It’s hard to conduct business these days without having some portion of it be online. Whether it’s discovery, purchase, communication, or reviews, your customers will have a digital experience with your business in some capacity.
Considering this, you’re probably wondering how to give your clients the online experience they’re looking for. One way you can start is by reviewing our guide to website and social media trends for 2021. In it, we discuss what’s trending, what’s not, and how to build your site for optimal customer viewership and engagement.
A digital experience is more than a website makeover. It's the best, easiest, and most effective ways to communicate with your customers even when they’re viewing your business through a screen. It's the online process your customers take from beginning to end that makes it easy for them to find, book, and purchase your services.
Below are four steps to make sure your business offers a good one.
A customer’s journey through your business starts with discovery. How do your customers currently hear about you? Maybe you were recommended by a friend or a colleague. If not, they’ll likely find you through an online search.
Knowing this, one way to provide an exceptional digital experience for your customers is to make it easy to find you online.
Think about it. When you need your car fixed, your house cleaned, or your driveway repaved, where do you go? “Google” is probably your response, as with most people. Google is the number one search engine for a reason, and as a small business owner, you should be using it to your advantage.
Simplify what it takes for your customers to find you online by ensuring you show up on google when people search for your industry’s services.
So after customers have found you, what do they expect next?
If you’ve ever been on a job hunt, you understand what it’s like to want to differentiate yourself among other applicants. This can feel difficult when all you’re working with is a resume.
The same concept applies to a website if you think of it as your business's resume. With an abundance of businesses these days, you can expect customers to sift through websites like a hiring manager looking for the perfect applicant.
This is exactly why your website needs to catch their eye and be easy to use. Here are some characteristics to focus on:
It’s easy to spot the difference between a nice-looking website and one that didn’t prioritize design. In essence, your site acts as a litmus test for your services. The look of it alone can answer customers’ questions without them even realizing it: Do you perform good work? Will you rush through a job to meet the basic standards? Do you take pride in your business?
A good first impression is crucial to a positive digital experience, so be sure to invest in your site’s design. It’s up to you whether you outsource help or create one yourself. There are plenty of free resources out there that make it easy to build a one-of-a-kind site.
Does your website currently do more than display your services? Can customers give you a call or book your services with the click of a button? Do you give them the option to pay directly through your services page?
A positive digital experience hinges on the functionality of your website and a customer’s ease of use.
Here are some ideas on how to make your website multifaceted:
You’re doing yourself a disservice if you’re not generating new leads through your website. Be sure you’re doing all that you can to optimize your website for lead capture and conversion.
You can easily capture new leads with help from any of the following features:
The root of an excellent “digital experience” is a best website builder for small business. Make sure yours is ready to beat the competition.
Many people falsely assume that online payments are reserved for e-commerce or product-focused companies. In reality, any business can—and should—accept payments online.
This is crucial if you’re looking to provide a top-notch experience for your customers. Besides getting you paid faster, online payments are safe and preferred by customers.
If you own a service-based business, we recommend requesting payment at the time of booking. This doesn’t have to be the full payment, but perhaps a downpayment, holding fee, or reservation fee. This option will likely reduce your customer dropoff rate, as people are more inclined to show up or follow through with your services if they’re of the mindset, “well, I’ve already paid.”
Not only this, but it simply makes for a smoother user experience.
There are plenty of resources on how to accept credit card payments online, and it’s a step you should undoubtedly consider for your business.
When you think about the customer journey, it begins at discovery and ends with satisfaction. To create a truly exceptional digital experience, you’ll want to cover it all.
Reviews are the number one way to broadcast this satisfaction and demonstrate to potential buyers that you’re the team to choose. Take note; 80% of consumers read reviews before purchasing from a local business.
If you’re having trouble acquiring reviews in the first place, you may want to consider sending out review requests regularly. Try using this template!
Once you have those 5-stars, don’t forget to publish them on your site. Whether you promote them on your home page or a testimonials page is up to you, but including them is a proven and effective way to convert more clients.
And just like that, you’ve created an exceptional digital experience for your customers—from beginning to end. Don’t underestimate the power it will have on the success and growth of your small business!
A bonus tip: Test out these four steps with a free account from GoSite. You’ll have access to user-friendly tools that will facilitate this seamless digital experience for both you and your customers.