Is WordPress Good for Ecommerce? Exploring Its Viability
So, you’re thinking about setting up an online shop. You’ve heard of WordPress, but is WordPress good for ecommerce? After all, it’s not exactly known for online stores, right? That’s where things get interesting. WordPress itself isn’t an ecommerce platform.
It’s a powerful content management system (CMS) that, with the right tools, can be molded to fit your needs — including selling online. This is where WooCommerce, a WordPress plugin, enters the scene.
WordPress & WooCommerce: A Powerful Ecommerce Duo
Think of WordPress as the foundation of your house, and WooCommerce as the toolkit that transforms it into a bustling shop. This open-source plugin gives you the power to list products, manage inventory, handle payments, and much more. You’ll be able to do all of this within the familiar WordPress environment.
Why Choose WordPress for Your Ecommerce Venture?
Let’s talk about why WordPress is a good option for many online sellers.
1. Cost-Effective & Flexible
WordPress is free to download and use. You can customize it without spending a dime on the software itself. You will, however, need to factor in expenses for WordPress hosting, a domain name, and potentially some premium themes or plugins. However, compared to some other ecommerce platforms, your startup costs are still relatively low.
WooCommerce Payments, for example, charge a standard 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for ecommerce businesses based in the US.
2. It’s Your Shop – You Call the Shots
With a WordPress website, you have complete control. This means you have complete control over your customer data, your design, your content, and how you run your business. You’ll never have to worry about a third-party platform dictating your terms or suddenly shutting you down.
3. SEO-Friendly From the Get-Go
WordPress is built with SEO in mind. The CMS platform itself is structured for search engine visibility. With plugins like Yoast SEO, you can fine-tune your website content, optimize product pages for ecommerce SEO, and improve your chances of ranking higher on search results pages. Hire an agency like SEO Locale that offers ecommerce SEO services to get you ranking on Google.
4. A Theme for Every Style
Want a sleek, minimalist shop or a vibrant, colorful storefront? WordPress offers thousands of themes, both free and premium. You can easily add one of these themes so you can customize the look and feel of your online store to match your brand.
There are over 9,000 themes to choose from, with 1,200 geared specifically towards online selling. You’ll have no shortage of options to make your ecommerce store unique.
5. A Plugin for (Almost) Everything
Need to integrate social media sharing? Add customer reviews? Implement email marketing? There’s probably a plugin for that. The extensive WordPress plugin library gives you the flexibility to extend your store’s functionalities way beyond the basics.
Facing the Challenges: The Downsides to Consider
Now for a dose of reality. While WordPress is undeniably awesome for many, there are a few bumps to be aware of:
1. It’s DIY Time (Unless You Outsource)
WordPress provides the tools but requires you, the store owner, to handle setup, maintenance, security issues, and regular backups. If you’re not tech-savvy or prefer a more hands-off approach, you’ll likely need to hire a developer, especially as your site grows more complex. Hiring a developer means ongoing costs.
2. Plugin Overload Can Lead to Trouble
As wonderful as plugins are, relying on too many can make your website slow and clunky. Having a slow website is a big no-no for user experience and SEO. It’s essential to choose high-quality plugins from reputable developers and be mindful of how many your site can handle.
Plus, you’re responsible for keeping them updated to avoid security risks to your shopping cart and other areas of your store that contain sensitive information. If your ecommerce business takes payments directly on your website, then you need to be extra precautious about security.
3. Speaking of Security…
WordPress’ popularity makes it a target for hackers. Keeping your ecommerce site secure is your responsibility, not WordPress’s. This involves regular updates, strong passwords, installing security plugins, and potentially additional security measures such as SSL certificates.
WordFence, a popular WordPress security plugin, stopped a whopping 86 billion unauthorized login attempts in 2021. You want to especially make sure your website is secure if you’re handling sensitive customer information. You’ve got to be proactive when it comes to cybersecurity.
Is WordPress the Right Choice for Your Online Empire?
Ultimately, the question of “Is WordPress good for ecommerce?” depends on your specific needs, technical skills, and long-term goals. Consider these scenarios:
WordPress Might Be Your Ecommerce Soulmate IF… | You Might Want to Reconsider WordPress IF… |
---|---|
You’re on a tight budget and comfortable (or willing to learn) the technical basics of WordPress | You need an all-in-one solution with minimal setup and technical know-how. Hosted platforms like Shopify ecommerce offer convenience (at a higher price tag). |
You crave total control over your website design, functionality, and data. | You prefer simplicity and want a platform where most features are already built-in and security is handled for you. |
You anticipate your business growing and evolving, and want the flexibility to adapt your online store accordingly | You’re wary of handling website maintenance and updates yourself (or lack the resources to hire a developer) |
WordPress: An Ecommerce Powerhouse in Disguise
WordPress, with the addition of WooCommerce and a sprinkle of your own efforts (or the help of a skilled developer), can be a formidable ecommerce platform. WordPress offers an impressive blend of affordability, customization options, and a massive ecosystem of resources and support.
While there’s definitely a learning curve, especially for those new to building ecommerce websites, mastering the basics can empower you to create an online store tailored to your vision. If you are new to creating websites, you may want to consider hiring a web design agency to build your ecommerce site for you.
So, is WordPress good for ecommerce? As with many things, the answer is nuanced: it depends. WordPress, powered by WooCommerce, gives you immense power but expects you to be hands-on. This self-hosted platform thrives on your drive to learn, build, and refine, especially as your ecommerce business takes off.
While WordPress doesn’t charge transaction fees itself, you will incur them from your payment gateway such as Stripe or PayPal. If you don’t want to handle accepting payments, security, backups, and all the other things that go into managing an ecommerce business, then a platform like Shopify might be a better choice for you. You can always hire SEO Locale, we can build WordPress sites.
But hey, isn’t that the spirit of any entrepreneurial journey? There are many ways to sell products online, and choosing the right platform depends on your specific business needs.
Is Showit Good for SEO in 2024? Here’s the Honest Truth
As a business owner, you understand how critical it is for people to be able to find you online. In today’s digital age, that often starts with search engine optimization, or SEO. And if you’re currently in the market for a website builder that won’t hold you back in the SEO department, you may be wondering, is Showit good for SEO?
