You've decided that you need a website to promote something, whether it be a business, a hobby, a charity, or something else. You may be wondering, is a custom website design worth the investment?
The answer to that question will depend on the purpose of the website.
If the website is for a personal reason or hobby, whether it be a genealogical site for your family, your son's gaming blog, or your wife's vegan recipe site, then a custom website design is of less importance, though a custom website design certainly would be a whole lot of fun and might make for a nice Christmas or birthday present.
If the website is for a non-profit or a business, then yes, a custom website design is well worth the investment. Why? It's all about branding.
Wikipedia defines a brand as "the identity of a specific product, service, or business. A brand can take many forms, including a name, sign, symbol, or slogan." Consider some symbols that are instantly recognizable, for instance the Nike swoosh, Disney's Mickey Mouse silhouette, and the Mercedes three point star in a circle. These are often considered logos, and become trademarks when they're registered as such. The idea behind branding is to distinguish a product or company as unique and different from other similar products or company and to have that visual branding instantly bring the product or company to mind.
When you are starting a new company, you want to establish a brand early on. The most effective way to do this is by using a logo, the simplest form of visual branding. Then that logo should be incorporated in all marketing that is done for the business. It should be included on all stationery, business cards and all print material that is used by the company. It should be the focus of the business signage. It should be incorporated into print advertising and packaging. It should be included in any TV or other video advertising. And it should be the visual focus of the business website.
By incorporating a visual identity into all your marketing, you are creating brand recognition.
But there's another important aspect to branding. It's called "brand experience" and is all about how the interactions people have with you and your organization leave them feeling.
It's been said often that you only have a few seconds to make a great first impression. Statistics now show that the majority of people find what they're looking for through use of the web. This is a switch from 20 years ago, when people used the local phone book. This means that your website is your best shot at making a great first impression. So why would you consider short-changing the most important first meeting opportunity?
A professionally designed custom website will include your visual branding. It will also be easy to use and to navigate, and give visitors the impression that yours is an organization that is competent and capable.
There are many ways for people to get onto the web these days. But many of them, though fine for personal sites, will hurt a website trying to get advantageous placement in the search engines. The code that powers the site and whether it can be navigated by search engine spiders, how fast the website loads, whether it's usable by all visitors, including the visitors with physical disabilities, these are all things that free or cheap solutions often fail to take into consideration. You want to give your new business or non-profit website every possible chance to succeed. You wouldn't use a lawnmower engine to power a tractor-trailer.
Once you have a great, professionally designed website in place, and populate it with great, well-written content that shows off your business or non-profit expertise, you'll be ready to take on the world wide web.
The answer to that question will depend on the purpose of the website.
If the website is for a personal reason or hobby, whether it be a genealogical site for your family, your son's gaming blog, or your wife's vegan recipe site, then a custom website design is of less importance, though a custom website design certainly would be a whole lot of fun and might make for a nice Christmas or birthday present.
If the website is for a non-profit or a business, then yes, a custom website design is well worth the investment. Why? It's all about branding.
Wikipedia defines a brand as "the identity of a specific product, service, or business. A brand can take many forms, including a name, sign, symbol, or slogan." Consider some symbols that are instantly recognizable, for instance the Nike swoosh, Disney's Mickey Mouse silhouette, and the Mercedes three point star in a circle. These are often considered logos, and become trademarks when they're registered as such. The idea behind branding is to distinguish a product or company as unique and different from other similar products or company and to have that visual branding instantly bring the product or company to mind.
When you are starting a new company, you want to establish a brand early on. The most effective way to do this is by using a logo, the simplest form of visual branding. Then that logo should be incorporated in all marketing that is done for the business. It should be included on all stationery, business cards and all print material that is used by the company. It should be the focus of the business signage. It should be incorporated into print advertising and packaging. It should be included in any TV or other video advertising. And it should be the visual focus of the business website.
By incorporating a visual identity into all your marketing, you are creating brand recognition.
But there's another important aspect to branding. It's called "brand experience" and is all about how the interactions people have with you and your organization leave them feeling.
It's been said often that you only have a few seconds to make a great first impression. Statistics now show that the majority of people find what they're looking for through use of the web. This is a switch from 20 years ago, when people used the local phone book. This means that your website is your best shot at making a great first impression. So why would you consider short-changing the most important first meeting opportunity?
A professionally designed custom website will include your visual branding. It will also be easy to use and to navigate, and give visitors the impression that yours is an organization that is competent and capable.
There are many ways for people to get onto the web these days. But many of them, though fine for personal sites, will hurt a website trying to get advantageous placement in the search engines. The code that powers the site and whether it can be navigated by search engine spiders, how fast the website loads, whether it's usable by all visitors, including the visitors with physical disabilities, these are all things that free or cheap solutions often fail to take into consideration. You want to give your new business or non-profit website every possible chance to succeed. You wouldn't use a lawnmower engine to power a tractor-trailer.
Once you have a great, professionally designed website in place, and populate it with great, well-written content that shows off your business or non-profit expertise, you'll be ready to take on the world wide web.
About the Author:
If you want website design services that present a powerful image, see what Wildfire Marketing Group can do for you.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment