DSI Ltd

Written on March 1, 2010

Design, Supply and Install Ltd (DSI Ltd) in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk required a website with an integrated content management system to allow them full control of their website content, as well as the search engine optimisation of the website, with a design and structure that promoted the many faceted aspects of their business in Civil, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering as well as their Fabrication capabilities.

Features within the site include a built in slide-show, on-line booking form, a Google location map and breadcrumbs for easier navigation.

AGR Chauffeur Services

Written on January 27, 2010

AGR Chauffeur Services in London and Essex required a re-designed website with an integrated content management system to allow them full control of their website content, as well as the search engine optimisation of the site.

The site has a built in slide-show, on-line booking form, and blog section. Additionally, the site includes a news service for London and an Events Calendar detailing events taking place within the company’s radius. The site is currently placed 1^st for Chauffeur Services Essex in Google.

Template Website: The Pros and Cons

Written on October 22, 2009

While NECSES Webdesign does not build template websites we do want to give consumers all the facts about template sites so they can make an educated decision about what type of website best suits them. Below is a list of the pros and cons of template websites.

Pros of Template Websites

Template websites are a less expensive method of making websites. Template websites are a lot easier and take less time to create than custom websites which is what the site cost should reflect. While template websites should be cheaper than custom websites, that is not always the case. Many website design companies say they build custom websites but in reality they build template websites and charge clients for a custom website.

So how can you avoid paying too much for a template website? Get a quote from a custom website design company and compare it to the price of a template website company. Since template websites require a lot less work than custom websites, the price of a template website should be significantly lower than that of a custom website. If the custom website is close or lower in price than a template website than just go for the custom website.

Template websites are usually simple designs that take less time to build than custom websites. Template websites are less complex and have less functionality than custom websites thus taking less time to build and get running. Companies that are looking to get an online presence up immediately may decide to go with a template website.

It seems as though there are many more website design companies that offer template websites than custom websites. That being said, it could be easier for a business to find a template website company than a custom website company. More availability could make it that much quicker to find a website design company to build a template website than a custom website.

Cons of Template Websites

While template websites usually offer simple and clean designs, they can be very limiting. With a template you get what you see. Template websites are very limited in the changes that can be made to the design and functionalities that can be added. For many companies paying less money for a website is not worth the limitations offered by template websites. Companies should not build websites around a template but websites should be built around a company. Custom websites properly reflect who a company is and what they do, while template websites most of the time do not properly reflect this.

The simplicity of template websites does not let companies stand apart from others. Custom websites stand out from template sites because many template websites look similar and don’t offer much distinction. While template websites are very similar and plain, you can design custom websites any way you want allowing businesses to have a more professional unique appearance.

Most template websites are not search engine optimized. If a website is not search engine optimized it is likely to not be found in search results. What good is a website if it cannot be found? One of the reasons NECSES Webdesign builds custom websites is so that they are search engine optimized. If you want a website to show up higher in search engines then a template website is not the way to go.

Many smaller companies may be fine with having a limited amount of website functionality but larger companies especially require more functionality than template websites offer. Template websites are premade so they are not built to suit any particular company. Larger companies should choose a custom website design company to work with rather than a template company so that the website will be built around all of their needs.

Template websites are quick and easy to build because they work from a pre-made design and structure. Premade designs work for some companies, but they limit what can be done to the site. As a business grows their website should grow with them. Template websites cannot be built scalable so as a business grows and changes their website will not work for them.

With all of the cons associated with template websites, why would any company use a template site? Template websites may save companies money initially, but will cost more money and cause problems in the long run. Custom websites are the perfect solution for nearly every business. Contact NECSES Webdesign to discuss how a custom search engine optimized website can help your business.

Blue Sky Reflections

Written on October 9, 2009

Blue Sky Reflections wanted a website creating that  with a fresh, clean design that gave viewers a feeling that ‘anything is possible’. The site includes a content management system as standard and allows the addition of new pages and news articles, through the blog feature..

NECSES Webdesign also designed a logo for the website and the company as a whole, with business stationary also being produced by NECSES Webdesign.

Keith Houghton Book-keeping Services

Written on October 9, 2009

Keith Houghton Book Keeping Services required a website that promotes his book keeping and accountancy services as well as their administrative services to as wide an audience as possible.

NECSES Webdesign created a website that mirrored the company’s existing image of mainly black and white logos and added a touch of colour to the clean design. A content management system allows K H Book Keeping to update their website, whilst also allowing them to keep their clients informed of the latest changes to financial management through the News pages as well as linking to important websites. A customised contact form was also included in the website.