In theory you could SEO any website, but it comes down to the effectiveness of the platform itself. As a national SEO company we handled tons of websites on various platforms. Recently we’ve been getting a few clients on the Showit platform so we decided to write this article to help others. If you are looking for a website to be developed, don’t forget to give us a call!
While a shiny, beautifully-designed Showit website is a good place to start, you don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket. Even more critical is making sure your ideal clients can actually locate you when they go to Google, Bing, or Yahoo and search for a service you provide. But as is true of most things SEO-related, knowing exactly where to begin can feel more than a little bit complicated. So today we’ll simplify the matter. By the time you finish reading, you’ll know whether or not Showit can help or hinder your site’s ability to get found by search engines, and if it’s the best platform for your business needs. Is Showit good for SEO?
Is Showit Good for SEO: Unveiling the Truth
Let’s tackle the elephant in the room first. Can Showit hold its own when compared to website building giants like WordPress and Wix? In short, the answer is a resounding “yes.”
Although many people default to believing WordPress is superior to other platforms (at least when it comes to SEO), this belief isn’t necessarily based on objective evidence. If we were to try and create an experiment to see whether platforms such as Squarespace or Showit measure up to WordPress, how would we go about doing so? Creating identical content is immediately ruled out because Google frowns upon duplicate content.
Having unique content on every platform won’t get us anywhere either. Google wouldn’t be able to determine whether content or platform structure contributed most significantly to the site’s overall SEO score.
To determine if a specific platform is hindering search results, simply move pre-existing content that has a measurable history of search engine success to a new website built on a different platform.
A scenario we found where someone began by painstakingly migrating every single post (over 500.) from a Squarespace site to a Showit site (integrated with WordPress). The process took 3 months to complete. But what was found, in the end, was incredibly surprising.
As it turned out, traffic between the Squarespace and Showit websites remained largely the same. What’s more, the PageSpeed Insights (a ranking factor of SEO) were significantly improved for the content hosted on Showit. In a nutshell, if your SEO is suffering, there is a good chance the culprit is something other than the platform itself.
To truly help you determine if Showit has what it takes to meet your SEO needs, this post will highlight both pros and cons of the platform.
Is Showit Good for SEO? Here Are Some Benefits:
As you get to know more about how Showit functions and is structured, you’ll soon see it has a lot of valuable SEO settings. When these tools and settings are maximized, your chances of getting found online by your ideal clients increase exponentially.
Built-in SEO Tools
One of the best things about choosing to build your business or blog website using Showit is that there is no need to have any special coding knowledge. Unlike many popular WordPress themes on the market, where knowing HTML is crucial to get the look you’re wanting, Showit comes complete with numerous features you can customize without having to be (or pay for.) a web developer.
For example, you have the ability to easily change page titles and SEO descriptions (also called meta descriptions). If you’re just starting out with SEO, meta descriptions are basically little snippets of text that appear under your title tag (the blue clickable link in Google search results). Think of them as elevator pitches where you get to convey the most important information in a limited space (ideally, under 150 characters).
A tool such as Google Ad Planner can be helpful for brainstorming relevant keywords related to your business or area of expertise. Or the chrome plugin, Keywords Everywhere, can give you more detailed insight, letting you see helpful keyword phrases while also telling you how many times that phrase is being searched for within a specified timeframe.
Easy WordPress Integration for Blogging
As previously mentioned, it is a popular belief that WordPress is a superior website platform for bloggers, particularly those wanting to get found online through strategic keyword placement. But it is a little known fact that Showit websites integrate seamlessly with WordPress. You have the flexibility of using Showit’s convenient drag-and-drop interface (that comes standard).
You can then supercharge your blog posts’ ability to get seen by search engine crawlers using helpful plugins like Yoast, an SEO tool that analyzes the SEO score of a piece of content and gives you recommendations based on factors such as: readability, title tag length, word count, and use of transition words.
And although WordPress makes its money by charging monthly for their lowest tiers, if you need multiple websites, they give pretty great bundle pricing. This makes building out your online presence as easy as clicking a button.
Automatic SSL Certification
An SSL (secure socket layer) certificate, according to an article on DigiCert.com is, “a digital certificate that authenticates a website’s identity and enables an encrypted connection,” SSLs use what is called, “encryption algorithms to scramble data in transit,” from hackers. This means visitors don’t have to be afraid to hand over their credit card details (if making purchases through your site), and personal information to you because you have that extra level of protection for them.
And while an SSL is good practice generally speaking for site owners to have in place, an added benefit is that search engines are more likely to rank a secure site more favorably than those that are not secured. When a website DOES NOT have an SSL, you’ve probably noticed that a little warning pops up when you go to visit it. Visitors tend to steer clear when this happens because they aren’t able to determine if a site can be trusted with their sensitive information.
And who can blame them. After all, no one wants their identity or personal data to be compromised. With platforms such as WordPress, generally you have to go to a third party in order to add this necessary (and important.) security measure. Showit automatically grants each website built through its platform an SSL, making one less thing for business owners to have to manage.
The Importance of Page Speed
One thing Google REALLY likes is to be able to offer a seamless experience to anyone using their search engine to research, or to find products and services they offer. As Showit website and business owners, this should be reassuring, knowing you only need to learn a few tips to leverage search engine success.
One critical way you can work *with* search engine algorithms to help your site get seen more is to take a close look at how fast it takes for your pages to load fully. Nothing frustrates (and ultimately drives traffic away from your offers.) than when people click a link only to realize that nothing happens. This is usually a good sign that the image files used to make your site appealing are TOO big.
Google penalizes these types of pages because a high bounce rate indicates to them that a visitor’s time is not considered important to you. You can use a tool like PageSpeed Insights (free through your Google Search Console account). PageSpeed Insights analyzes different metrics for every URL you add, and provides tips that web designers can implement to increase load times (if adjustments need to be made). This is a great practice for ANY site on the world wide web, because at the end of the day, making things convenient, simple, and straightforward should be your top priority as a content creator, business owner, or blogger.
What About Showit’s Downsides?
Like any other website platform, Showit has areas that could be improved upon.
The Showit & Google “Crawl” Issue
In a perfect world, search engines (like Google or Yahoo.) “see” your webpages the same way visitors do. Search engines “crawl” webpages, using code to find out how each page should appear in a web browser such as Google Chrome, or Safari, based on specific instructions given to it.
