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1. Use a Custom Domain Name
A custom domain name is a small investment that can have a huge impact on your business.
Some site builders or content management systems might include a domain when you sign up for a free or bare bones plan. But beware, because some of the free domains are not custom domains.
They are subdomains of the main site you are using, and will include that business’ name in your site’s URL.
Ex. yourbrand.wordpress.com
yourbrand.weebly.com
You don’t want your website or all of your web pages to have another business’ name in it! You want someone to just be able to type yourbrand.com in and go right to it.
The average cost for a brand new domain is around $15 per year. Search for and purchase the perfect domain name from Lyrical Host.
If you aren’t willing to invest the $15 or less into your business, how can you expect potential customers to trust your business and spend their money with you? This is a small but meaningful opportunity to show your potential consumers that you are serious, instead of just telling them.
Using a domain name that is not custom could also have serious consequences in the future if you decide to switch platforms, which would necessitate you to change all of your URLs. Changing your URLs could cause a lot of broken links, make you start from scratch with SEO, and not to mention, contribute to a potential lull in business because your customers can’t find the site.
Custom domain names are an annual cost your business will incur, but are absolutely necessary if you want your brand and your business to be taken seriously. Learn about self-hosting your blog.
2. Make sure you have a custom favicon
Favicons are the small icons that you see in the tab of your browser. (Mine is a digitized champagne flute.)
When you use a CMS or site builder, the default settings for a favicon usually will be to display the system’s favicon. This means your user will see another business’ favicon in the tab of your site.
If you have a small, square logo, this tiny detail can really add to your brand and keep your site front and center in the mind of your user. Show your site visitors that you care about the details.
3. Pay attention to what is in your footer
Something that can immediately make your site look unprofessional is an outdated copyright, which is usually found in the footer of any site.
If you footer says Copyright 2016 or 2018 and we are in the 2020s, I might assume that this business is no longer active and leave the site ASAP. Once a user has found your site, they shouldn’t have to double check that you are still in business.
From the first time that someone lands on your site, you want to start building trust.
4. Show your 404 page some love
Ever go on a site and try to go to a page and get an error message about a page not being found? That is a 404 error page.
A lot of themes might have default content on these pages. I had a theme with default 404 content that said, “This is a custom default 404 page.” *Facepalm.*
404 pages can continue to propel your brand, and be a great opportunity to keep someone on your site when they are probably frustrated they can’t find what they are looking for, or one of your links is broken. Humor often works well on these pages.
You will also want to make sure that your 404 page includes links back to some of your other pages and maybe even a way to get in touch with you.
5. Have a branded email account
Having a branded email account will not only make your site but also your business as a whole look more professional.
Would you want to email bob99 at hotmail, or would you rather email example@example.com more? Branded emails look legit, and can either be set up for free through your Cpanel, or you can pay a monthly fee and create a G Suite account, especially if you are comfortable with Gmail.
Sometimes on websites you will see the treatment of emails written as example [at] example.com, with the “at” in brackets or parentheses. People do this in an attempt to prevent spammers from scraping their email address.
6. Check all template/theme default content
Whether you use a free or paid theme for your site, there will likely be default, placeholder content. Before you go live with the theme, you will want to check a few places to make sure you have your custom content, and are not pointing to the theme creator’s site or another dead end.
- Make sure your favicon is updated to your logo
- Make sure all social media icons are pointing to your social media
- Make sure all links in your footer are pointing to the right places
- Make sure your 404 pages are customized – type in yourdomain.com/aijdfs8fu and then you should get a “404 page not found” message. Make sure even these pages are helpful to your user and propel your branding
7. Make sure your site looks good on mobile
What your website looks like on mobile is important today, but will only continue to be more important in the coming days. If your site does not look good on a phone, users may bounce off of your site, and become frustrated.
Sites that don’t work on mobile can also seem old or outdated in the eyes of the user. Worse, they can cause your user to become frustrated and leave your site. Most of the sites your customer will interact with are optimized for mobile – if yours is not it will stand out in all the wrong ways.
Share Your Tips
This may seem overwhelming, but these tiny ways will make your website look professional and add credibility to your business – even if you DIY it yourself!
What are some other tips you have used to make your site look more professional? Leave them in the comments!
As always, thanks for reading domains and champagne.
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