Give your website a summer spring clean!

Is your website doing what it should? Use these tips and give it a refresh.

This post is part of Go and Grow Online, the Enterprise Nation campaign that encourages more businesses to get online and supports existing online traders to grow.

Are you converting sales?

Do you find lots of people visit your site, click on a few links but then leave? If so your calls to action could do with a refresh. Is it immediately obvious what products or services you're selling, and if your site has ecommerce functionality, is the buying process an easy one? Set up a session where you watch people using your website so you can spot any common problems, and use Google Analytics or Bing Webmaster Tools to work out at what point people are leaving your site.

Do you have a personality?

Small businesses have a big advantage over the big guys in that they can build a personality around their brand, because the owner often is the business. Are you making the most of that opportunity on your website? Does it have a personality or is boring and unengaging? Give it some personality with eye-catching images using low cost or even free stock image services such as iStock, Pixabay and Shutterstock.

And what about a blog? Are you regularly updating your website visitors on what you're getting up to, or commenting on topical news and events. A blog is great for making your site loved by search engines and giving it a bit of personality. But it shouldn't all be about you though. Think outside the box and talk about other things your customers are interested in. If you're not a great writer, embed amusing, emotional or informative videos, images and infographics. You can create your own infographics using sites such as Piktochart and Canva.

Who is giving you traffic?

Do you ever check your referrals? This means the websites which link to your site and bring you traffic. Looking into referrals can bring surprising results. You may find you had an unexpected bit of press coverage which led people to your business, or someone in an online forum may have recommended you (or even criticised you!). Keep track of these referrals and see if there are ways you can exploit them such as posting 'as seen on [media publication]' buttons on your site or getting involved in the forum where you were recommended.

Can people actually find your website?

If no-one can find your website, it's pretty pointless having one in the first place. How good is your search engine optimisation? Getting it right is absolutely key to the success of any online business. There are lots of things you can do yourself as outlined in this brilliant 40 minute webinar and posting regular content (as outlined above) can help.

If you've got the money to pay for it it's well worth getting an expert on board. Use the Enterprise Nation Marketplace to find an SEO expert. As with all advisers though, do your research and read reviews of their services from previous clients.

Go and Grow Online is supported by .COM, Microsoft, BT and Dell. For more information and to access special offers, click here .