If your website is like mine, you’ve been adding content to it since it launched. They 
become like our attic, or garage, where stuff goes in, but nothing ever comes out. Eventually, there’s way too much content and it can affect the user experience. This is increasingly important as the shift to mobile continues, especially for weddings.
But it’s all good stuff
I know that some of you are thinking “it’s all important” or “I don’t know what to take out”, and you’re not alone. Of course it’s all good stuff, you wouldn’t have put it up there if it weren’t. The hard question is whether it’s still as good, and timely and relevant as it was when you first put it on your site. Photos can start to look dated. Things change, especially if you’ve remodeled your venue or offices, updated your branding… or if your headshot on your About Us page is more than a year or two old.
My site is responsive
One of the hard lessons I’ve learned, is that just because I’ve made the switch to a responsive-design website (one that adapts to the size of the viewer’s screen), doesn’t mean that the mobile experience is a good one. It just means that the underlying technology is up to date. As I view my own site, and those of businesses like yours, who have me review your websites, I’ve been paying a lot more attention to the mobile user experience.
Where did it go?
I’ve found that, even with a responsive design website, many elements function differently on mobile. For instance, I, like many of you, have a homepage slider image with a few large, wide photos. Mine have a large text heading, some smaller text (often a testimonial) and then an orange button with a call to action (to click to get to more information about that topic – although you can click anywhere on the image, not just the button). However, on mobile devices, the button disappears unless you rotate your phone to landscape mode (wide, not tall). So, while I thought I had a strong call to action, it’s actually not there when you visit my site from your phone – as most people don’t surf the web in landscape mode unless they’re viewing videos.
Also, the small text on the slider images, with the testimonials, becomes too small to read on anything smaller than an iPad. So I’ve emphasized the larger headline text, making it even bigger, so it will, hopefully, be more obvious to the user that they can, and should click the image to find out more. I also use tabbed content on my speaking topics and info pages (similar to how file folders have 1/3 or 1/5 cut outs and overlap in your filing cabinet), and I noticed that 4 or 5 tabs were too many for mobile devices. The text on the 4th and 5th tabs went off the right side of the screen and was unreadable. So, I’ve cut them down to only 3 tabs, and now they fit, and work better.
Do they need it now?
The next thing to think about is focusing on your, and your visitors’ goals. What do they want to see and do when they visit your site? What do you want them to see and do when they visit your site? How much of what’s there, do they need to see in order to get them to take that action? In other words, it’s not whether they’ll ever need that info, it’s whether they need it now. When you make those tough decisions, you can then start to compartmentalize the info on your site into ‘must-have-now’ (before they contact you), ‘may-need-now’ (before they contact you), ‘may-need-later’ (after they contact you or after they book you), and really-don’t-need. Get out your pruning shears and start to trim off anything they don’t need before they contact you. Take the things they’ll need after they contact you and put them on interior pages, so you can send them a direct link to that page, after you’ve had a conversation with them (either via email, text or on the phone). This is also a good idea for your information PDF’s, menus and brochures.
Not everything on your site has to have a top-level navigation link. You can have an unlimited number of pages this way, but your customers and prospects can only see and access them if you give them a link. It’s like having secret rooms in your house, which you can access if you know where they are, but they’re not visible to everyone else. Doing this will make your site feel lighter, and more user-friendly, while leaving the rest of the info up there for those who need it, after you’ve determined that they really need it. Not everyone needs to know everything about you in order to take action. They only need to know enough to want to take the next step. I realize that this is easier said than done, but you have to make these tough decisions, or you’ll never optimize your site’s mobile experience.
Where do I begin?
A good place to start is by looking at your site on different mobile devices. How do the navigation menus function? Are they obvious, or vague? How many navigation menu choices do you have? Do they all need to be top-level navigation, or can you have links within pages to related content? Or, do you really need some of those pages at all? While you’re doing that, take a look at your analytics (Google Analytics or other site data) to see which pages your visitors are, and are not visiting. You’ll probably find that there are many pages on your site that aren’t being visited much, or at all. If no one is really looking at them, taking them off your site shouldn’t hurt your conversion much, or at all. You might be able to remove a third, or even half of the pages on your website, without affecting your site’s page views. After all, if no one is going to those pages, no one will miss the information that’s on them.
On the other hand, if you find that no one is visiting some of the pages on your site, but you think they should, then you need to start working on the in-page links and calls-to-action on your site. They’re either not as obvious as you think (because you have the curse of knowledge) or the info just isn’t as important to your site’s visitors, as it is to you.
So, here’s my challenge to you, and to me. How many pages can we remove from our websites without affecting its performance? Is it 10%, 25% or even 50%? Let’s start trimming now and make both the mobile, and desktop experience a more streamlined and user-friendly one.
Ready to get started? For more details and to schedule your website review, please contact me via email, [email protected], or call 732.422.6362, international enquiries 001 732 422 6362.
Need help in other areas? I can still help you. You can have me come in and train your and your staff, or you can arrange to have me do a Pop-Up Wedding Workshop or Group Mastermind Day in your town, or you can join the other wedding and event pros that are watching, listening and reading great business ideas, on my online learning community Wedding Industry Insiders. Each month we add new content, which you can see and hear on any device, any time. No traveling, no time away from work and family. You can even listen on your smart while working out or driving (please pay attention to the road ;-). It’s like attending a session with me, any time you want or need it. Check it out at www.WeddingIndustryInsiders.com
Here are just a few of the hundreds of wonderful things my clients have written after working with me. What will you say? Contact me and find out.
Did you ever look in the mirror and notice something you never noticed before? Or maybe there’s something about your personality that you never realized until someone makes you aware of it. That’s exactly what Alan will do for your website. We spend so much time looking at and updating our websites we can’t see it clearly from a viewer’s perspective. Hiring Alan Berg is the smartest investment you can make for your website. He will find everything that can be improved on your website big or small and show you how you can easily fix it. Alan not only shows you what needs to be improved, but more importantly he shows you the why behind it. No matter what level your website is at right now, hire Alan now and watch your business grow! David Rothstein, David Rothstein Music, Chicago, IL
Alan spent the day with us at Briscoe Manor (Richmond, TX) helping us to tidy up our website and captivate potential brides from the first interaction (even if on a computer screen). One of the best takeaways from the day time with Alan, was connecting the dots that if we just listen, they’ll tell us exactly what they need. Thanks for your time, Alan. I learned so much and plan to incorporate your advice. I am excited to see how it not only helps our company but improves the overall experience of our Briscoe brides. Something we love to improve on! Jamie Eggleton, Briscoe Manor, Richmond, TX
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