Have you had your website for a while and it's feeling blah?  Not ready to completely rebuild, but you know you want something different?  Or maybe you're looking to build a new site for you business, but want it to look different than everything else that's out there in your industry.

In this post, we're going to walk through some great ways to customize your website, help it stand out and look awesome!

First Things First: Determine the goals of your website

Knowing what you want to do is so important!  For example, does it need to drive people to purchase a product?  Or is it to get people to book a discovery call?  Are you showcasing your portfolio for potential clients? Or do you want people to sign up for your email newsletter?

It could be that a few of these things are priorities for you, or it could be something I didn't even mention.  Regardless, understanding what your goals are will help you when you're figuring out how to make your website stand out.  And, just as importantly, not go down the rabbit hole of trying to find design ideas that don't match your goals.

I'm going to walk you through some great options for customizing your site that line up with different kinds of goals.

Show off your Call to Action 

Whatever your goals are, you want people to land on your site, and know what action you want them to take.  This should be directly related to your business goals.

Email Opt-in

You know I love a good email list!  And a question I get all the time is how to get people to sign up.  At a basic level, having a newsletter signup form on your website is helpful. 

Action Bars

Programs like Hello Bar are free and allow you to create a bar at the top of your website that entices people to opt-in.

Setting it up is easy and it integrates with several email service providers to automatically add people to your email list.

Another option for this, if you use Divi, is Divi Bars.  This is what we use on our website, however, it isn't a free option.

Pop Up Boxes

Now I know this is a controversial topic.  People love to hate the pop up box.  But if they are done well, and provide value, they can be highly effective.  These are great for email opt-ins, freebie downloads, and event registration/information.

We love the way Amy Porterfield uses this for the downloads she creates for her podcast.  Visitors are already interested in what she's talking about and wanting to learn more, so this just encourages them to take the next step and download the tools. 

Inline Email Opt-In Boxes

Creating your email opt-ins that you can replicate over and over is always a great idea.   You can pop them in where it makes sense on any page, blog posts, etc.  We use Bloom, which is a free plugin that comes with Divi.  But whatever email service provider you use, they should have an option for integrating it into WordPress

Encourage visitors to schedule a call or book a discovery call.

Keeping things easy for the visitor is awesome.  If your goal is to get people to schedule a call then having an option for them to book immediately is key.  It also saves you time!

 There are several different programs that you can utilize for scheduling, and it depends on the needs of your business, but I'm going to share my two favs. 

Calendly and Acuity are the two options that I recommend.  They both sync with your existing calendars and allow you to schedule multiple calendars.  You can also allow people to book with different members of your team.  I also love the fact that people can prepay if that's important.

We use Acuity, because of our credit card processing system, Calendly doesn't support it.    When people come to book a call with me, this is what they see.  And we haven't scratched the surface of customization!

Showing Off Your Portfolio

Letting potential customers see what it's like to work with you and results you can create can go a long way!  So take it the next level with showcasing your portfolio.  This is, in fact, on our list of priorities for 2019 for our sister company H & E Marketing Solutions website.  Currently we showcase our happy clients on our page, like everyone else, but taking the time to create individual profile pages will take it to the next level.

It also gives you a great way to share relevant projects with potential clients so they can get to know you more.

Sharing Testimonials

Taking Portfolio pages to the next level is including testimonials.  But testimonials aren't only relevant on your portfolio pages.  You can use them on your sales pages and home page.

So how can you take it to the next level and stand out?  Do video testimonials!  Now before you roll your eyes and say there's now way you can do that, here are some simple steps.

1. Make a list of clients that you know would be comfortable on camera.
2. Get a Zoom account to record with ease (with a free account you can record for up to 40 minutes).
3. Reach out to your clients and see if they would be interested?
4. Schedule the calls.
5. Ask questions in a conversational manner and upload the video to your website.

That's it folks!  It's simple and easy and goes a long way to setting you apart from the rest of those in your field. 

Custom Photography

Don't get me wrong, free stock photography can get you far!  We utilize it often ourselves.  But if you really want to convey the personality and uniqueness of your brand, investing in photography is fantastic.

You might be surprised as well at what you can get at an affordable price.  Several photographers, especially local ones, are open to trading product or services.  And one shoot can get you the shots you need for the entire year.

Just make sure you know exactly what you want/need before you do the shoot.

Conclusion

It doesn't have to be difficult to add some elements to your website to make it stand out and reflect who you are and what you want your customers to do when they land on your site.

Let us know what feature you'll be implementing on your site.  We can't wait to see it.