As content creators, this is one more example where SEO doesn’t need to be intimidating. All it really takes is knowing where to make minor adjustments. This way, what YOU see on your backend editor actually matches what visitors (and Google.) see, which ultimately leads to a more pleasurable and enjoyable visitor experience. One of those tweaks involves becoming more aware of how each layer in Showit gets rendered by a browser.
Let me explain: inside Showit’s convenient and beginner-friendly editor, Showit has always suggested site creators start adding elements, “top-to-bottom” because this method leads to a better overall understanding of how things are formatted from a visual point of view. The only problem is that the HTML code used to “read” a page in the backend of a website gets reversed. This is an example where Showit could use some improvements.
According to Davey & Krista, wedding photographers, Showit website designers, and Showit specialists, although this issue does exist with Showit websites, they’ve been assured the company is currently implementing measures to correct it so that what appears for designers on the frontend perfectly matches how HTML renders a page.
Higher Price-Point for Bloggers
Showit tends to cater towards service-based creatives. While they do have plans specifically designed for content creators and bloggers, those options start at $24 a month, which is significantly more than other hosting companies like Bluehost (which generally runs closer to $3/month for 12 months when first starting out) and WordPress (who’s most popular Blogger plan costs $15 per month, or $9 per month if you purchase an entire year of hosting up front).
This is where spending time becoming familiar with ALL of the features and offerings available to you will come in handy, allowing you to decide whether Showit’s user experience is worth paying more, or if a platform such as WordPress or Squarespace (where website and blogging capabilities come standard without having to “upgrade” to access this function), is a better option for your unique budget constraints.
FAQs about is Showit good for SEO
Is Showit Good For Photographers
Showit is incredibly popular among professional photographers and other creatives because of the beautiful templates you can get. Templates allow those new to website creation or SEO best practices, to hit the ground running and not need to have any coding knowledge. However, there is something extremely crucial to be aware of, especially if having a WordPress blog in tandem with your Showit site is something you want.
Each template must be purchased separately if you don’t purchase them as part of an overall website design. It is only the blog categories and blog post designs themselves that carry over between your site and your WordPress blog. So budget accordingly for this as those individual Showit template purchases can start to add up.
Is Showit Beginner Friendly?
Showit shines in this department. Getting set up with your first Showit site takes very little time. It is the most simple platform to drag, drop, and move site elements to exactly how you want them to look in a way other website builder interfaces have yet to equal. You can adjust individual components within a pre-designed website template to ensure your website looks as unique as you are without having to hire a developer (unless, of course, learning to code is simply not for you. Even then, it often only requires hiring them to make minor tweaks). And their customer service department is unparalleled. Should you have any questions, a real person in Arizona is there to assist. And their Showit design partner program will give you ample practice with learning new skills to set you apart from other creatives.
What About Using Showit For Ecommerce
Although not impossible, you’ll probably find other website building and hosting options to be much more user-friendly. Ecommerce SEO can be tricky at times so make sure you focus on all the SEO elements. Unlike sites such as Shopify which comes fully loaded with analytics, abandoned cart recovery options (an essential must-have to make more money in sales), easy coupon and discount code creation and other e-commerce functions Showit really only gives you the ability to link directly to product listings. Depending on the plugins you’re using you also might not be able to easily adjust the checkout process, and instead require your buyers to go through a third-party, again depending on how (and which platform.) you are currently offering products. Not ideal for the average course creator or digital product provider.
How Does Showit’s Pricing Structure Work
Showit offers a few different plans. Their basic plan will cost you $19 a month (when billed annually, which is a really standard pricing practice). However, keep in mind this price point ONLY gets you the ability to design the website you’re wanting. For most small business owners (especially creatives like photographers and coaches), adding a blog is a vital marketing and SEO tactic to increase your search results rankings.
Showit offers two blog options; one for $24 a month, and the other (with more features), for $34 a month, again if you pay annually for the service (which again, most website companies do, including platforms like WordPress and Squarespace, making the set-it and forget it function perfect for time-strapped entrepreneurs). All plans come with a 14 day free trial (again, the industry standard) giving you the ability to try before committing to any contracts.
Leverage Showit Capabilities
So, is Showit good for SEO? With its user-friendly interface, seamless WordPress integration, and robust SEO tools, Showit can be an excellent choice for businesses looking to enhance their online visibility and attract more organic traffic.
By leveraging Showit’s capabilities and following SEO best practices, you can create a visually appealing and search-engine-friendly website that drives results. Is Showit good for SEO? With a bit of strategic planning and effort, the answer can be a resounding yes.
Visual Consistency: Building a Cohesive User Experience Across a Website
Establishing excellent visual consistency in your web pages can create a uniform branding style that will take your business to the next level. But what exactly is visual consistency, and how can we help you with it? Well, let’s take a deep dive into this topic — including its many benefits — to show you the light! No matter what market you’re in (and there are many), visual consistency is critical to master. At SEO Locale, we can help you create a visually attractive and consistent design!
What is Visual Consistency in SEO Design?
When we create websites for our customers, we spend a lot of time brainstorming branding concepts, logos, and other visual ideas to create strong visual consistency throughout each site. If you’re still confused about this concept, let us define it for you: visual consistency refers to creating a website with high coherency levels…including consistent fonts, images, colors, and layouts.
Don’t confuse that with “visual repetitiveness,” i.e., making all your sites look exactly the same. Early web designers made this mistake (we didn’t, though) and paid the price. Repetitive designs hurt your SEO by making your site look artificial. Even worse, you could share poor or unappealing styles across several pages and greatly impact your overall SEO score: not good at all.
Instead, visual consistency creates sites that share similar features without being carbon copies of each other. Just think of a site like Amazon to get a feel for visual consistency: each page utilizes similar elements without being boring or predictable. That creates a unique feel for a website to enhance its branding — not bad at all. Just a few things to consider include:
- Fonts throughout all your text
- Color schemes and palettes
- Image types and layouts
- Branding elements (i.e., logos, ads, etc.)
- Page flow (how you integrate all these elements)
- Control bars and other relevant information
By working with the best SEO company Chester County offers, you can take your visual consistency to the next level. Just as importantly, you can rank high in Google (and other search engines) and reach a broader audience. “Okay, that’s great,” we can hear you saying, “ but why does it matter so much? Let’s take a deep dive into the benefits of visual consistency to learn more.
