Do You Need A New Website?

When I look back at my first health coaching website (circa 2006), I cringe a little.

At the time, it was considered to be well-designed, but looking at it now, it’s full of “design don’ts.”

It had multiple columns filled with as much text as possible and a navigation that wasn’t exactly easy to navigate.

I *did* have a free gift to help grow my email list, so at least I was ahead of the curve on that point!

Even though I can look back and smile about how far web design has come, I still remember how good it felt to have a professional website.

It made me feel legit.

It made me feel confident putting myself out there as a health coach.

If I was using my first website now, I’d be experiencing what a lot of health coaches I meet feel – ‘website shame’.

They’re not proud of their website (or don’t have one at all) so they don’t share it and use it as a tool to grow their business.

When you have a website you want to share, you feel more confident sending potential clients there or reaching out to potential referral partners or speaking venues because you feel like a pro.

A well-designed website is like having a talented employee on your team who does customer service, client booking, and even sales.

Do you have website shame, or wonder if your website is pulling it’s weight?

Here are 5 questions to ask yourself to determine if your website is working for you.

1. Is it sending the right message?

When a new visitor lands on your website, it should immediately be clear to them who you are, who you help and how you help them.

Your headings, images, free gift and copy should all be communicating the same message, and that message should resonate with your ideal client right away.

Your website should attract the right clients to you like a magnet!

When your website does a great job of sharing your message, your ideal clients will feel like they’re right at home, like they finally found someone who ‘gets them’ and they’ll want to keep coming back for more.

(Keep reading for tips on how to get your visitors to take action).

2. Is it converting visitors into subscribers?

If one of your business goals is to grow your email list (it should be), you’ll want to start to track how many new subscribers you’re getting from your website.

To be more specific, you’ll want to determine what percentage of people who visit your site are joining your email list. You can find this number by checking Google Analytics and your email platform.

Number of new email subscribers / Number of sessions in Google Analytics = Conversion Rate

If your number is low don’t worry. Your goal is to stay above 2%. Under 2% is poor, over 2% is good. Over 5% is amazing.

Be aware of this metric and make sure your site has a few things in place to keep new subscribers coming!

One of the best ways to improve your conversion rate is to have a way for people to sign up “above the fold”. This means that when someone lands on your home page there’s a call-to-action or sign up box visible without scrolling.

You can see an example of this on my homepage. The first thing you see is a big call-to-action to get my free gift. It’s captivating, enticing, and you absolutely can’t miss it.

 
This is one of the most important elements to having a website that grows your list.

If you don’t have an easy (and prominent) way for subscribers to sign up, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to build your list and your community.

3. Are you getting potential client scheduling consults on your site?

Just like building your list is an important function of your site, so is attracting new clients.

Your website can be more than just a business card advertising your services. You can turn your website into a client-getting machine!

You see, your website can have a serious impact on your bottom line when it’s set up to support your business goals.

Let me explain.

Most people who land on your site will leave without doing anything.

On average, 60-70% of people who land on a website LEAVE before taking any action.

This means that 60-70% of people leave without clicking to another page, without joining your list, and without scheduling a consultation.

If people leave your website without joining your list or scheduling a consultation, they’ll likely never return.

And now, sadly, you have no way to reach out to them via email.

Imagine how it would impact your business if the number of people taking action on your website increased.

Here’s an example:

4. Is your site mobile friendly?

Have you ever checked what your website looks like on your mobile device?

56% of traffic to top websites comes from mobile devices (phones and tablets). That means there’s a good chance your website visitors are doing some browsing from their phone while they’re on the go.

If your site isn’t optimized for mobile, it will be difficult for people to read from their phone, and they’ll quickly lose patience and leave your site.

Google has a free tool for you to check this and make improvements.

To ensure you aren’t turning away mobile visitors, be sure to pick a website theme that’s optimized for mobile or work with a web designer to get your site converted.

5. Can you maintain your website yourself?

Websites are a constant work in progress. That doesn’t mean you need to make huge changes to your site regularly, but there will be times when you want to make updates, such as…

… adding blog posts with recipes, tips, and inspiring stories to attract your audience.

… adding a new opt-in gift.

… promoting an upcoming talk or webinar you’re giving.

You’d probably like to avoid having to hire a web developer to make these small changes.

If your website is built on a platform like WordPress, you can easily maintain your site yourself.

Once you have the main page templates created by a web developer, you can use them over and over again to make beautiful blog posts and add new pages to your site when you need them — as well as remove them when they’re no longer relevant. You don’t want to leave up an announcement for a talk you did in September 2016!

 
Now I’d love to hear from you!
Is there anything you want to change about your website? Is there anything you think your website is doing really well? Share your comments and questions below so I can support you.