Are you getting ready to create a new website? Congratulations! A website is one of the most important digital marketing tools a small business can have.

You’re probably overwhelmed by all of the choices and technical details. There’s a lot to think about and you’ll need to decide how to design and brand your website. However, today we’re keeping things simple.

What pages are an absolute MUST-HAVE before you launch? Here are six you absolutely can’t afford to miss.

Your Homepage

Every website comes with a homepage. It’s the first page that a visitor sees if they enter your business website in the address bar. However, not very many businesses have an effective homepage.

You have only a few seconds to capture the attention of a visitor. Your homepage can do that by having clear branding, a straightforward statement of why your offer benefits your ideal customer, and an obvious way to respond to your offer.

For instance, a plumber might say: “Rest easy knowing you won’t be surprised by a leak or backup. Contact us for an appointment today!”

Besides your clear benefit and offer, the homepage should be optimized for keywords related to your industry and local area.

The About Us Page

The About Us page is not one that needs to be optimized for search engines, but it’s still a vital page that a lot of your visitors will be interested in.

In a nutshell, the About page tells a reader why you started your business and why you’re a trustworthy expert that they can rely on. Use your story to connect with visitors emotionally. Then, use awards, reviews, or case studies to win their trust.

Google also uses the about page to establish your authority in your industry, so a well-written page can help your overall website ranking.

A Page for Each Product and Service

If you’re in a hurry, you might be tempted to create a single “products” or “services” page and list everything in one place. Unfortunately, this is a mistake.

Visitors will be overwhelmed when there’s so much information in one place, and it makes it very difficult to find the information they need. This results in the reader leaving your site and going to a competitor’s instead.

Plus, you won’t be able to rank well on Google when you aren’t focusing on one or two specific keywords per page. Having a separate page for each product and service allows you to optimize it so that your ideal customers can find exactly what they are searching for. 

Testimonials and Case Studies

An amazing 84% of consumers trust reviews as much as they trust a personal recommendation from a friend. That’s why you can’t launch your website without having a page dedicated to testimonials and case studies.

Case studies and testimonials allow a visitor to see how well your products and services work for people just like them. It will help persuade them that you know what you’re talking about and will give them great results as well.

A Blog

Many business owners don’t like the idea of having a blog. They feel like it’s too much work. However, if you want to attract your ideal customers, you need to have a blog.

A blog provides fresh content so Google will have a reason to move your ranking upward. In addition, the blog posts help educate your customers about what you do. You can answer common questions, provide information about the products and services you provide and encourage the reader to contact you.

A blog post is part of inbound marketing, where you draw new customers to you because they need you, not because you interrupted them with an ad. People search Google for common needs related to your industry every day. Make sure they find you!

The Contact Page

Finally, there needs to be a simple way to contact you if the visitor has questions or wants to make an appointment. While your homepage may have your phone number, many visitors will visit several pages of your site before they make a decision.

Once they do, they’ll look for an easy-to-access contact button. Having a page that summarizes your business name, physical address, phone number, and email contact information makes it easy for someone to reach out in the way they feel most comfortable.

The contact page also summarizes your information for Google, which then compares it to information on your Google My Business page and social media profiles to ensure everything matches. When it does, your trustworthiness goes up and so does your ranking.

Is Your New Website Ready?

Launching a new website is exciting, but if you don’t have the right information from the beginning your marketing efforts won’t be as strong. These six website pages are essential if you want to develop your brand and connect with ideal customers.

Need help with your new website? We’re here for you. Contact us today to learn more about what we can do to create an effective, optimized website for your business.