How Visual Consistency Skyrockets Your SEO
If you’re interested in visual consistency, we’re here to help! At SEO Locale, we hire high-quality web designers (both front- and back-end experts) who can produce gorgeous and appealing pages that will draw your customers’ eyes and keep them fascinated. But how can this process benefit you? There are three main benefits that visual consistency provides — let’s check them out now:
- Improve Visual Appeal: Don’t underestimate the importance of a visually appealing website! A site with strong visual consistency is appealing, attractive, and likely to keep customers. That’s huge: if your customer usage time stays high, your SEO goes up! It’s a complex process, and our team at Seo Locale can ensure that you fully understand it on a deep and inherent level.
- Enhance Brand Trust: Just think about brand trust and visible consistency from the user’s level: would you trust a sloppily designed site or one that looks professional and coherent? By building a consistent and coherent website, you build brand trust — which can improve your customers’ experiences and turn first-time buyers into loyal shoppers who will work with you constantly.
- Streamline User Experience: When search engines crawl for appropriate sites, they use various algorithms to check for multiple factors. Authority, diverse content, visual appeal…and easier user experiences. Visual consistency creates a simpler and more authoritative user experience — especially for first-time visitors — to greatly increase your presence in SEO searches.
Before you call us to set up an appointment — we understand your enthusiasm — make sure that you read through the next section to learn more about creating a cohesive user experience utilizing high-quality visual consistency concepts. We’ve done a lot of the hard research for you here but think you should still know exactly what to expect when you work with our team of experts: we got your back!
Creating a Cohesive User Experience With Visual Consistency
When creating a website, we focus heavily on things like consistent navigation, layout, and branding: these all matter! Your navigation bar is critical to visual consistency and should be shared between all your pages. The same is true of layout — to a degree, as you shouldn’t just blindly copy and paste pages — when creating a coherent and effective visual layout. Here are a few tips to keep in mind:
- Create Design Patterns and Rules: What rules and concepts do you want to integrate? For example, do you want to use contact forms on every page? Or simply have a contact site? Concepts like these can keep your page attractive and consistent…so stick with them!
- Choose Colors Wisely: When choosing a color palette for your site, stick close to your branding. This helps enhance your aesthetics, boost visual hierarchy, and increase brand recognition, further expanding your SEO. Use a color wheel to pick appealing, complementary colors.
- Know Your Typography: Don’t go crazy with too many fonts! It’s important to pick just a few (three or four MAX) and integrate them intelligently. Match your different sections with specific fonts, i.e., give titles or headers unique typographical elements compared to your paragraphs and text.
- Make Consistent Menus: All your navigation menus should be the same across every page — it’s one of the few things you should copy and paste! Consistent menus, buttons, and links make your page not just visually effective but minimize “dead links” and other types of problems.
- Utilize Responsive Design: Integrating responsive design concepts — that change page layout and display based on screen size — not only improves your visual consistency but ensures your site works well on multiple formats: minimizing customer confusion.
Achieving Next-Level Visual Consistency
SEO Locale is the web marketing company Bucks County businesses turn to when they want high-quality work from a team that they can trust. With years of experience and a constantly growing team, we’re here to give you the help you need — no matter what! Don’t hesitate to call us at (267) 368-7905 to learn more…we’ll give you the inside scoop on visual consistency and SEO that you need, including support designing every webpage necessary for your site: we’re here for you!
Building Trust Signals: Testimonials, Reviews, and Trust Badges
When designing a website for your business, it’s critical that you understand the concept of trust signals so you can confidently use them. Trust signals are great tools for making sure visitors feel confident when browsing your website, which leads to more conversions. Here’s a quick look at trust signals, including their benefits and how to integrate them.
What are Trust Signals?
No matter what type of business you run, trust signals matter. They demonstrate that your company is trustworthy and will provide great work or service. Here are a few trust signals you can utilize:
- Testimonials and Reviews: People place a lot of emphasis on third-party reviews from Google or Yelp, and displaying any high ratings or positive testimonials is a great way to establish trust with your prospective customers. Quotes from satisfied customers and video testimonials are great options, too!
- BBB Reputation: The Better Business Bureau (BBB) and other similar organizations independently track companies and rate them based on many metrics. If you provide a great customer experience, product, or service, your reputation will likely grow.
- Trust Badges & Seals: SSL certificates and payment badges indicate to your customers that your site is safe, so they can be confident if or when they make a purchase. Other industry-specific accreditations or certifications are also great to highlight.
- Case Studies: Consider dedicating a section of your website to case studies that go into detail about client or customer success. You can offer insight into your process, how you helped your client achieve their goals, and use specific data that supports the effectiveness of your product or service.
- Social Proof: Do you partner with any well-known clients or businesses? Consider showcasing their logos, with permission.
- Real-Time Activity: Some sites benefit from displaying real-time customer purchases or sign-ups to create a sense of urgency. Similarly, offering a live chat shows your customers that you’re actively listening, engaging, and supporting them as they navigate your site.
- The Site Itself: A professional site with a beautiful design, user-friendly navigation, useful content, detailed contact information, and functional forms can be a trust signal for many users. If you’re not presenting yourself well online, your consumers are likely to lack trust in your service or products.
Why Are They So Important?
Trust signals help your company stand out and thrive in a saturated digital market. Even smaller businesses can benefit from trust signals on their virtual shops. Trust signals are effective ways to:
- Increase Loyalty: Highlighting your credibility helps you reach more people, get better business, and inspire confidence in your users. When customers trust you, you can establish a long-term relationship and brand loyalty.
- Boost Your SEO: Testimonials, reviews, and other trust badges don’t just make you look better; they boost your SEO. Search engines value authoritative trust signals and consider these as they crawl and rank your landing pages. Our SEO company in Southampton, PA can help you leverage trust signals and many other ranking factors to help you boost your online presence.
- Improve User Experience: When users perceive your website and business as worthy of their trust, they’re more likely to spend time exploring your site.
How Can You Get Them?
Getting trust signals on your website is a balance of user-friendly design, content strategy, and external validation from customers or industry leaders. There are many ways to increase trust, so here are just a few:
- Provide Excellent Service: There’s no better way to get trust signals than to provide amazing products and services. The happier your clients or customers are, the more likely they are to leave a glowing review or volunteer for a video testimonial. You can embed third-party reviews into your site design or dedicate an entire page to testimonials.
