Do This One Thing & You’ll Love Your Website

One of the biggest issues that people come to me with is that they want to love their websites. But they don’t. Some of them even say they hate their site. It’s not always that they hate the the design. It’s not about the colors or the photos. In reality, those things really don’t matter that much. This is especially obvious when a business owner says to me, “Here’s my website address. But don’t go there. It doesn’t tell you what I really do.”Ughh…that’s called website shame.

The problem is the message. A great website should shout out to the world why the business is a such an awesome choice. It’s that plain and simple.

In a case like that it’s likely the business owner hired a designer to build a “beautiful website”. Designers tend to get all caught up in the colors and the look and feel. And that’s perfectly ok. That’s what they do.

But let’s step away for a second and ponder this:

The job of your website is to stand-in for you when you can’t be there. It should make your ideal clients think: “Yes! This business totally gets me.”

A website can even be a crappy-looking and have such an awesome message that it does an outstanding job of selling you. You can love your website even if it’s ugly!

I’m not advocating for ugly websites, believe me. But if you’re ready to really love your website and be proud of it, I want to share a few tips that can help you get there:

(1) Nail down your ideal client. Dig deep and figure out what’s inside her head (and her heart) so you really know what’s going on when she needs you most. I wrote about that here.

(2) Focus on your message way more than the design of your site. Of course you want a great-looking site. But brains win over beauty when it comes to websites. In fact, because mobile internet is so huge now, we don’t have much leeway with design these days. Everything has to fit and work well on the tiny screen of a phone. So websites are beginning to look very similar to each other.

(3) Listen (really listen) to yourself when you’re talking to your favorite clients. Take notes. Record yourself. Do anything you need to do to bring your true self to your message. Use those words on your website.

(4) Grace your homepage with a brand promise message gets an immediate “yes” from your ideal clients. Imagine how you would feel if your website sold you as well as you sell you! I wrote more about that here.

In short, focus on your message and get it on your website. Even if the colors aren’t exactly right and your headshot makes you look fat, your website will sit there and get you clients. And you will LOVE your website. I’m wondering – do you love or hate your site? Share in the comments below: