Is Adding Valuable Content Part of your Website Design Strategy?

How does your website fare? Is adding valuable content part of your website design strategy? Search engines love fat websites, full of valuable, purposeful information that users like to read. What they don't love is bloated websites -- those with useless, redundant information and pages that provide no utility to the users.

Look for pages with high dropout rates, low conversion rates, and sort times spent on the page to determine pages that are underperforming. Then evaluate each page on your website for its ability to deliver value according to these criteria.

Does your website design provide useful content on every page?

Deliver value on every web page so readers can confirm the reliability of your content. 

What does the reader know after reading your content that they didn't know before? What can they do after reading the page that they were not able to do before? Each page must provide utility in order to be valuable.

Is the Information on Each Page Reliable?

Readers judge reliability on a number of factors. Are your facts accurate? Have you cited your sources? Is the material just trying to make a sale, delivering nothing in terms of reliable information? Spelling, grammar, and good punctuation indicate to the reader how careful you are about getting the facts right. Should they believe you know what you are talking about if you can't spell key terms in your industry or don't know whether to use a period or question mark? All of these factors help the reader determine the reliability of the content.

Is Each Page on the Site Unique?

If you have 50 pages on your website, you need to make sure you have 50 pieces of unique content. Redundant information is an SEO killer. Content needs to be unique from page to page.

Does the Page Make Information Easy to Digest?

Make it clear how readers can apply the information on your website. 

Have you ever landed on a web page that was a too long or had unbroken sections of structure? Most visitors simply go to another page that appears to be easier to read. Break up your test with short paragraphs, subheads, images, breakout text, and other visual effects that make the content appear inviting. Think "kids' storybook," not graduate-level thesis.

Do the Pages Make It Clear How Readers Can Apply the Information?

Users want content that is more about "how" than "what." A common mistake is to develop pages of content that explain what your product is, instead of explaining how to use it and why it is beneficial. Use explicit examples to help them visualize real-world use cases.

Does the Page Conclude with Guidance on What to Do Next?

What do you want your readers do after reading your useful content? Provide direction and instruction with an easy-to-follow bridge from the content into the next course of action. Do they need to learn more? See some comparisons? Would an infographic or whitepaper elsewhere on the site be helpful? Don't leave them hanging.

A website of great value won't get created or attract visitors without a realistic inbound marketing strategy. Is yours working for you? Find out by requesting a FREE, no obligation, inbound marketing assessment today.