There are some things your online competitors—and their web design teams—hate to see on your site. We know, because there are certain things we come across that tell us we’ve got some work to do if we’re going to make up ground on another company for one of our clients.
What kinds of things give us headaches when evaluating the competition? We are glad you asked, because today we’re going to share seven things no other business owner wants to see on your website…
#1 A Mobile-friendly Web Design
More than half of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices, but there are still a lot of business owners out there clinging to old, non-responsive HTML designs. It goes without saying you should stay ahead of the curve (and your laziest competitors) when it comes to mobile compatibility.
#2 A Blog That’s Being Updated
A blog that is continually being added to gives you an almost insurmountable search engine optimization advantage. Every new article is a fresh page in Google’s eyes, and those tend to add up pretty quickly. Most marketers don’t have the patience to keep posting new material. Can you outdo them?
#3 Targeted and Local Search Terms
Most business owners like to target big, generic keywords with their search engine optimization campaigns. But, by focusing a little bit on more targeted search phrases, or those that include geographic terms, a business can own a segment of the search market. Your competition doesn’t want you to make that leap.
#4 Focused PPC Campaigns
It isn’t just organic SEO that needs to be tightly-focused. Spending money on generic ad groups get you lots of exposure but few results. However, a marketer who knows exactly who it is they’re trying to reach, with the perfect message and an efficient budget, is really hard to dislodge. Put a winning PPC campaign in place and you’ll take a step toward squeezing your competitors out of the picture.
#5 Evidence of Social Engagement
These days, anyone can claim to have tens of thousands of followers on social media. All it takes is a few good meme reposts or the willingness to buy fake contacts from a broker. Real social engagement—in the form of likes and shares—is something different. That’s because people are listening to you and responding to your ideas.
#6 Positive Online Reviews
Today’s customers are savvier than they were even a few years ago. If you have lots of positive reviews on your website, and around the web, then you get a massive reputational boost many of your competitors can’t match. That makes searchers more likely to buy from you than anyone else.
#7 Email Signup Forms
When customers and prospects sign up for your email newsletter, they give you an instant and incredibly inexpensive way to follow up with them in the future. You can reach out to your subscribers while bypassing the competition completely. That’s a big advantage for you, and something they can’t stand.