The brief also required NECSES Webdesign to re-design existing logos that would enable the company to retain theirprevious image and create logos more pertinent to the websites overall image.

Photogenes

Written on October 9, 2009

photogenes wanted a web design that reflected the work that they carry out. To this end our website design mimic the colours of photographs that would be in need of restoration.

The site includes a content management system, and includes e-commerce leading to a Paypal online payment facility. Two slideshows show visitors to the site before and after photographs outlining the services that photogenes offer to their customers.

As with all of NECSES Webdesign’s websites, the CMS facility allows the business owners to update their website themselves, quickly and efficiently.

Landing pages – can they help achieve more sales?

Written on August 27, 2009

Building a great landing page should be on top of any business’s priority list if you want your website visitors transformed into customers.

While a great looking website can grab the attention of your visitors, a strong landing page will keep them involved and get them to buy your products or services.

Wikipedia defines a landing page as:

‘The page that appears when a potential customer clicks on an advertisement or a search-engine result link. The page will usually display content that is a logical extension of the advertisement or link, and that is optimized to feature specific keywords or phrases for indexing by search engines.’

Wikipedia’s definition sums it up nicely but there is certainly more to a great landing page then relevant and keyword rich content. Here are 10 things that you should be looking at when optimizing a landing page:

Relevant Content

A landing page’s content should be directly related to organic search results, PPC campaign, anchor text in inbound links and any other targeted inbound advertising, online and offline. If people don’t get what they expect, they will be more likely to leave.

Multiple Landing Pages

A landing page shouldn’t necessarily be your homepage. In many instances a homepage is a good landing page. However, for more targeted traffic and better results, you want a landing page to be focused on a specific offering and specific call for action. To accomplish this, a given website should have multiple landing pages. Create some deep link landing pages that will focus on a specific proposition and your conversion rate will be higher.

Focus on Functionality

More and more visitors seem to judge the professionalism and credibility of a site by its design. To satisfy this, many website owners concentrate on the design aspect instead of focusing on its functionality. A well-designed landing page is essentially worthless if the prospect can’t accomplish anything. While I wouldn’t suggest skimping on the design, it shouldn’t be your priority. Focus on the exact steps you want your visitor to take and design a page with that in mind.

Call To Action

You got visitors to your landing page, now direct them to take action. Make it clear and highly noticeable without overwhelming your audience. Whether it’s a sign-up form or a “buy now” button, make it the focus of your page.

Send a Clear Message

Keep your landing page clean and clutter free so your visitors stay focused on your message. Emphasize the biggest reasons that they should carry out the applicable call to action with larger text, contrasting colors, images. Make it easier for them to scan the content by using lists and getting right to the point.

Provide Incentive

Bribing your visitors with freebies and samples is a proven method of enticing them to sign up. Provide more than your competition but don’t sell yourself short either. Provide a list of reasons why your offering is better and what exactly the visitor can expect. Provide references and testimonials.

Make Visitors Stay

Avoid sending your visitors to another page unless it is absolutely necessary. That includes any internal navigation as well as external banners. If you eliminate all distractions and limit navigation options, you stand a better chance of keeping your visitors around.

Simple is Better

Make it easy for your visitors to complete the action you want them to. Less confusion and decision making for your visitor means better conversions rate for your landing page. Don’t provide multiple choices and throw in optional extras. Focus on the pitch the page was created for.

Power of Freebies

Everyone likes free offers. They are hard to resist and can be a powerful conversion tool. Whether a call to action is free or something free is received as a result of carrying out a call to action, it certainly doesn’t hurt. If your competition charges for something and you provide it for free, you’ll win the customer. Remember, just because you make a free offer doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be quality.

Provide Guarantees

Providing a guarantee for your customers inspires confidence in your products or service. A money back guurantee or price guarantee could be the factor that sways your visitor to buy from you.
Testing

Testing various text, call to action forms, layouts will give you a true idea what produces the best results as far as conversion. With NECSES Webdesign’s content management system websites, you have control of your website and can make changes instantly, making the testing process that much easier.

Creating a successful and effective landing page takes a lot of work but should be the focus for anyone involved with a website. As a website owner you must be aware of the components that comprise a solid landing page. After all this can mean a website’s success or failure.

The Internet – It’s what your customers expect

Written on August 26, 2009

It always surprises me when speaking to some business owners when they say ‘Oh, we don’t need a website. We get our clients from recommendations.’  or ‘We don’t need any new business. We have more than we can cope with.’

