Importance of Checklists for Small Business Websites

A checklist helps keep a website within the realm of bringing value and traffic to the business. Avoiding a checklist can lead to missing out on important components that could help the site's success. Since websites can be complex--depending on your business goals--it's a good idea to review the following expert tips and use them as a guide for your web development. Content Content development is by far the most important aspect of any website because it's what users and search engines are looking for. Without meaningful content a website becomes meaningless no matter how fancy it looks. The text must be easy to read and it needs to be built around keywords and variations without spamming them, which can draw penalties. SEO Search engine optimization is important in order for the site to be visible in Google and other popular search engines, which are responsible for driving a huge percentage of traffic to sites. Even though SEO guidelines keep changing, these updates keep moving in the direction of rewarding high quality content while punishing or banning low quality sites with useless information. Common Essentials Every website needs to have easy navigation so that users don't become quickly frustrated. The logo should appear at the top left of the home page and if a search box is used it should be at the top right. On every page the logo should link back to the home page, where there should be a link to a sitemap that provides a quick summary of the site. Links should appear for contact information, social media and a privacy statement. The bottom of every page should have a copyright notice. Monetization If the goal of your website is to make money online, you need to find a solid ecommerce solution that allows multiple types of transactions. This software, which proprietary or standard, needs to be integrated with analytics that track sales and customer information. The site should be designed with a sales funnel in mind, in which prominent calls to action direct users to product pages where online purchases can be made.