- Page Speed: A website that loads quickly gives a better first impression.
- Showcase Media Mentions & Industry Awards: Was your business highlighted in the local news? Do you have any positive articles written about your company? Were you given an industry award badge? Showcase these on your site!
- Create a Blog or Resource Section: Demonstrate your expertise and establish yourself as an authority worth trusting by developing and maintaining an educational blog.
Our digital marketing and web design experts can help you create, maintain, and showcase these trust signals and others on your landing pages to help increase visibility and conversions.
We’re Here to Help You!
Our skilled team of digital marketers at SEO Locale can help you leverage trust signals and improve other aspects of your website to help drive traffic and increase conversions. As a full-service SEO and web design company in Philadelphia, we offer tailored solutions to expand your online presence. Contact us today to get started!
The Anatomy of an Effective Call-to-Action on Landing Pages
A well-crafted Call-to-Action (CTA) on a landing page can significantly influence user engagement and conversion rates. At SEO Locale, we understand the pivotal role CTAs play in digital marketing. A compelling CTA grabs attention and motivates action, bridging the gap between visitor interest and actual conversion. Our expertise in creating compelling CTAs ensures your landing pages are seen and acted upon. Learn more about how to generate an effective CTA on a landing page, and contact us to make sure you get the most out of your digital marketing strategy.
Understanding the Purpose of a Call-to-Action
A Call-to-Action is more than just a button or a line of text; it’s the catalyst for user engagement. Its primary purpose is to guide visitors toward a specific action, whether it’s making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading a resource. A well-defined CTA aligns with the user’s interest and the goals of the website, creating a clear path for conversion.
Furthermore, a CTA serves as a directional signpost on the user journey, providing clear guidance on what steps to take next. It eliminates confusion and decision paralysis, streamlining the user experience. This clarity is key in transforming passive website visitors into active participants and loyal customers.
Key Elements of a Persuasive Call-to-Action
- Clarity of Message: Your CTA should communicate exactly what you want the user to do. Clear, concise language removes any ambiguity and increases the likelihood of action.
- Visually Striking Design: A CTA should stand out visually. This can be achieved through contrasting colors, unique shapes, or dynamic animations that draw the user’s eye.
- Emotional Appeal: Effective CTAs often tap into the user’s emotions. Using powerful words that evoke excitement, urgency, or curiosity can make your CTA more compelling.
- Sense of Urgency: Creating a sense of urgency, such as limited-time offers, encourages quick action. Phrases like “Limited Time” or “While Supplies Last” can be very effective.
- Value Proposition: Your CTA should make it clear what value the user will receive. Whether it’s a free trial, a discount, or valuable information, the benefit should be unmistakable.
Designing for Maximum Impact: Visuals and Colors
The design of a CTA goes beyond aesthetics; it’s about creating visual cues that guide user behavior. Colors play a vital role in this, with different hues evoking different emotions and actions. For instance, red can convey urgency, while blue can instill a sense of trust. Choosing the right color palette is crucial in making your CTA pop and resonate with your audience.
In addition, the overall design should be cohesive with your brand and the rest of the landing page. Consistency in design reinforces brand identity and enhances user experience. A well-designed CTA feels like a natural part of the page, seamlessly integrating with the content while still standing out. There is a saying that a picture is worth a thousand words, and with our affordable website design service in Middlesex County, NJ, your landing pages will stand out.
Crafting Compelling Text for Your Call-to-Action
The text of your CTA is where you directly communicate with your audience. It should be action-oriented, using verbs like ‘Discover’, ‘Learn’, or ‘Get’ to encourage action. The language should be simple yet powerful, making the offer irresistible.
Moreover, personalization can make a CTA more effective. Using words like ‘You’ or ‘Your’ makes the message more personal and relatable. It’s about creating a conversation with the user, making them feel that the CTA is speaking directly to them.
Placement and Size: Optimizing for Visibility
The placement of your CTA can significantly impact its effectiveness. It should be positioned where users naturally focus, such as the center or bottom of the screen. However, it shouldn’t interrupt the user experience or feel forced. The size of the CTA also matters – it should be large enough to be noticeable but not so large that it overwhelms the page.
Experimenting with different placements can yield surprising results. Sometimes, a CTA at the top of the page works best, while other times, one at the end of the content is more effective. It’s about finding the sweet spot where visibility and user experience intersect.
A/B Testing: Finding the Right Formula
A/B testing is essential in determining the most effective CTA for your landing page. By testing different versions of a CTA, you can gather data on what resonates best with your audience. This might include variations in text, color, design, or placement.
The importance of ongoing testing and refinement cannot be overstated. User preferences and behaviors change over time, so what works today might not be as effective tomorrow. Continuous testing ensures that your CTAs remain optimized for the highest conversion rates.
Contact SEO Locale for Help With Your Landing Pages
Creating an effective CTA is both an art and a science. At SEO Locale, we combine creativity with data-driven insights to craft CTAs that capture attention and drive action. Our team specializes in digital marketing in Southampton, PA, providing comprehensive solutions for optimizing your landing pages.
In the digital landscape, your landing page is often the first point of contact with potential customers. It’s crucial to make every element count, especially your CTAs. For expert assistance in creating landing pages that convert, including web design in Chester County, PA, contact SEO Locale today. Let us help you maximize the potential of your online presence with effective CTAs and landing page strategies.
Boosting Online Success: Strategies for Enhancing Customer Satisfaction on Your Website
In the digital age, a website is often the first point of contact between a business and its customers. Ensuring a high level of customer satisfaction through your website is crucial for building trust, enhancing brand reputation, and encouraging repeat visits. At SEO Locale, we understand the importance of a user-friendly and engaging online experience. Learn more below, and give us a call for help with customer engagement.
Understanding Your Audience: The Key to a User-Friendly Experience
Creating a website that resonates with your audience starts with understanding their needs and preferences. By analyzing user data and feedback, you can tailor your website to address their pain points and interests. A website that reflects the values and expectations of your target audience is more likely to keep them engaged and satisfied. This requires not just insight but also a commitment to evolve your website based on user behavior continuously.
Incorporating elements that your audience finds appealing and valuable is crucial. Whether it’s through visual design, content, or functionality, every aspect of your site should speak to your users. For example, if your audience values detailed information, make sure to provide clear info on your website that is easily accessible.
