Test your website and constantly improve

In the above tutorial, I also show you a website called Compress Jpeg. This website is simply awesome as it automates the compression of images which saves a lot of time:https://compressjpeg.com/

Before optimising images on your website, it is worth testing the website for speed. I often use a tool called Pingdom.

Go this the website tool https://tools.pingdom.com/and enter your domain.

Screen capture the results and then apply your compressed images.

Now re-test using Pingdom and see if the results have improved.

My goal is to get the load time under 2 seconds which I have achieved. But I will not stop there, I will go back to my website and improve the code scripts and replace images with scalable vector graphics which are much smaller file sizes.

Results after optimisation of image content and code scripts

Let’ssay you want to link to another website, it would make sense that you open that external link in a new window, when the user closes that window they will be back on your website.

If you are using WordPress then you can install this handy plugin which automatically sets all your external links to open in a new window:https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-external-

links/

If you understand a bit of HTML code then you can simply apply thetarget=”_blank” attribute to external URLs.

This is a simple technique to help reduce bounce rates as the user is not redirected away from your website.

7. Mobile friendly website

As mentioned above, having a mobile-friendly website should be one of your top priorities. Most of the customers visiting your website will have a smartphone.

At some point, they might use a phone to view your website and if the user experience is poor then this will lead to an increased bounce rate.

Remember to test your website using the Google Mobile-Friendly testing tool: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly

The above are just a few tips you can use to improve your website bounce rates.

There is nothing better than free! If you can create some tools on your website which function well and if you promote and document them well, then you increase your website traffic exponentially. Think about some easy tools you can get built for your website which relate to the products or service you provide.

Take a look at this tool:http://www.vatcalculator.co.uk/

In the image above you will see the Online VAT Calculator tool receives over 500,000+ page visits per month!

Here are some other tools which generate vast amounts of traffic:

Website URL:https://neilpatel.com/ubersuggest/

Type of tool: SEO

Number of visits per month: 2,700,000 Tool Level: Complex

Website URL: https://www.online-calculators.co.uk/diy/roomarea.php

Type of tool: Calculating the floor area of a room

Number of visits per month: 63,000 Tool Level: Intermediate

Website URL:https://www.treads-shoes.com/size-calculator

Type of tool: Shoe measurement

Number of visits per month: 23,800

Tool Level: Intermediate

Website URL:https://www.calculatorpro.com/calculator/image-size-calculator/

Type of tool: Image resize

Number of visits per month: 6600

Tool Level: Simple

Now you don’t need to go and spend thousands of pounds in creating hand-coded custom calculator, there are many websites that offer solutions at a reasonable cost.

Below I have listed a few of my favourites:

• https://www.calconic.com/ • https://ucalc.pro/en • https://outgrow.co/

Here is some example of web tools we have created for ourDCP website.

DCP aspect ratio calculator

25. Add social bookmarking tools

As you can see on this blog post there are social icons on the left side of the page or on the footer of the page, this depends on the type of device you are using. Adding social bookmarking tools is a great way to get freetraffic to your website as your website visitors are promoting your content using their social media accounts.

On my website, I am using a free tool called “Addthis”. The tool is highly customisable but does require a little coding knowledge to implement.

Send this link to your website developers and ask them to help you implement social sharing:https://www.addthis.com/

If you are using WordPress, then I would recommend one of the following social sharing plugins:

• https://socialsnap.com/ • https://www.elegantthemes.com/plugins/monarch/-DiviAffiliate • https://mashshare.net/

If you offer services, then why not create a portfolio to showcase your work? Having awebsite portfoliois a great way to show your potential customer that you can deliver the services you provide.

Remember to incorporate text, images, and optional video content for each example in your portfolio. You can even create categories that allow website visitors to filter your portfolio work.

Creating a portfolio is more difficult if you are a start-up business, but why not simply add some examples of what you can achieve.

Make sure you keep your portfolio up to date, try to add projects as quickly as possible after completion.

You can also create a case study section on your website if your services are more resultsdriven. Case studies are great as you can breakdown how to achieve an ROI (return on investment) for each service you have provided to your clients.

If you are selling physical products, then why not create a video gallery contain product demonstrations? You can upload your video content to YouTube and embed the videos into your website. Create a separate page for each product and even better, try to get video testimonials to give your products more credibility.

• https://landor.com/work • https://www.wolffolins.com/work • https://www.dcpweb.co.uk/portfolio • https://metadesign.com/en/work • https://www.happycog.com/work/ • https://www.thechase.co.uk/portfolio/

Here are some awesome examples of case studies:

• https://www.ideo.com/case-study/designing-the-future-of-urban-farming • https://www.frac.tl/work/content-marketing-case-studies/sapio/ • https://www.appannie.com/en/insights/customer-stories/the-coca-cola-

company/

• https://www.ampagency.com/patagonia-fashion-and-footwear-case-study • https://businesscasestudies.co.uk/reclaiming-the-identity-of-a-brand

Here are some awesome examples of video product demos:

• Air Table -https://youtu.be/r0lsyTaAuJE • Sphero RVR -https://youtu.be/ip28n_prmbY • Zendesk Sunshine -https://youtu.be/buRG1eGuPIs • SurveyMonkey -https://youtu.be/PnET-g7NTao • IKEA Place -https://youtu.be/UudV1VdFtuQ • Ring Door View Cam -https://youtu.be/WJ-iMF5hKgk • Lime -https://youtu.be/zOMYOBBRtM8 • Peloton -https://youtu.be/nY5NvoZDKEQ

Remember to add a clear call to action throughout your portfolio example work, casestudies or product demos.

