The topic of a recent webinar we presented to TechServe Alliance members was “A Winning Website in 2013: Social, Mobile and Ranked.” With the rapidly changing field of website design and development, it can be hard to figure out your best option when it comes to building a new website or revamping an existing site.

1. A Winning Website: What Makes It Great?
The topic of a recent webinar we presented to TechServe Alliance members was “A
Winning Website in 2013: Social, Mobile and Ranked.” With the rapidly changing field
of website design and development, it can be hard to figure out your best option when
it comes to building a new website or revamping an existing site.
We counsel clients to give consideration to the following four factors that make a good
website today:
1. Adaptable design. The rise in popularity of
responsive design has a lot of people asking
themselves if this approach is right for their
website. A responsive designed website
ensures that your site looks great and
performs properly no matter what device or
platform it’s viewed on. While the jump to
this approach sounds like a no-brainer, we do
think you should look at your existing website
analytics to determine if there’s a true case for responsive design (i.e., a
significant number of your website visitors are using tablets and mobile devices
to view your site). Keeping in mind of course in a short time many more visitors
will more than likely be mobile driven.
2. Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Ensuring your site can be found when your
audience searches your company name or uses certain search terms is crucial.
From the keyword/key phrase strategy and the site architecture/page naming
strategy to content development and inbound/outbound linking strategies and
marketing, there are several key components of a successful SEO program that
work in concert to ensure your website is properly optimized.
3. Social Media. While traditionally viewed as a communication channel between
companies and their consumers/customers/job candidates, social media also
plays a key role in good website development. Social media can be used as part
of the lead generation process in sending prospects (traffic!) to your website
and those links are valuable from an SEO perspective. Plus by keeping your
company social media profiles active, you can enhance connections with
existing clients, prospects, candidates and partners while finding new ones!
4. Content. We all know that content is king and it’s crucial to keep your website
content fresh. There are a lot of ways to create content for your website –
blogs, videos, case studies, white papers, perspective articles, infographics,
photos, podcasts…the list goes on and on. Starting with a content strategy will
ensure you have a roadmap for the topics you use, the type of content you
create and the schedule for publishing it. While that often sounds
overwhelming, don’t be afraid to tap into others in your organization to help
contribute to content generation.
With each passing year the bar continues to be raised for website design and
development. It’s no longer enough to launch a website and let it sit for 2-3 years.

2. Companies are constantly working to improve their online presence, and those who are
successful take a strategic approach to all components of their website and view it as
never being “finished”.
To view the webinar presentation, go to
http://www.clearedgemarketing.com/Webinar-A-Winning-Website-in-2013-Mobile-
Social-Ranked.php. For an initial consultation about your company’s website, contact
me at mkrier@clearedgemarketing.com.