Both of these statements are valid. Word of mouth advertising is still one of the best forms of advertising that there is, whilst not over-stretching your resources is sensible.

However, there are four key points about having a website that negates both these arguments.

Firstly, with word of mouth advertising a business has little control on the message that is given out or over who the message is given out to and, indeed, when it is given out. It could be a long time before word of mouth advertising starts to give any sort of return. With search engine optimisation of a web site, a good, clear message, and eye catching design a web site can do the ‘word of mouth’ advertsing to a much larger audience, delivering the message that you want to broadcast.

Secondly,  according to InternetRetailing.com 97% of the UK’s internet users shop online and with almost 16 million households with internet access according to National Statistics Online that is a lot of potential customers these businesses could be missing out on. Even if you don’t sell products online, people expect to be able to look up a company’s products and services online before making a decision to purchase.

Nowadays, people use a website address much the same as a phone number (and some would argue web addresses are much easier to remember) and so, if a business has their website on their vehicles or signs for instance, it provides a much more memorable reference for passing motorists or pedestrians.

Thirdly, having a website can reduce a business’s work load. A well thought out website will  have applications that reduce the amount of time spent on the telephone, for instance. Orders can be processed online and payment taken without any involvement from staff. When I pressed one business owner as to how they communicate with their clients, they answered that they send a monthly newsletter by post! This could be carried out with much less time and effort (and cost) using e-mailing software integrated in to a website.

Finally, having a website can enhance a business’s client experience. If a new piece of legislation is published for an accountant’s clients for instance, this can then be published online and a newsletter sent out to their clients to update them.

Now, these benefits of having a website may seem obvious to most people. If they do, please do some word of mouth advertising, and point the unconverted in our direction.

Creating ‘Sticky’ websites

Written on July 6, 2009

Tactics to draw people back to your website

One of the biggest measurements of a website’s success is the stickiness of its visitor base. Generally web masters would rather have 1,000 visitors who return regularly (they are “stuck to the site”) as opposed to 3,000 visitors who only visit once or twice. These days the web is massive, carving out a niche for your site and gaining a following within that niche is the key to success.

There are many reasons why you should try to make your website as sticky as possible. Visitors who return regularly are more likely to purchase some of your products or services. If you have a membership site, then retaining your member base is critical for growing your income and long term success. Also, a faithful following will encourage viral promotion of your site.

There are “three C’s” of stickiness to remember, and they are:

Content

Regardless of the site’s design, without good content, the visitor will not come back or stay at the site for more than a few minutes. “Content is King” is a cliché, but true. High quality content is far and away the most important factor in attracting people back to a Web site consistently, and keeping them there for more than a few minutes when they do visit. It is said, in fact, that content is what drives 75 percent of consumers to return to their favourite sites.

In addition to your site being content rich, try to also keep it fresh. At least part of your site will be regularly updated, preferably at least once a month. This is why web sites which resemble online brochures generally fail in the stickiness stakes. Delivering the same content in a blog, posted in instalments, can be much more effective. This will encourage users to come back regularly, as they check in to see what new content you’ve added lately. This is stickiness in a nutshell.

Community

When a site attracts enough visitors with similar interests it has the potential to develop into a “community.” That can be very powerful for the site owner. Providing message forums, chat rooms, podcasts, user profiles, blogs, etc. are all tools to allow your visitors to interact with both you and each other. This also makes your site VERY sticky if you are able to develop a thriving community.

Rather than visiting your site once a month people may begin to visit it multiple times a week. Having a thriving community can be viewed as developing a site which is constantly developing its own content. Rather than requiring you to spend hours developing content, you can instead monitor the postings on your site to ensure they retain the kind of atmosphere you want for your site. As time goes by you may also be able to appoint some of your more responsible members to monitoring positions to do this job for you as well.

Communication

Communication is equally important as content and community. Communication includes building and maintaining your list, reaching out to people on it and interacting with visitors to your site. Try to respond to any question, comments, or feedback you receive promptly. This builds relationships with your visitors and will keep them coming back.

One of the best ways to reach out to customers is to provide quality, free information. For example, if you run a site teaching presentation skills tips and tricks, after your visitors have seen your “foot in the door” content located on your “splash page,” provide them with a discount on the first lesson of your course in exchange for their name and email address. You benefit from this by having names to attach to the IP addresses of your visitors. This provides you with more information about who is being drawn into your site. It is also important you use a quality auto-responder for this step, as communication is a critical part of your site and must be handled professionally.

One last note on communication: Be sure to provide your name and contact information clearly throughout your site. It will frustrate and turn away visitors if they have a question or comment and cannot figure out how to reach you.