Speed and Performance: Optimizing Your Website for Quick Access
Website speed and performance are critical factors that influence customer satisfaction. Users expect web pages to load quickly, and any delay can lead to frustration and potentially drive them away. Optimizing images, leveraging browser caching, and minimizing HTTP requests are just a few ways to enhance your website’s speed. A fast-loading website not only improves user experience but also positively impacts your search engine rankings.
Regularly test your website’s loading speed and make necessary adjustments. Keep in mind that a user’s experience on your website is a reflection of your brand.
Intuitive Navigation: Crafting a Seamless User Journey
Your website should be easy for visitors to find what they need. This can be done through a well-structured layout, clear categories, and a prominent search function. When users can navigate your website effortlessly, they are more likely to have a positive experience and engage with your content.
Think about the most logical flow for users to find information or complete actions on your site. Drop-down menus, breadcrumb trails, and a well-defined sitemap can all contribute to making your website easy to navigate.
Engaging and Relevant Content: Captivating Your Visitors
The content on your website plays a crucial role in engaging visitors and keeping them satisfied. It should be relevant, informative, and resonate with your audience’s interests. Regularly updating your website with fresh, quality content not only provides value to your visitors but also signals to search engines that your site is active and relevant, aiding in SEO efforts.
Visual content like images, videos, and infographics can also enhance user engagement. They break up text and make information more digestible. Remember, the content on your website is often a potential customer’s first impression of your business, so it’s essential to make it count. Investing in high-quality, captivating content can significantly boost customer satisfaction and engagement.
Mobile Optimization: Ensuring a Smooth Experience Across Devices
In today’s mobile-centric world, having a website that is optimized for mobile devices is a must. A significant portion of web traffic comes from smartphones and tablets, so your website must provide a seamless experience on these devices. Mobile optimization involves responsive design, fast loading times, and easily clickable elements. Ensuring your website is accessible and user-friendly on mobile devices can greatly enhance customer satisfaction.
Personalization and Interactivity: Creating a Tailored User Experience
Personalization can significantly enhance the user experience on your website. By tailoring content and recommendations based on user behavior and preferences, you can make their visit more relevant and engaging. Interactive elements like quizzes, polls, and chatbots can also add a layer of engagement, making the user feel valued and involved.
Furthermore, personalization and interactivity help in gathering valuable insights about your audience. This data can be used to refine your marketing strategies and improve the overall user experience.
Feedback and Support: Building Trust through Responsive Communication
Providing clear channels for feedback and support is crucial for enhancing customer satisfaction. Make it easy for users to contact you, whether it’s through a contact form, live chat, or direct email link. Prompt and helpful responses to inquiries or issues not only resolve immediate concerns but also build trust and credibility with your users.
Encourage feedback and be open to suggestions for improvement. Regularly reviewing and acting on user feedback shows that you value their opinions and are committed to providing the best experience possible.
Contact Us Today To Boost Your SEO Performance
At SEO Locale, we are committed to helping businesses achieve their online goals. From enhancing customer satisfaction on your website to boosting your search engine rankings, our expertise in SEO and local expertise like our Bethlehem web design can take your online presence to the next level. We understand the unique challenges and opportunities that come with digital marketing, and we’re here to provide tailored solutions.
Whether you’re looking for comprehensive local SEO marketing company services or specialized web design in South Jersey, we have the skills and experience to help your business succeed. Make your website a powerful tool for customer satisfaction and business growth. Contact us today to learn how we can boost your SEO performance and enhance your online success.
What Causes People To Bounce From Your Website
A high bounce rate—when visitors leave your website after viewing only one page—can be a significant concern for businesses aiming to maximize their online presence. Understanding the factors that lead to high bounce rates is crucial for improving user experience and, ultimately, conversion rates.
Several pitfalls could cause visitors to abandon your website prematurely. The reasons for a high bounce rate are multifaceted, encompassing issues like slow loading times, difficult navigation, unsuitable content, and more. These mistakes are unfortunately common, yet they can be avoided with attention to detail and a strong understanding of what online visitors want and need. It is time to dive into some industry “don’ts” that might be driving your customers away. Here are some of the most significant issues:
The Loading Speed Is Too Slow
Slow loading times are a major deterrent for online visitors. Internet users expect webpages to load instantly, and any delay can lead to impatience and a quick exit. Many mobile site visitors will leave a page that takes longer than a few seconds to load.
One way to improve loading speed is by optimizing your images and other media elements. Large, high-resolution images can significantly slow down page loading times. Tools like Google’s PageSpeed Insights can provide insights into your site’s speed and suggestions for improvement.
It’s also beneficial to streamline your site’s code and reduce the number of HTTP requests your site makes. This could involve minimizing CSS, JavaScript, and other background elements that can slow your site down. Investing in high-quality website hosting can also help to improve load times.
The Website Is Confusing and Hard To Navigate
A clear, intuitive website structure is crucial for retaining visitors. If users can’t find what they’re looking for quickly and easily, they’re more likely to leave. It’s essential to have a simple, clear navigation menu that’s consistent across all pages.
Ensure that your most important information is easy to find. This typically includes details about your products or services, contact information, and links to key sections of your website. A website search feature can also be beneficial for helping users find what they need.
Also, be cautious with creative design elements that may confuse visitors. While unique and creative designs can set your website apart, they should not come at the expense of usability. Always prioritize function over form when it comes to navigation.
The Images Are Distracting, Overwhelming, or Don’t Make Sense
While images can enhance a website and help to communicate your message, they can also distract and confuse visitors if not used properly. An overload of images can be visually overwhelming, while irrelevant images can confuse users about your offerings.
Choose images that complement and support your content. They should enhance the user’s understanding of your product or service, not confuse or mislead them. Opt for high-quality images and remember to use alt text for accessibility. Consider the size and placement of images as well. Large images can slow down your site and disrupt the flow of your content. The images should be balanced with the text and not dominate the page.
The Website Is Not Mobile-Friendly
As more and more people use their mobile devices to access the internet, having a mobile-friendly website is no longer optional. If your site doesn’t render well on mobile devices, you could be losing a significant portion of your audience.
A mobile-friendly site adjusts to fit the screen size of the device it’s viewed on, ensuring a positive user experience across all devices. Besides, Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in their search results, so it could help with your SEO efforts.
