Having a snazzy building in a bustling location is no longer what makes all the difference. Users from various walks of life spend tons of time on the Internet a week. This means that the chances of someone “visiting” your website and determining the status, success, and vibrancy of your business is much more likely than someone walking into your building establishment seeking more information. If your website is not walking the walk and talking the talk, then you have already lost the majority of your potential audience that you are marketing towards. It is no accident that consumers and other entrepreneurial business owners equate visiting a business with taking a tour of their web site.
There are three purposeful necessities that many business owners have expertly applied towards growing their physical business (and/or building their own home), but may have overlooked in regards to their digital property – the website:
1) Conceptualize – Brainstorm, envision, and plan what you want your digital property to accomplish.
2) Design – Convey your business’s desired personality and atmosphere, setting it apart from competition.
3) Develop – Execute your plans in a way that can be built upon or tweaked later if necessary.
So you might be saying to yourself, “Well, I hear what you’re saying, but I only have a few small ideas of where to begin.” Good! You are already started to “conceptualize.” Upon posing the following questions, designing and developing can be made less intimidating, while strengthening your preliminary concepts.
+ Does my website feel like home?:
In other words, if my web site could be a digital living space, would I feel comfortable residing in it or would I just want to visit it from time to time. If you don’t like where you live, you can bet that there are others who have thought the same and moved on to another business that has intently imbued tender, love, and care into their home.
+ Can I find everything around my home?:
Most of us might immediately shake our heads, thinking of all the stuff we have lying in storage. However, approach it from a more simplistic angle. That is, can I find the essentials of my home? Whether you answer yes or no, your web site should be able to be easily navigated through without having to search through all the useless stuff.
+ Has my home been retooled/remodeled since the new millennium?:
Almost every property that we have ever lived in has needed to be redone in some way, either after just getting everything together after moving in, or after living in it for an extensive period of time. Outward aspects of the home and the internal contents within become outdated as time passes. Your web site, in a similar regard, is the same. Chances are, if your site design (i.e. the outward aspects) and your site content (e.g. your appliances, worn-down walls, etc.) have not been optimized for the expectations of the “digital shift“, then you could very well be losing prospective customers as you read this entry.
+ Do you look for opportunities to invite guests over?:
I’m not implying that every day should be a frat party at your place, but more like an organized, social gala. Your guests should be able to live, move, and breathe comfortably within the space of your home, no matter how lavish or minimalist it may be. Engage your guests in an experience that will linger in their minds in that they will be waiting for the next event for weeks to come. Actually, scratch that; let them come knocking on YOUR door, seeking more reasons to utilize your business.
Whether your web site is your business or not, you need to be absolutely certain that your domain, which is your online home, is complying with not just your marketing scheme but properly delineates and conveys an accurate message coupled with a profound experience. In this way, your business’s web site will engage your target audience with succinct trust and a sophisticated, yet homey attitude.
If you are convinced that your “online home” has fallen behind in the times, you don’t have to go at it alone, nor should you. Seek out digital media experts who understand what it means for your business’s online image to be the lifeblood of what can make or break your marketing strategy in the long run. As for Image Cog, we agree that your Web site should be a closely integrated component of larger marketing strategy. However, we profess that your site is the most important component of that strategy.
Related Entries:
Web Design Meets Interior Design In Three Steps
The goal is to provide for the needs of all your potential users, adapting Web technology to their expectations and never requiring readers to conform to an interface that places unnecessary obstacles in their paths. – Web Style Guide
In owning a small business, one may aspire to eventually have that snazzy building in a bustling location. While that may may not be immediately attainable, on-line is where the real estate battle is not won by a pricey physical location. Millions of potential customers from nearly every demographic spend an increasing amount time on the Internet each week. And for some demographics [ages 14-28] more time is spent on the internet than with any other form of media. 
