Why Your Business Needs an Authoritative Website
Your website serves a valuable purpose. Not only is it your home on the internet and the place all of our links are pointing back to, but it is also your digital sales representative, online and operational 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Even when no one is awake to answer the phones, your website can still direct customers where to call the next day during business hours, or how to contact you via other means such as a contact form or a customer service email address.
Where authority comes in
Authority is a very persuasive thing. Most people are brought up from infancy to respect authority, and many find themselves doing so as adults without even questioning why. You can harness this innate recognition of authority in favor of your website by making sure that you are presenting the right impression to potential customers.
If you were to hold your website up against the websites of your competitors, how do you believe you would measure up? Do you think your website would be seen as an authority in your industry?
How to communicate authority
Your website can communicate authority in several different ways. We’ve collected a few that we believe will have the most impact on your visitors:
- Appearance – Looks do matter. If your website is poorly put together, has confusing navigation, or is riddled with grammatical errors it is not going to have a positive impact on your visitors.
- Recognition – If your website has won an award or a competition, or even if your business has been recognized offline, find a way to incorporate some sign of this on your website. People are more likely to do business with someone they feel has been recognized for excellence than someone who has not.
- Information – Who would you rather do business with, the website with very little content / thin content, or the website with plenty of information on the products and services it was selling? If your website has the information that people are searching for they are more likely to see you as an authority and do business with you.
- Size – Sometimes the perception of size is everything. Do not bloat your website with useless content in order to increase the number of pages to your credit; instead only add content that you feel is top quality and continue to do so. Eventually you will be recognized for the authority that you are!
- Extra Goodies – Is there anything about your website that can be seen as a perk or extra by visitors? Do you have downloads that your visitors can use to help make their purchasing decisions? Do you have any media that you can offer up in order to help make their decision to buy easier? People like to see added value and can perceive the presence of said value as a sign of authority.
Remember that you have invested in your website’s SEO, don’t waste the traffic that it brings in by having a mediocre or poor-quality website!
Comments:
What is one thing that you believe all authority websites have?