How can NECSES Webdesign help?

NECSES Webdesign provides solutions for our clients’ online needs. We help generate ‘sticky’ websites through the inclusion of Content Management Systems (CMS) with ALL our websites.

This allows businesses to keep their website fresh and up to date whenever they like and can include a host of features, including; Blogs, Photo Galleries, Testimonials, online Polls, Chat functions, etc, that allow businesses to develop close relationships with their customers, and potential customers. Our content rich, search engine friendly and flexible websites provide you with everything you need to build your business on-line and ensure you get full return on your investment.

Internet users place more weight on design

Written on June 29, 2009

Users Place More Weight on Design

The demand for good web design is increasing, revealed a recent Webcopyplus online poll. Almost 25% of web users indicated “poor visual presentation” as the number one element that drives them away from websites. Only 6.6% of web users who participated in a similar 2007 online poll indicated “poor visual presentation” as the main reason to abandon a website. That equates to a 267% increase during the two-year period.

Our web content specialists believe the increased desire for quality design comes from the fact that Internet users have become increasingly sophisticated. Consequently, more of today’s Internet users understand that a well designed website makes it possible to achieve more, with less time and effort.

A total of 318 web users were asked what’s most likely to drive them away from a website.

• 50.9% indicated “slow load times”
• 24.8% noted “weak web copy”
• 24.2% specified “poor visual presentation”

In the 2007 poll, 51.2% of 258 participants indicated “slow load times” and 42.2% noted “weak web copy” as their biggest turn-offs.

True Beauty Comes From Within

Informed web designers and business owners alike know that design is vital to a successful website, and its beauty must go far beyond looks. While design needs to support a company’s brand positioning, it must also effectively inform, communicate and provide positive experiences.

A winning website is one that delivers useful, relevant content that allows people to accomplish their goals quickly and easily. In today’s hectic society, that’s what makes a great and lasting impression on the Web.

Good design achieves simplicity through a range of elements — from a single point of focus to intuitive information flow to plain, familiar menu names. And as more people flock to the Web for everything from casual encounters to green homes, more businesses will likely lean on web specialists who can contribute to effective design.

Moving marketing online makes more sense than ever. Something’s off when typical consumers might spend 25% of their media time on the Web and a company is investing only 5% or so of its marketing budgets on websites and other online promotions.

With almost 75% of global consumers using the Web frequently (Internet World Stats), a £10,000 investment in a website will get almost any business a better return on investment than an ad in a newspaper, magazine or print telephone directory. A website can provide greater reach and superior exposure, and it works for a business 24/7 for multiple years.

Web Copy Carries Punch

With 24.8% of web poll participants indicating weak web copy would most likely prompt them to abandon a website, businesses should continue to take their web writing seriously.

While there appears to be increasing awareness surrounding web writing in general, many businesses continue to fail to recognize what a professional web writer can bring to a website and a business’s bottom line.

Web writers, website content writers, SEO copy writers — call them what you will — these web copy specialists are often not even being considered a part of the equation when it comes to building or overhauling a website.

A well-versed web writer can help a business with everything from attaining traffic via search engines, to differentiating a business from competitors and conveying key benefits effectively, to achieving higher conversion rates.

An increase in writers who specialize in the Web will help decrease the ineffective, error-laden, self-centred copy that is so common on the Web.

Need for Speed

More than 50% of poll participants noted that getting their information promptly on the Web is a top concern. Make them wait, and they are likely to hit a competitor’s site.

Good web designers and developers respond by optimizing images, streamlining HTML and avoiding dated gimmicks like Flash intros. But some designers and business owners alike continue to fall into such traps.

A designer recently told me about an architecture company that just spent tens of thousands of pounds on a Flash intro. Unfortunately, web designers and business owners sometimes let their egos get in the way. They fail to acknowledge that when a prospect visits a website looking for information or to complete a task, that Flash intro will only get in the way, and potentially frustrate visitors.

Flash intros were tolerated in the ’90s when the Web was a novelty. People were excited about this new thing called the World Wide Web, and we spent countless hours surfing it. Today, however, most people want to get information and complete tasks in as little time and with as few clicks as possible, so they can get on with their busy lives.

Give Users What They Want

Internet professionals would better serve Internet users by collaborating and delivering simple, fast, useful and convenient websites.

Give Internet users what they want and everyone wins: web users benefit from ease of use and efficiency; businesses enjoy increased leads and sales; and the web professionals maximize income and fill their portfolios with winning websites.