To make your website mobile-friendly, consider implementing a responsive design that automatically adjusts the layout based on the user’s device. Ensure that buttons and links are large enough to be tapped easily on a small screen and that your text is readable without zooming in.
Your Audience Can’t Figure Out How To Contact You
For businesses, providing clear, accessible contact information is essential. If visitors have questions or issues, they need to be able to contact you quickly and easily. If your contact information is hard to find or non-existent, visitors may bounce.
Make sure your contact information is visible on every page. Many businesses include it in the header or footer of their website. You should also have a dedicated contact page with detailed contact options—like phone numbers, email addresses, and a contact form. You must make sure that you have enough options for your visitors to contact you. Keep in mind that some visitors are going to prefer one method of contact over others, and the more options you have, the easier it will be for your target market to reach out to you.
Consider including live chat or a chatbot for instant support. These tools can answer common questions, gather information from leads, and provide immediate assistance to your website visitors. If you need help figuring out how to craft an intuitive contact page, our experts are available.
Rely on SEO Locale To Help You Craft an Attractive Online Presence
Avoiding these common pitfalls is key to keeping visitors on your website longer, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates. With strategies like optimizing loading speed, ensuring intuitive navigation, using appropriate images, being mobile-friendly, and making contact information accessible, you can significantly improve your website’s bounce rate. When you choose to partner with SEO Locale for your eCommerce web design in Philadelphia, we’ll make sure all of these items are taken care of.
At SEO Locale, we are experts in crafting user-friendly websites and implementing effective internet marketing in Philadelphia, PA. As a trusted provider of SEO in Cheltenham, we can help boost your online presence and bring your business to the forefront of your industry. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist you. Let us help you put your business on the map.
Different Website Platforms for Small Businesses
For many people, websites and web design can seem like another world. However, as the demand for online presence and marketing marches forward, we can’t ignore the need for online platforms. Your small business needs a website to remain competitive and meet the needs of customers.
Easily accessible information like phone numbers, service areas, and an address are vital to your business’s success. Meeting your customer’s initial needs online offers the opportunity to provide them with services, products, and information. Online platforms are critical for small businesses to take their business to their customers. Finding the right option for your needs requires research and understanding what each platform offers you and how to use it successfully.
Options for Small Businesses
If you don’t have a background in web design, you may not know where to start. You can look at website building options from a cost standpoint or look for someone that can give you your dream website. Before you pick a platform like WordPress, Squarespace, or Shopify, you will want to understand the different themes, builder tools, and plugs that offer unique editorial and performance opportunities within the website. If you are looking to get things started but don’t know where to go from there, an experienced website developer can help.
Whether you need web design near Chester County, PA, or elsewhere, there are many sites that you can choose to support your company. These different options include incredibly popular types that can subtly transform your business for the better. We will break down some of the leading factors to help you meet the needs of your business.
WordPress: Quick and Effective
If you just need to get up a website quickly to do business as soon as possible, WordPress is a powerful platform. You can build a site for free using their various simple model sites or purchase a premium account for more control over your site. WordPress is easy to learn and offers various editorial options. Even if you are new to web design, they have user-friendly options that you can use to build out pages, post blogs, and provide your customers with the correct information.
Shopify: Amazing Sales Platform
Shopify is one of the leading sales platforms for eCommerce businesses because it includes multiple apps and an integrated payment processor that keeps your sales safe. It also includes a free trial that helps you get started on your site.
Shopify has some limitations to what you can and can’t design, but overall offers a great space to build out your online store.
Wix: Modern Designs With Minimum Efforts
Wix is a low-cost online platform that may be free as long as you let Wix display ads on your site. It lets you set up a quick and in-depth storefront with attractive styles and fast design. You get hundreds of templates designed to meet your business aesthetic. That said, the many app and plugin options give you a surprising level of control for an inexpensive platform.
Squarespace: Getting Started
This website is great for beginners who don’t know where to start and want something minimal to get their feet wet. It lets you quickly build a strong online business or portfolio using multiple templates that support social media integration. While it has some more limitations, this is a good platform to simply add text and images and build your brand online.
Factors to Consider Before Choosing
When choosing a different online platform for your small business, it is important to consider the following factors to ensure you get the best option for your needs:
- Cost: How much can you afford to pay for your online platform?
- Adaptability: What features and apps do you want on your platform?
- Usage: In what ways do you plan on using your online platform?
- Style: Are there many templates that improve your site’s style?
- Simplicity: Do you feel comfortable using this platform yourself?
These simple factors are critical to consider and may affect your overall site quality. For example, if you don’t carefully budget your purchases, you might end up paying far too much for your needs.
While these platforms let you handle web design without expert help, it is always better to find a marketing team that understands these platforms. You need someone willing to do all the hard work for you and provide a high-quality site that suits you.
Getting Help Today
If you need help with WordPress development in Philadelphia and aren’t sure where to turn, we’re here to help. At SEO Locale, we have a professional team with years of experience supporting small businesses like yours. Please contact us now to learn more about our web design options and to find a platform that makes sense for your online operations.
5 Practices For A Great Landing Page
It’s important that business owners and entrepreneurs know the value of setting up great landing pages to drive up conversions. When it comes down to the essentials of online businesses, having an optimized landing page is often right at the top of the priority list. But what exactly is a landing page, and how does it affect the success of a website?
How Landing Pages Work
A landing page is a web page created specifically to drive conversions. They’re a great way to capture the information of visitors to your site in exchange for an eBook, template, video, or any other company offer that you may have available. You can also use the gathered information to schedule a demo, meeting, or over-the-phone consultation to convert these people into paying customers.
The primary role of a landing page is to collect information through a form on the page. Be careful, however, not to mistake a landing page for any web page that has a web form, as that’s not the case. Take a blog post for example. A blog post might have a form that encourages readers to subscribe, but its primary goal is still to educate rather than convert.
A landing page’s sole purpose is to convert. The conversion path for landing pages is relatively linear and straightforward. Visitors fill in a form and automatically become warm leads. The leads then receive emails containing more information about the service or product that you’re offering. Some businesses choose to direct their potential customers to a “Thank You” page where they can access even more information.
In terms of digital marketing, setting up landing pages is not the end goal. Landing pages should be optimized to make sure that you’re getting mileage out of them. Having an impactful landing page strategy in place can often result in a 30-40% lead conversion.
You don’t want all of your site visitors with different needs and intents wading through your general information-rich home page. If you’re creating dedicated landing pages that closely align with a customer’s individual needs, you’ll have a much greater chance of capturing their information and converting them into customers. With the right landing page, you can attract customers to the specific type of service or product that you’re offering.
Here are the 5 best practices to follow when it comes to optimizing landing pages in order to increase conversion:
Apply the 5-Second Rule
People have short attention spans. Our brains are hardwired to pay attention to only the things that benefit us. This is also one of the truths that you should incorporate into every marketing strategy: people don’t want to waste too much time and energy comprehending the content. Consumers want information to be quick, ready, and bite-sized.
When it comes to landing pages, you should clearly state what you provide, how your service will benefit the customer, and what they need to do in five seconds or less. If you fail to do so, your chances of converting your leads decrease, and you run the risk of them exiting your landing page instead.
Keep your visitors focused. Make sure that all of the information they need is above the fold. Your value proposition and CTA must be located right at the top of the page.
Use Short and Creative Videos
Most business owners don’t want anything to do with videos. However, videos can provide an excellent opportunity to connect with your site visitors on a deeper level. This particular medium can be utilized to increase session durations on your website. The more that people interact with you, the likelier you can get them to opt-in or buy what you sell.
Feature a video that has a runtime of 60 seconds at the maximum. In this crucial 60 seconds, you must establish the problem you’re looking to solve and how your customers can benefit from using your solution. Emphasize what would happen if your visitors don’t go with your solution.
Make sure that the short video tells the story of your customers’ transformation. What happened when they tried out your product? How much happier are they now? The video must end with a clear call to action. We prefer to use the same CTA within the page for uniformity and to avoid confusion.
Social Proof
Testimonials or case studies of real people who have already tried out your products and services lend credibility to your landing page. They signify that what you offer can walk the talk. Just like a good referral, people trust positive reviews. Featuring some could benefit your landing page enormously.
While videos are the best when it comes to forging an emotional connection with your audience, you can also use text-based content. With prior consent, we often include real photos of our customers for authenticity.
Remember the customer transformation we mentioned above? Using testimonials and case studies to drive the point further helps to nudge your potential leads down the conversion funnel. Don’t make your testimonials overly lengthy. Make sure to tell the transformation story in just a few sentences.
Clarify Your Value Proposition
At first glance, your landing page must explain what value your service or product offers to your site visitors right away. If your landing page has too many convoluted messages crammed into it, people will immediately click away and go elsewhere.
Visitors must immediately know what it is you do and what’s in it for them. Conversion happens when the value proposition deeply resonates with your audience. We’ve learned that if you’re not solving a problem your audience faces, they won’t feel the need to buy into your solution.
Address your target market’s needs. Break down the reasons why they should prefer your business over others. Once you determine these aspects, incorporate them into your copy. Strong copy entices your audience into converting as leads. Remember, copy and value proposition go hand in hand when it comes to influencing conversion rates.
Use a Strong Call to Action
A CTA tells your audience what to do and where they need to click, sign up, or leave their email address. Your CTA button must be prominent on your landing page. We’ve proven that visually distinct CTAs generate more success in helping you reach your marketing objectives.
Use contrasting colors to get the attention of your audience. Most landing pages take the typical route of using an orange CTA button against a generic blue backdrop. We encourage clients to create their landing pages using their brand colors and with a contrasting color for their CTAs.
We often use commonly understood, action-oriented words to invoke a quick reaction. People don’t want to spend too much time figuring out where to go. Make it easier for them through your copy and design.
The best CTAs use simple, short words to boost conversion in landing pages.
The Bottomline
Landing pages are crucial when it comes to solidifying and supplementing your digital marketing campaigns. You could have a significant amount of site traffic, but this doesn’t automatically mean leads if you don’t optimize the pages for conversions as well.
Follow the above tips, and you’re on your way to creating a useful landing page that’s going to perform strongly and convert better.
Best of Both Worlds: How to Make SEO and User Experience Work Together
When you dig into what search engine optimization (SEO) is at its core, you quickly realize that it’s all about user experience (UX).
Search engines like Google don’t want to recommend their users to sites with a poor UX, so they only rank sites who check certain boxes. And website owners want to rank high, so they try to do things that the search engines want, accidentally improving their UX in the process.
But if you simply focus on UX, you’ll notice that SEO becomes much easier and less complicated. In this article, we’ll tell you a few ways you can tackle both UX and SEO at the same time. Let’s get started!
Responsive Web Design
Did you know that, in 2018, over 52% of all web traffic came from mobile devices? That’s a number that is expected to continue to increase over the next few years, and because of this, search engines have begun to rank sites that are mobile-friendly higher.
By having a responsive website design, your site will look good and function well on multiple devices. And not only will your users enjoy being able to cleanly browse your site on their laptop, smartphone, or tablet but search engines will take notice, too.
Page Speed
It doesn’t matter how good your website looks or how strong your content is if your website won’t load quickly. Users aren’t sticking around to wait for something to load when there are a ton of options in their search results that will give them what they want… and fast.
By ensuring that your site loads quickly, you’re improving your UX and giving your site a better chance to rank higher. Not sure if your site is fast enough? Google offers a useful speed checker tool that will give you a grade, as well as some pointers on how to speed your site up.
Simple Navigation
It can’t be overstated how important speed is in regards to positive user experience. And while loading times play a huge role, user navigation is equally important, too.
Because let’s face it, if users can’t find something on your site in just a few clicks, they’re not going to stick around for long. And if too many users close out of your site too fast, search engines will take note and bump you down in the search results.
A great way to ensure your navigation is good is to follow the three clicks rule. If something on your site can’t be found in three clicks or less, your site’s navigation is too complicated.
Addressing UX and SEO at the Same Time
Well, there you have it! Those are a few ways you can address both UX and SEO at the same time!
Remember, search engines want to direct their users to sites that offer good UX. So by focusing on UX, you’re actually improving your site’s SEO at the same time.
Make sure your site’s website design is responsive, so it’ll work well on every device. Speed is important, too, so try to make sure your site is as fast as possible. Navigation is something that you should put a high priority on as well, especially if you want to keep users on your site for more than a few seconds.
Need help with your SEO strategy? Still have some questions? Contact us today, we’ll be glad to help you!