Top tips and tricks for growing a company’s digital presence

4. Social links

Together, a company’s social media channels and its website should work seamlessly to promote the online brand. Including social media buttons, widgets, and cross-platform promotion with the website are ways to streamline a company’s message and increase its overall digital visibility. A common misconception is a business’s social sites are not search engine optimized when, in fact, they are. Therefore, beefing up social media and website content and piggybacking the content with both strategies is a surefire SEO win.

Social media platforms are also integral to driving traffic to a company’s website. Link building is an important part of a SEO strategy and, even though search engines treat socially shared links differently than other types of links, they notice them, nonetheless.

5. Professional appearance and ease of use

Humans are not only visual creatures, but also creatures of habit. People like things to feel familiar. A company should translate this into its website to ensure the format is not overly different or ‘artistic’ (as some may put it), because the general population does not like change and they do not want to have to figure out the website. Some web designers may want to step outside the box; however, there is a reason why most websites function in a similar manner—it creates familiarity and ease of use. It is less stressful for visitors when they know how to navigate a company’s website. Creating a positive experience for visitors by using an optimal layout should be every company’s goal. It should consist of the following:

1. a) An obvious menu placed at the top of the website. This menu is most often found on the right because the company’s logo is either centred or on the left. People naturally read left to right; therefore, websites should be designed to allow one’s eye to verify the company who operates the site first via their logo, and then shift their sights to the menu on the right to begin navigating.
2. b) Ensuring the company logo in the header links back to the homepage for easy ‘click back’ by visitors.
3. c) Keeping elements in a grid rather than mish-mashing them all over the page. Each section should also be kept organized.
4. d) Avoiding clutter of elements and images on the page (less is more).
5. e) Using fonts and colours consistently.
6. f) Including navigation and contact information in the footer of the site.
7. g) Including a search bar at the top of the site.

Further, it is also important to ensure the website is visually appealing and communicates the company’s brand effectively through colours and imagery. It should also remain consistent throughout the design.

A company that is building or redesigning its website should also reach out to key people for constructive criticism. Give them an end goal and then ask them how quickly/easily they were able to come to their conclusion. Find out if they had any frustrations and where they occurred and if they would change anything. Everyone’s feedback or nit-pick design opinions do not have to be taken to heart (it is hard to please everyone), but it is a good way to gather some insightful information from people who are willing to be open and honest.

When it comes to professional appearance there are some design rules to follow that will also assist in success. Small but powerful design plans such as ‘the fold,’ staying in line with Hick’s law, and applying visual cues are all subtle ways of controlling the user’s experience.