Insights

Trust us, we know how hard it can be to invest in a new website, but by pulling the trigger and launching your site, you open the door to unlimited opportunities for your business! Not only that, but the end product is incredibly rewarding to see, live and online, because it reflects your hard work and dedication to optimizing your site.

So, now that your website is launched, you may be wondering, “what do I do now?” Well, we have the answer for you! Below, you will find three essential steps you can take to make the most out of your site after its initial launch. The most successful websites in any industry, in any part of the world, value the importance of these criteria, so why shouldn’t you?

1. Enable Tracking

Think of your website as your baby. Now, would you ever leave your baby in a room for periods of time without checking in on it? The answer is, no. So why let your website sit in the digital realm without taking the precautions to ensure its wellbeing? In marketing, the number one rule is: don’t do anything you don’t plan to track and measure. Tracking your analytics is a continuous protection of the investments you made for your website and is critical in ensuring your website’s success. The biggest benefit of tracking your website is transparency. You have the ability to see who viewed your site, how long they viewed it for, how they found your website, the driving force behind conversions, what content is being interacted with most frequently, and so much more! The list really does go on and on.

What makes tracking so easy is the fact that many of the platforms that offer analytics are completely FREE. There are no reasons or excuses as to why you can’t start tracking your own analytics! Our team here at Webfitters utilizes Google Analytics in every website we build, and have even talked about the importance of analytics in other blog posts as well, like this one here! It’s easy to use and if you get stuck, they offer tutorials and other helpful features along the way. In addition, there are also certifications you can complete to take your skillset to the next level. Do your research and find which analytics source works best for you, just make sure you find at least ONE analytics resource to use for viewing your website’s data. (Webfitters can be one resource too!)

2. Set Goals

One should never underestimate the importance of goals. We all have them, big or small- and so should your website! After you get the hang of tracking and viewing your analytics, you’ll be able to apply that knowledge and make purpose-driven changes to get the desired results. After those changes have been made, whether it be sending out a social media campaign to drive traffic to your website, or creating a form to get people to sign up for your email list, you’ll need to set goals so you can track your progress.

Here’s a better idea on what that looks like: Say we use the email list example previously mentioned in conjunction with Google Analytics. We will also create a “Thank you” page that will appear after the user submits their email. Using two-step goals within Google Analytics, we will be able to see how many people reached the “Thank You” page, after they entered their email address and hit submit. You can then compare that to your previous data and see the increase in email addresses!

On the back end of your site, setting goals is one of the driving forces for increasing your website’s success. Without goals, it is hard to determine your performance and how it has impacted your visitor both positively and negatively. Real progress and proven results can come from setting goals, so do not overlook the importance of setting them up!

3. Optimize your site

The only way to truly make the most out of your website is if you play an active part in its online presence. Optimizing your site for search is one major way to ensure your site can be found by the people searching for your business’s products or services, or people searching keywords relevant to your business. There are many ways to boost your sites relevance on search engine results page (SERPs). Below are a few notable steps you can take that will impact your ratings!

• Make sure the images or other non-text features on your website have specific alt-text
• Improve sitemaps
• Utilize inbound and outbound links
• Use keywords
• Paid search ads

Laying out a dynamic and thorough marketing plan that includes strengthening efforts to improve your standing on SERPs will help ensure your site reaches the right audience and provides the necessary information that captures your audience’s attention!

Takeaways

Your website has the potential to become anything you want it to be, from the most visited blog, to the most viewed image and video gallery, or even the most popular e-commerce store in your city! These three essential steps, that are relatively easy to impose can mean the difference between an average website and a really incredible one that sticks out distinctly in your viewer’s mind. If there is anything you take away from this blog post, let it be this: Do not underestimate the power that comes with understanding how your visitors are viewing your website. These essential steps help you dig deep to reveal the meaning behind how the end-user behaves and how you can adjust your approach to meet the needs of your visitor.

If you run into troubles or have questions along the way, contact Webfitters to see how we can help!