11 Signs Of A Good Website
It’s rare now to find a business that doesn’t have a website - and if they don’t, then…their business really isn’t going to go too far.
Because a good website is essentially the shop window for your business.
If you’re running a business, chances are that your site is up and running. But how do you know if your site is good? What even makes a good website?
For me, a good website should:
- Attract the right people
- Get them to take action (book a call, send an enquiry, sign up to an email list…)
Here are 10 signs you’ve got a good website on your hands.
1. It's clear what you do.
It’s stupidly simple. There’s no jargon, no fluff words to make you sound fancier than you really are, you just tell the users what you do.
❌ “We are innovators in creating bespoke spaces for you and your family to enjoy”
This tells the user absolutely nothing. Are they an architect? An interior designer? A landscape designer?
✅ “Get the home of your dreams with bespoke designs to suit your needs. We’re an award winning architect studio based in Glasgow, check out our work.”
Winner! I know what problem you’re solving, and exactly what your company is.
2. It's clear who you help.
Yes, I mean niching.
And you’ve got it down. You know that trying to speak to everyone results in not really speaking to anyone.
📍 Maybe your target market is the area you work in?
🦸 Maybe it’s the WHY behind the brand?
But whilst everyone else is posting pictures of their excellent work, you've made it clear WHO you help, and why website visitors should pick you.
3. It's easy to navigate.
Just like you wouldn’t live in a house where you couldn’t find the kitchen, people won’t stay on your website if they can’t find their way around.
It might stand on some creative toes…but there it is.
So not only have you got a maximum of 5 options to choose from in your navigation, you also let users scroll down, where they can learn more about your services, and click a button to that leads to a specific page - ex. maybe there’s a link to your portfolio, scroll further down and there’s a link to your about page, or scroll further down and there’s a link to a specific case study.
This is also better for your SEO, because Google reads websites like a pyramid, meaning there should be one point of entry (home page) which everything feeds down from.
4. It uses relevant key words
You’ve researched what people are googling in order to find you, and you’ve used those long tail keywords throughout your site.
Keywords will boost your SEO and ensure that the right eyes are getting on your site in the first place. Because there’s no point having a really good website, if nobody finds it on Google.
5. Heading's are useful and structured correctly
It’s important to make it as easy as possible for people to get the info they’re looking for. So your headings need to be clear, but they also need to be the right kind of heading.
From H1 to H4 or H5, it's the job of your developer (or whoever’s built your site) to ensure that every page is structured correctly when it comes to headings. This allows Google to scan your site, and decipher what sections are the most important, it’s also user friendly for anyone using a screen reader.
6. Images used have quality Alt Tags
Alt tags are essentially what allows a screen reader to tell a blind or visually impaired person who's using your site what the pictures on your website are of - allowing them to actually get a feel for your business!
This in turn, helps your website rank on Google because the search engines we use can see the use of Alt tags, and is more likely to boost your website over a competitor that isn't using Alt tags.
7. It's fast
The average amount of time someone will spend on a website before deciding that it’s not helping them is 15 seconds. Fif.teen.sec.onds.
So not only do you need to make sure you’ve covered the basics we spoke about in points 1 & 2, you need to make sure users get to read that information pronto - because they’re not waiting around to learn about you, they’re hitting the back button, and finding the next option.
8. The layout is responsive across devices
You don’t really need me to tell you this. But your site has to be optimised for mobile devices.
That does not mean that it works on mobiles.
That means that either the site is designed for mobiles first (aka, before the desktop layout) or the desktop version has been re-designed for tablets and phones.
- Touch points will be bigger.
- The navigation menu will open from a button
- Text size will respond to the screen size
- Layouts will change
9. It’s got heaps of social proof
You’ve harnessed the power of testimonials, and maybe even incorporated a featured section which shows off the recognizable brands you’ve worked with.
Now people aren’t just taking your word for it, they can see what people are saying about you, building trust with website visitors.
10. It’s easy to read
The minimum size of font on your website should be 16px. If you follow me on socials you might have seen me talk about this a few times - and maybe you've implemented it already!
But in order for your site to be accessible for anyone who struggles to read, make sure your fonts are a readable size, and the contrast is high.
Which means goodbye to pale grey text on a white background 👋
11. It’s easy for people to get in touch with you
Whether you want leads to come through email or phone, you’ve incorporated that into your site so it’s easy for people to get in touch.
