Websites Don’t Have to be Boring

Harbour Landing Village “about” page.

The 404 error page on Peregrine farm.

Our 404 Error page on this website.

In the last few months we’ve received compliments on our website. That rarely happens. People cite the feeling it gives them, the uniqueness, the simple fact that it isn’t like other websites. That has taken us nine years to get to, and we’re still changing it, editing and making it better daily.

It’s finally working, OUR WEBSITE!

In a world where your website is a major tactic in your marketing mix, it’s smart to prioritize the look and feel. It takes time and many, MANY edits to get it right. As long as you are measuring your progress, you can always improve.

In a world where everyone can have a website (Wix, Squarespace, wordpress), simply having a website isn’t enough. You may have a beautiful looking website but if you don’t come up in search or have a traffic strategy it’s kind of useless. The amount of times we’ve heard “well we spent our first born child on this website, you mean that doesn’t guarantee traffic?” Sadly no.

Using Google Analytics you can find out where your traffic is coming from and what they are doing on your website. Using this information you can create better pages that attract more people, you can figure out what people like in your website (and what they don’t!) and edit your site accordingly. No websites stay static these days. You should be constantly updating it giving your customers and potential customers more reasons to go to your website.

Give people a reason to come back to your website: give them Easter Eggs!

If you can leave an Easter egg for visitors to find, you may give them a reason to come back. If you put personality into your content, you’ll give people a reason to come back.

Simply having a website won’t cut it in the future. You need to give people a reason to come back. Is it entertaining them? Or solving a customer problem fast? Either way it’s trying to create something that’s unique to your brand. That if someone put your competitors logo on it, it just wouldn’t be the same.

Websites don’t have to be boring

I say websites don’t have to be boring because most are. Designed by committee, no vision and no understanding of where traffic comes from. Trusting a designer to create an emotional feel on your website is what you should be doing the next time you get around to developing your website. Much easier said then done. Understand how your traffic works. Create content around the goal of gaining more traffic specific to your field of work. Over time keep creating unique content on your website.

One day you’ll wake up and have a “branded” online presence that people have come to know and love.

Your website doesn’t have to be boring! Have fun, be yourself, create a brand for people to love.

Honourable mention to RJ’s Ice & Water for this adorable penguin that follows you around the website. One of the first Easter Eggs we designed into a website.