Why Isn’t Your Website Doing What You Need For Your Business?

It’s hard to find good help for your website. There are a lot of web design companies around. There are a lot of powerful build-it-yourself systems too. You look at the web site, full of flashy gimmicks that seem wonderful and then you talk to someone on the phone (that’s if there is telephone number you can call). They appear to be able to work miracles and blind you with all kinds of technicalities that you think you should be able to understand so you find yourself agreeing to go ahead.
We’ve all done it.

There are two major mistakes that a lot of aspiring website owners make:

1. You get seduced by the lovely colours, the animations and the hi-tech jargon and commission a website which looks wonderful but is out-of-date as soon as it’s launched.

2. You decide it can’t be all that difficult to do it yourself, try to use the website builder that came with your domain name hosting package, and find yourself spending too much time working on your website when you should be working on your core business.

So What’s Different About Sort Out Your Site?

I’ll help you to identify your objectives for your site. These need to be part of your overall business objectives. Then I’ll discuss with you what needs to be built into your site to meet your objectives, and what other web tools you might also consider (for example e-marketing tools). I have experience in building internet marketing tools into a site from the beginning, and also in integrating them with an existing site.

Crucially, we’ll then discuss how to keep your site updated since you will achieve far more from any site if you see it as a living entity requiring regular cossetting to perform at its best.

At all times the focus is on your needs and how best to meet them.

“Caroline took over support of my website after a redesign by another company had resulted in web traffic slowing right down and sales and sign-ups to my eZine from the website dropping to almost zero. At the time I could not even send out my own ezines, add any pages to the site or make the smallest modifications myself. I was frustrated because I had lots of ideas and wasn’t getting the support I needed to carry them out. Now it’s all set up so I can publish new pages, change things in existing pages and send out eZines whenever I want. I feel as though I am in control at last. But that’s not the best bit. Since Sort Out Your Site got involved, direct sales from the website have gone up to £1000 per month (more than they have ever been before) and are still increasing. When Caroline took over, late in autumn  2006, total sessions served that week  were at an all time low of 536.  In October 2007 we have hit an all time high of 7336 and the trend is still upwards. Using Google Analytics, Caroline has helped me to drive up organic search traffic to the site (the sort you don’t have to pay for) by 435% in the same 5 months. Visitors to the site like it a lot and it’s generating consultancy leads for me, not just product sales. Very recently I had someone rang up wanting to talk to me about some potential work because he’d seen the website and been very impressed. That call alone has led to a £20,000 project. Working with Sort Out Your Site is a very successful partnership. Caroline listens carefully to my ideas, adds her own suggestions, and we end up with a plan that suits us both. She keeps up to date with the technical side of things so I don’t have to, I can just concentrate on running my business. I wish we’d found her years ago. Have a look at my site, www.vinehouse.com“   Nancy Slessenger, Vinehouse Essential Ltd

Ready for a rethink?

To help you, I’ve put together a check list for existing web sites and another checklist for new websites.

Read about the Sort Out Your Site Virtual Webmaster Service to set you thinking about how you use your website with your business. And check out what Google Analytics could do for your business.

If you want to know more detailed information about how websites are constructed, look on the Bookshop page. I’ve recommended some of my favourite publications, not only the techie stuff but more general reading on business as well.

Then contact me, Caroline Hogarth, the thinking person’s web site consultant. I’ll be happy to talk to you in language you understand about your problems
and do the boring technical bits for you. I have over 25 years of business experience (7 in this area) so I understand that performance and content are more important than just looking good.

The Simplest WebSite Package

If you own a small to medium sized business and want to get on the web quickly, with a site that has all the essentials you need, I have a great offer for you.

For only £495 you can have a site like the demo I have built here.

It’s based on a popular and robust content management system which means you can easily keep it updated yourself without needing to know any fancy technical stuff. I’ll even give you training.

Contact me for more details of what is included and to discuss your exact requirements.

 

Want to have a look at some other examples of my work? Try these.

Vinehouse Essential Limited Hiring

Vital Touch Therapy

JH Martial Arts (local martial arts school)

My own Piano Teaching site Caroline Hogarth.co.uk

Of course the service extends to customising your Facebook and Twitter presence to match your website.