for a custom-made layout.

Of course, speed is also vital to the success of your website overall. While it’s important to add visuals to your website, don’t sacrifice your loading speed to do so. Striking a balance is key to keeping your customers happy and representing your brand well.

You’ve got two main choices when building your website: do it on your own or hire a developer.

You don’t have to be a tech expert to build your own website, especially with the help of platforms like Wix and SquareSpace. These platforms provide templates and let you tailor your website, but they aren’t completely customizable (especially if you opt for the free versions of these services).

If you want complete control, consider a platform like WordPress. There are far more capabilities here, so you can tweak your website to become exactly what you’re searching for. However, since there’s less guidance, you might need a developer’s help to achieve your goals.

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is key to helping potential customers find your website. Beyond targeting keywords in your copy, SEO can be improved by editing backend codes or improving site speed.

Internal adjustments can be difficult (or impossible) to make on simple platforms like SquareSpace and Wix, meaning that your SEO performance may suffer as a result. If SEO is a main priority for you, it may be worth investing in a more complex platform.

It’s no secret that our lives are run through our phones. A large portion of your traffic will come from mobile users, which is why your website has to perform well on mobile. This point is important regardless of your target audience, but if you’re looking to appeal to younger customers (think Millennials and Gen Z), then good mobile performance is crucial.

Each time you update your website or edit your CMS, be sure to look at your performance on both desktop and mobile. Some templates that perform well on desktop aren’t meant for mobile use, so you’ll want to ensure your layout loads smoothly no matter where a user may be browsing from.

If marketing is high on your priority list, then you’ll certainly want to keep third-party integrations in mind. Your website platform should be able to integrate with the services you’re currently using, such as Google Ads, Mailchimp, Google Analytics, or any other software that’s critical to your marketing goals.

Being able to integrate these services directly into your website’s backend can save you tons of time and effort when you’re managing your website performance and your marketing campaigns. Do be cautious of which integrations you choose, though. Having too many integrations on your website can get expensive quickly and can make your website appear busy and chaotic.

Of course, building a top-quality website comes with a price. But you don’t have to break the bank to create a functional and aesthetically pleasing website. Platforms like Wix and SquareSpace offer budget-friendly tools to help you get your website off the ground, but you may be missing out on some key features if you opt for a less expensive plan.

Keep your long-term goals in mind when you’re building your website. If you’re just trying to spread information and do a bit of marketing, a simple, low-cost website will suffice. But if you’d like to expand your website presence and invest in marketing and SEO more heavily, it’s worth it to consider a more expensive plan. At the very least, try to find a platform that will let you upgrade over time.

Your branding and identity are the main elements that make your company memorable, so take the time to perfect them! Think about your color scheme and logo design to begin. Consider what you want your imaging to portray. For instance, if you’re trying to create a sense of urgency, colors like red and orange are great. For something calmer and more welcoming, consider blues and purples.

Place your logo throughout your website to ensure your customers always see it; good placements include the center of the page or the upper-left corner where you would start reading. You should, of course, use the same logo in all of your marketing materials, whether online or in print. Keeping your logo simple and consistent will make all of your marketing efforts more streamlined and connected.

We’ve already mentioned page loading speed a bit, but it’s worth talking about it on its own. Our world is moving faster every single day, and you don’t want your website to get left behind. Users want their information as soon as possible, and if your website can’t deliver, customers will go elsewhere.

Perform regular speed tests for your website (on both desktop and mobile) to make sure your site is always loading as it should be. Ideally, your loading time shouldn’t be more than a couple of seconds. If your website is running slowly, make sure you’re not using too many images or videos, and take a look through the backend for any internal problems that could be slowing you down.

Page speed is also now a major ranking factor which is part of Google’s Experience algorithm update. Slow-loading websites will not only result in a loss in customers but also a loss in Google rankings.

Cybersecurity is a huge concern for web users these days. If you want to gain loyal customers (and avoid a potential PR nightmare), it’s critical to make sure your users’ information is always secure. This point is especially true for e-commerce sites that are making financial transactions and getting sensitive information from customers.

Your website should have an SSL certificate (Secure Sockets Layer) to enhance communication. This certificate encrypts information to keep it secure in case of a breach. Conduct regular security checks of your website or consider investing in a cybersecurity provider if you have the budget to do so.

Users will come to your website to learn more about your company, which is why quality content is so important. Informative landing pages, blogs, and videos can do wonders in helping you land a sale and gain a loyal customer for life. Do some research on SEO keywords in your industry and tailor your written content to include these words and phrases. You’ll also want to make sure your website doesn’t have any duplicate or plagiarized copy, as this can negatively impact your search engine result performance (SERP). Google now uses a quality rater system known as E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trust) to grade the quality of content and rank sites. Keep these areas in mind when writing copy for your next web page or blog post.

Your website is a key tool in the overall success of your business. It can help bring in new leads, spread the word about your company, establish your brand voice and identity, and position you as an industry authority. Luckily, you don’t have to build and manage your website by yourself. Working with a marketing agency like OneClick Media Group could be the solution you’re looking for.

OneClick Media Group offers a wide range of web services ideal for any business, regardless of size, goals, or industry. Our team has combined decades of experience helping companies find their unique voice and target the most promising audiences. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your business!