Australia Blog
News and notes from Google Down Under
5 days, 5 Tips: Get your website basics right
Monday, May 23, 2011
In the last
three
months
, we’ve seen thousands of businesses from across Australia create a free website as part of
Getting Aussie Business Online
, a nationwide initiative to give small businesses a site that’s easy to set up and maintain.
Accountants
,
plumbers
,
wholesalers
, and even
free range farmers
can now be found by the millions of Aussies looking for local business information online.
But we’ve heard from many businesses that after they push go and publish their website, they’re not quite sure what to do next. So we’ve created five tips for making simple improvements. Try out one each day for the next week, and see what a difference you can make in five days.
TIP #1 -- Pick a good domain name.
Your domain name is part of your identity online. This is the address that customers type into the address bar in their Internet browser to reach your website. It’s how they remember your site, so it’s important that it’s short, simple, and relevant to your business name or products and services. Try to keep it under 10 characters, and avoid special characters like hyphens. Check your domain name by reading it aloud and having a friend take a look.
TIP #2 -- Describe your business clearly
. Pretend you’re describing your business to a total stranger who knows nothing about you, what you sell, or how to find you. Keep your language simple and easy-to-understand and include essentials like location, opening hours, and contact information. Use short sentences, headings, and bullet points.
TIP #3 -- Explain why you stand out.
What makes you better than big chains or other competitors? It could be a service or an expertise not offered by others, such as a bike shop that offers same-day service for repairs or a personal consultation to get the right frame fit. Back up any claims with clear examples. For example, “accountant with 30 years of experience in tax law” is better than “experienced accountant”.
TIP #4 -- Be a stickler for details.
Your website is not the place to be fuzzy on details like opening hours or contact information. Use precise language to describe your hours of operations and how to contact you. Instead of “open some Sundays”, make it clear that you’re “open first Sunday of every month” or ask your customers to “call to arrange an appointment on Sunday”.
TIP #5 -- Spellcheck
. At best, typos can make your website look sloppy and unprofessional. At worst, they can leave potential customers wondering whether you pay attention to more important business details. Review your website for misspellings, extra letters and characters, and incorrect grammar. You don’t have to be the comma police, but you should have the right number of “o”s in Woolloomooloo.
Remember that a website is a living thing, so you can log in and update it any time you like. Let these tips guide you and stay tuned for more.
Posted by Kate Conroy, Product Specialist
Labels
20%
3D
AdSense
AdWords
AdWords Express
Agencies
agencies adwords TV
Analytics
android
announcements
antarctica
App Marketplace
apps
art
Australia
Australian IT
big data
Big Query
blogging
blogs
books
broadband
business
calendar
campaign management
careers
CeBIT
chrome
Chromebox
cloud computing
competition
computer science
conversion tracking
creativity
currents
cyber safety
cycling
dashboard
Developer Day
developers
digital advertising
digital economy
Display
display ads
Doodles
drive
ebooks
education
Election
energy
enhanced campaigns
Enterprise
entrepreneurship
environment
Equatorgate
Fairfax
film
filtering
G'day Google
Getting Aussie Business Online
Gmail
gone google
gonegoogle
google
Google App Engine
Google Apps
Google Apps for Business
Google Apps for Education
Google Art Project
Google Australia
Google Chrome
Google Code
Google docs
Google Drive
Google Earth
google maps
Google Places
google play
Google Search
Google Serve
Google Sites
Google Talk
Google Trends
Google+
Googlers and culture
government
green
Guest blogger
guest speakers
Hangouts
HR
iGoogle
information
innovation
internet
internet industry
IT
Julia Gillard
language
life
local
maps
measurement
media industry
mobile
Moderator
movies
music
navigation
NBN
netball
new features
news
NGEN
non-profit
online advertising
online safety
open government
open source
Partnerships
picasa
play
Policy
politics
prime minister
privacy
prizes
PSI
publishers
puppies
real estate
Reception
recruitment
removals
rentals
reporting
research
Running
scholarships
schools
science
search
search ads
Security
shopping
sitelinks
sketchup
small business
smartphones
SMB
street view
student programs
students
Stupid Google employee tricks
Summer of Code
Support
survey
sydney
symphony
tablet
technology
Themes
tips
training
transit
translate
transparency
transport
Universities
vault
voicesearch
Wave
women
workplace culture
YouTube
YouTube Live
zeitgeiest
Archive
2019
Feb
Jan
2018
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2017
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2016
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2015
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2012
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2011
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2010
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2009
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2008
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2007
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Feed
Google
on
Follow @googledownunder
Give us feedback in our
Product Forums
.
