A wesite is essentially the foundation of your company’s Internet presence. You need to have certain information there if you are going to attract customers and sell your products and services.

Good web hosting is of course a necessity. It doesn’t matter whether it’s shared or dedicated, just as long as it looks professional and has all of the information customers are looking for. I’ll talk more about that in a future post, though — right now I want to talk about the information you need to have on your website.

• A snappy, informative homepage: Your homepage needs to catch potential customers’ attention right away, as attention spans tend to be short on the Web. Make sure the homepage is attractive, but that it also has some snappy copy that will accurately represent your business and draw potential customers in.
• A strong about page: Customers typically go to the about page pretty quickly when they are looking at a website to decide whether you are deserving of their business. Be sure that your business bio or about page does a good job of demonstrating your business’s qualifications, as well as having a personal touch to make your business sound more human and likeable.
• A description of your products or services: If you have an ecommerce site, this is obvious, and will probably be the bulk of your site. If your website is simply to establish an online presence for your local, service-based business, you’ll want to provide a rundown of the services you offer, perhaps even a price list.
• Contact information and/or hours of operation: Be sure you also include on your website your store hours or office hours, driving directions or a map, and contact information so that potential customers can get a hold of you. You might choose to make a separate page for this, and/or put it at the bottom of every page on your website.

These are the basics that every company website needs in order to succeed. There are other things you might consider, though, too, such as articles with information for your customers, or a company blog. Whatever you choose to include on your website, just make sure it is professional and provides enough information to hook potential customers and reel them in!

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