Get an effective website for your practice

Any business needs a website. Your current clients and potential clients expect to find you easily online, so you need to be present. An effective website will also help you get new clients and maintain your current ones. But how do you get your website to do this work for you?

A completely proven marketing channel

The first commercial websites appeared more than 20 years ago. During these two decades many advisory practices have taken advantage of their great benefits.

Still, there are many practices that haven’t taken the step yet. And many of those that have done so have ineffective websites for interacting with potential new clients and existing clients.

In this guide we’ll talk about how you can turn your business website into something useful and interesting and we’ll give you tips and advice to maintain a truly effective website.

Your website is like an online store

Very few advisory practices have a ground floor location on a commercial street with a storefront where they can advertise their services. The advisory business simply doesn’t work that way.

And the days when phone calls were used to locate potential clients are over. So how do you get your potential clients to find you?

One of the most common methods is online search. Most small businesses that need an advisor turn to Google or other search engines to find them.

If you’re not online, it’s impossible for them to find you, since you’ll never appear in search results. So it will be your competitor with a good website who gets the client.

In conclusion, an effective website is key for modern advisory practices. If you don’t have one, you’re losing clients.

Start in the simplest way

If you’re not clear about the benefits that having a website will have for you, it’s best to start in the simplest way. You don’t need to spend thousands of euros to have a good website.

Services like WordPress, Joomla and many others will allow you to create a website easily and quickly. You don’t need to know how to program so you can start soon. Prices start from just a few euros per month.

Key aspects

These are the keys for your website to have a professional appearance from the beginning:

• Register your domain: for example www.business.com. It’s much more serious and professional than using a domain like business.hostingcompany.com. Domains are cheap and add prestige to your online presence.

• Include these pages: it’s key to add a contact page and others where you can clearly explain what services you offer. It’s also a good idea to add a page with your team and if possible some prestigious clients (even better if there are client testimonials).

• Use a simple design: services like WordPress give you various design templates to choose from. This way you can modify your website’s appearance. There are many simply spectacular templates, but don’t get carried away by overly bold designs. Your potential clients expect a website with a professional appearance.

• Update your website: if your business evolves, your website should too. Keep contact information updated as well as new services you offer or your workers’ profiles. If your website is outdated, visitors will notice and you’ll lose them. It’s that simple.

If you keep these 4 keys in mind, you’ll undoubtedly be laying good foundations for getting a website that helps you.

If your business evolves, your website should too. Keep contact data, services and team updated.

Content is king

You’ve very likely already heard about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and the value of good content. Quality content is what makes you appear in search results and this will bring you new clients.

Quality content is basically what’s useful for your clients and potential clients. For example:

• Blog articles with recommendations and tips to apply in their businesses.
• Tax news.
• Answers to their most common questions.
• Interviews with people who might interest your clients.
• …

Effective websites need good content to get potential clients to return again. Content is also key to gaining your visitors’ trust and converting them into clients.

Build your online brand

Your website should reflect your business identity. It will be much more effective if it’s an extension of your brand in the online world.

So dedicate time to adding personality to your website. Don’t just copy another website’s design. Think about how your business works and then try to apply this to your online presence.

Try to involve your team, but be restrictive about who can and cannot publish on your website.

An updated website with personality will give a good first impression to your potential clients. It will be proof that your business also has personality and is up to date.

4 ways to provide value to your visitors

When your website has been online for a while, you can start giving it more depth. Think about your clients and what might interest them. Here are some ideas:

1. Periodic newsletter: email remains the most effective marketing tool that exists. Create a periodic newsletter with interesting content for your clients with something they want to read. Make sure not to be too heavy-handed, a newsletter every two or three weeks is enough.

2. Blog: writing articles with industry news, interesting links or even training content will help perfect your online reputation.

3. Social profile integration: if your business has a profile on Twitter or Facebook for example, you can link them from your website.

4. Useful tools for your clients: such as a facturae viewer.

Your website always updated

Effective websites generate interaction, are fresh and attractive to their target audience. Your business website can be all this and more, and achieving it doesn’t have to be expensive.

There are many resources you can use to learn how to get a good website, including forums, tutorials, webinars, blogs,… You can also get inspired by websites of other businesses that have been online longer than you. You don’t need to copy anyone, but you can learn a lot from them.

Over time, your website will evolve parallel to your business. It will become an extension of your marketing, working hard to get new clients for you.