I am sure you have been to a big supplier website before and all you want to do is call them for some support, but trying to find the elusive customer support phone number is like “looking for a needle in a haystack”.

We live in a digital world where we communicate using digital tools like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Email, Skype, Zoom, to mention just a few.

For me, a simple call to speak to a real person is priceless. To make your website visitors life a little easier I suggest adding your phone number to every page on the header of your website or the footer, or better both. Also, create a dedicated contact page and list your full contact details, opening hours, location, and an online contact form.

On my website, I list both my landline number and mobile phone number. 90% of phone calls I get are to my mobile so do not be afraid to display your mobile number or get a sim for business only calls.

28. Add commenting tools

If you have a blog and you are creating amazing content, then it would be good to allow visitors to comment. Creating a place for visitors to comment on your content and help you to understand what is working in terms of getting visitors to your website.

If you create a blog post on a specific subject and you see that posts in getting lots of visitors and comments then it would make sense that you keep that content up to date and create more just like it. Of course, do not duplicate content but you can use the content as a template for your next blog post.

WordPress as default has commenting built into the engine but over time you will see a lot of spam commenting. To prevent this, you can install a plugin to managecomments on your blog posts.

Below I have listed some of the most popular antispam WordPress plugins:

• https://wordpress.org/plugins/akismet/ • https://wordpress.org/plugins/antispam-bee/ • https://wordpress.org/plugins/cleantalk-spam-protect/ • https://wordpress.org/plugins/zero-spam/

If you arerunning a custom-built website like my website then you can still add commenting management to your blog. I suggest you givehttps://talk.hyvor.com/a try.

Talk Hyvor offer a 14-day free trial so give ita go and see if this can improve your visitor retention and user interaction.

29. Test your website and constantly improve

Your business website does not last forever. You will need to upgrade and maintain your website to ensure you are one step ahead of your competitors. If you are using WordPress then make sure you are upgrading the WordPress engine, theme, and plugins on a regular basis.

This will help prevent hackers from accessing your website.

If you are using a website design company to build your website, then agree on a maintenance plan.

Before hiring a website designer, get them to send you a full specification and quote. If they send you back a few lines of text and a cost, then avoid them!

Try to find a web developer that is local to your business or at least in the same country.

After all, you are running a business and communication with your web developers is essential if you want to succeed.

Review your website on a weekly or monthly basis and set out an action plan on how you can improve your content.

As mentioned above, start by researching your competitors, after all, they are ranking on page one of Google for a reason.

Don’t rely on SEO as your only source of leads. In fact, over 70% of my clients are generated from referrals.

Simply deliver an exceptional service to your customers and if only 20% recommend you then that is 20% free marketing for your business.

You can ask your family or close friends for feedback on your website, but you also need to get real impartial feedback to really know what needs to be improved.

Why not ask a friend to recommend someone you do not know to give you feedback on your website?

I do this all the time, and it is a “win win” situation.

First, I get some good constructive feedback, second, I get to make a new friend, third I get to entice that new friend to help promote my services.

Of course, I pay people for the feedback or help improve their websites, so in the end, everyone is a winner!

See how my company can build an amazing website for your business.

• Custom web design. • Secure and fast website solution. • Full management training. • Take control of your website. • SEO optimisation. • Reliable web hosting and emails.

Contact Us

Email: info@dcpweb.co.uk Tel: 0208 539 4415 mob: 07838 678 770 Web: www.dcpweb.co.uk

At DCP we have over 15 years of web development knowledge and experience. Our goal is to create high quality, easy to use, affordable website solutions for businesses. Your excitement, happiness and satisfaction are at the very core of everything we do at DCP but more than anything we understand that results matter the most!

There is nothing better than getting a phone call or email from our clients telling us how much they love their website :) We simply love what we do at DCP and take an ethical approach, guiding our clients with our vast knowledge gained from working on hundreds of website projects for a diverse range of client.

You can feel confident that you are getting the best web solutions for your business when you choose to work with DCP London Web Designers.

Get a custom-designed WordPress website to help your business grow. Take control over your business website and make updates whenever required. Get free onsite search engine optimisation to achieve a better ranking in search engines.

• Take control of your website. • Mobile-friendly design. • Long term technical support. • Long term website growth plan. • SEO marketing strategies. • Social media marketing strategies. • Secure & reliable hosting. • Reliable business emails.

Contact Us

Email: info@dcpweb.co.uk Tel: 0208 539 4415 mob: 07838 678 770 Web: www.dcpweb.co.uk