You have a new website! Now what?
We’re here to help. Here are a few tips on what you can do to get the word out about your new site, and what to do if you need some extra support after the project is closed.
What To Do Next
1.
Closing Out Basecamp
As part of our closeout process, we’ll be archiving your project in Basecamp. Once we close Basecamp, you’ll no longer have access to the messages or files.
BE SURE TO SAVE YOUR WORDPRESS CREDENTIALS IN A SAFE PLACE.
2.
Get the Word Out!
When your website goes live, the most important thing to do is to get the word out to drive traffic to your new site. This will help Google index it faster and start improving your SEO rankings immediately. Here are some ways to get started
If you have a newsletter or email list, be sure to let your subscribers know that the new site has launched and even more importantly, how it can help their business. We recommend MailChimp and can help you get started with an email campaign.
Use your network of Facebook friends, family and coworkers to get the word out. Be sure to share your new website on your Facebook business profile, too! If you’re on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter or other platforms, be sure to share wherever you can.
Word of mouth is still the most effective referral. If you’re as excited as we are when your site launches, tell the people around you! It will get you more exposure and will bring in new customers!
3.
Keep Things Fresh & Updated
After your website has been live for a few months, we recommend keeping things fresh to encourage return traffic. Here are some suggestions:
Blogging ensures that your website always has fresh content and Google loves fresh content. (We’ll talk more about blogging below.)
We recommend changing out or updating images as frequently as it makes sense to you. If your website has the main image right when you open the front page, it’s important to keep that fresh and new.
If your site has been sitting for more than a year or so, it’s strongly recommended that you do something to spice it up. Whether it’s making some cosmetic changes to the action colors or menu bar, or even just adjusting or adding some new graphics/images. Keeping your site fresh is a GREAT way to keep people coming back. When you’re ready for a refresh, let us know!
If information, staff, hours or services change for your business, be sure to change the website too. There’s nothing worse than having wrong information on a website. Keep your website updated and streamlined to your business.
4.
Build Site Content
A website is viewed by Google as being “active” or “stagnant.” An “active” site is driving traffic, getting more users, being updated, posting new blogs and content. If your site is “stagnant” – i.e. not being managed, updated or taken care of – it can impact your SEO ranking dramatically. Here are some options on how to build your website content:
Websites with blogs generally drive 30-40% more traffic to their sites than their competitors. Google will often pick up blog posts before picking up other website pages. If you can contribute good, relevant content that is valuable to your customers, you will drive more traffic. Don’t be afraid to use social media and use your network to get the word out. It’s worth having someone maintain a solid website blog to drive your traffic and grow your online presence. We can help with that!
It’s generally good practice to not only update your images and graphics, but also your content! If you have more services to add to your site, do it! Google loves seeing your website grow. You can also repurpose your content and re-post to social media; let your audience know that you have new information on an existing topic.
If things in your industry change or your services change, be sure to update your site accordingly.
5.
Maintenance
We’re always here to support your needs. If you want something tweaked, require additional training, need social media marketing or just need someone to walk you through a new idea, we’re here to help.
Final Invoice
If you haven’t received it already, you will be receiving your final invoice for your project shortly.
Need Support?
Now that you’re website is live, we want to make sure you get the support you need in a timely fashion. If you need support, there are a few different ways to let us know:
- Send an email to support@webstrategies.com.
- Submit a support ticket at https://webstrategies.freshdesk.com.
- Give us a call at 540.869.5991.
You’ll also be receiving your first web hosting invoice in short order. Web hosting is necessary so that your website has a place to live AND we give you a lot of extras like malware protection, uptime monitoring, a free secure certificate (SSL) to keep your data safe, daily backups, etc. Let us know if you have any questions about your web hosting.