5 Things Every Business Website Must Have

I frequent a few Facebook groups for Shopify and the number one request that comes up multiple times a day is for feedback on their website.

There are really 5 basic things that every website must-have.

Missing any one of these could be detrimental to your business.

1. A clear description of what you do.

This is your value proposition. This is usually one of the most obvious, yet most difficult to accomplish. There are a million t-shirt e-commerce stores and thousands of acupuncturist. What makes you special? Why should I pick your site over another?

Think of this also like your elevator pitch, as much as I dislike that reference. Explain to me in one sentence (maybe two) who you are, what you do, and how you do it differently from others.

2. A way to contact you.

This is what I like to call a trust element. Ideally, this is a phone number, email, address, or a contact method via social media. If nothing else, at least have a contact form and make sure it works! Don’t turn your contact form a black hole.

I’d also wager that if you added a phone number to your website, your sales would increase. Don’t believe me. Prove me wrong. Buy an 800 number and display it at the top left or right of your page near your navigation or in the footer. When they call you, because they will, you can thank me for that extra sale.

(Please remit all product gifts and merchandise coupons to my address )

3. Original images are of high quality.

Photos can be a bit challenging especially when you want something that is large enough for quality photos, but not so large that it slows down your site.

Upload images at 2048×2048 but no less than 1000×1000. Your theme or Shopify will resize it for you. I also usually recommend always using square photos for products for uniformity.

4. A clear description of your product/services.

When describing your product/services, aim for your word count to be between 200-500 words. This is an essential piece of content for your website as it also plays into your SEO strategy.

One way to expand your word count if you’re struggling is to answer questions that most often come up from your customers. If they are asking what type of fabric the t-shirt is made out of, or how long a typical visit lasts in your office, add that to your description.

5. Policies and procedures

For some reason, these always are put on the back-burner. Every site needs to have an about page that says who you are, why you got started and what it’s like to work with you or your company values. You’ll also want pages for shipping, returns, and exchanges that outline where items are shipped to/from, standard costs if you have it, and policies on returns and exchanges.

Fairly straightforward, right?

Use this as your opportunity to add any missing elements to your website right now.

These are simple things that every business website must-have.

If your website suffers from problems like these, you might consider buying my Website Rescues. I fix these issues and dozens of other problems that impact Shopify stores.