Web Design
TrendStrategics is a Web Design & Internet Marketing Company in Topeka, Kansas.
We are the best web designers in Topeka Kansas. We are the oldest website builders in Topeka starting in 1993. when we built our very first website. We Design Beautiful Websites that provide great user experience – engage your target audience – grow your business & profit. TrendStrategics – Topeka Kansas – Topeka Website Design
Are those free website builders worth it?
Well the advertised price may be “free”, you will end up paying handsomely for their “free” service. Remember, nothing is free! There is always a cost associated with most everything. Ask yourself a question, would I work for free? What’s your answer?
Hidden costs can cost you lots more than having it done for you. Not only in associated expenses to get the add-ons that you find out in the middle of the process that you need to make your site function properly, but mostly in lost revenue from having a site that doesn’t have the capability of getting traffic. And it is traffic that will impact sales. No traffic, no sales. No sales, no income. No income, no business. Free is free, and that is what you get.
Free Web Builders are fun to play with but I wouldn’t bet the farm on em!
While there are numerous low cost and even “free” website building platforms, if you are serious about promoting and growing your business, these should be avoided. It may be fun to play with some of these, but the end result is generally “less than desirable”. And of course unless you are a professional web builder or designer, you just won’t get a site that is, well “aesthetically pleasing”. And will probably look like a copy/paste site.
Volumes have been written, thousands of videos show how “you too can design your website for little to no money and of course, you can pay a professional web designer to not only make you look good, but help you achieve the results you are after. Generally, when you drive people to your site (see SEO) you are looking not for more eyes on your site, but results from them coming, like giving you a call, which leads to conversion (sales).
How long have we been building websites?
We have been designing websites since 1994 when we didn’t have any of the tools we have today. They were much simpler to rank if you knew what you were doing, but they sure weren’t easy to build. We have had a name change or two in the last 3 decades to keep up with the times and stay on top of current trends. Today, we do business as TrendStrategics Topeka Kansas web design and targeted marketing company.
Today, there are so many tools like page builders, themes, and plug ins that make it possible to do just about anything you can imagine. And tracking your traffic (see analytics) wasn’t possible at all!
However with all that ease comes lots more sites and with lots more sites, comes competition and competition in your market space. It takes lots of work to make it to the front page on search engines. Way more work than it used to. But if done by a competent web designer, with knowledge of back end programming and a good handle on current methods of ranking, can be accomplished.
Can we make my site rank #1 on Google?
So many people sell just SEO and tell you it will magically send you to the top. Don’t believe these marketers. In fact thank them for calling and politely tell them not to call back. I like to say of those people that they are either liers or don’t have a clue as to what they are talking about. (let them choose which). Either way, I wouldn’t do business with a person or company that makes any claims like that. A website is only part of your on-line presence. Note some of the other areas we list in our services.
What you need in your marketing efforts depends on the type of business you have and where your target customers are. Again, volumes have been written about this, but in short, if you cater to a local only client base, then certain types of marketing is needed. If your business is national, then we would look at other type of marketing. There is no one good solution or one size fits all marketing plan.
Park Place or Baltic Avenue?
This article is about web design, so I won’t go into depth on other types of marketing, however, be aware that other forms of marketing are important as well. But your website is your identity. It is how people view you and your business. It doesn’t need to be “Park Place”, but it shouldn’t be Baltic Avenue either. Think of it as your physical address, where you live or your office building. Where is it located? (domain name). Is it safe to go there? (bad side of town (SSL Certificate)). What does it look like? (needs a paint job, has trash all over inside and out). Is it inviting? Do people want to sit in your chairs? (engaging and time spent on a page – Bounce Rate).
By now you are getting a grasp on the importance of a clean, easily navigable, professional website with good design. It is also important that it loads quickly. (This site loads in 3.2 seconds). A highly graphical (lots of photos) may take more time to load, but if the images are properly compressed, will cut the load time significantly.
Now that you are going to hire a professional web designer, you need to know that “If you build it, they will come” works great in Hollywood, but doesn’t really work in the real world. You need to promote your business and your website.
We use many methods and venues to achieve “being found”. There are organic search results and paid search results. The use of one over the other is found in our analysis of your business and overall marketing campaigns. And generally using only one method will land short of your expectations. You will need to engage in numerous marketing activities in order to grow your business quicker.
If they apply to your type of business, trade shows are a great way to promote your business and the use of promotional products and printed collateral such as sales sheets, brochures and even your business cards are used to support your brand. Having a great domain name and awesome website will reinforce your company and the legitimacy of your company.
A well designed website provides Credibility!
Some people just want to see that you are real and look like you will be around for awhile before they want to do business with you. A website can be used all by itself with traffic being driven from a person typing in your domain name “direct traffic”. If you do all types of other non-web marketing you may only want to use your website as supporting your brand. Some people do this but won’t ever get any organic clicks and will not have any domain authority to be found by searches.
So again, a mix of many types of media marketing will help grow your business. A website is a must today, no matter how you use it. Depending on the type of business and your other marketing efforts, we can design a site to showcase your business and make you look good. You don’t need to buy Park Place, but you surely don’t want to hang your shingle on Baltic Avenue!
How old is your website?
Do you already have a website? When was it built? How long has it been since it’s been upgraded? Does it get good rankings? Lots of views? Does it pay for itself by generating revenue? A good website complimented with adwords, facebook and other types of on-line marketing can mean the difference between success and failure (or just not enough business). More than likely, your competitors are on the web. If not, a huge open door for you to walk through.
TrendStrategics has been creating brands and reinforcing brands for over 30 years by our parent company Promotionals Inc. We started doing business in 1987 primarily as a sign shop that specialized in vacuum formed signage. We produced raised letter signage and sold them door to door in about a 60 mile radius of Topeka and quickly embraced screen printing and then cut vinyl graphics. Didn’t take long to start including promotional products to the mix and never looked back. We have been providing promotional products to all sizes of businesses nationwide for over 30 years and it has been an exciting ride. We have sold our products in all 50 states, plus District of Columbia (Washington DC) and numerous foreign Countries. Our work has made the covers of several magazines and our photographs have been used all over the world.
Embracing the the internet in 1993
We built our first web site in 1993! The tools weren’t near as user friendly as they are today, but we persevered and in a few months we had built our first web site. After a few more months of doing some internal coding (now called SEO), our site was placing the first 9 out of 11 pages for numerous key word searches. And that was organic searches, way before Google figured out they could charge for Adwords!
Your website needs to look well, load quickly and be relevant to your market. These 3 elements are critical for today’s web. The fourth would be easy navigation. The fifth (not necessarily in this order) would be optimized with SEO. Does you absolutely no good to have a website that meets all the criteria and doesn’t show up in search!
People recognize the inexpensive do-it-yourself sites that offer drag and drop page building. They are cheap and they look cheap and don’t really present your business in a professional way. People may not want to do business with you even after they find your site if it looks like it was done in an afternoon. Professional sites takes countless hours and a lot of work. The formatting, colors, font selection, navigation and design need to be addressed as well as content and of course back end coding to help with your search results. Every element of your site needs to be considered. More often than not, when we start a site, we try many options throughout the process to get the right feel for what it is the site is about and what we are trying to accomplish with it.
What does your Physical Business look like?
As mentioned above you need to view a web address as you would a physical one. The name is so very important. It needs to be easy to remember, easy to type and relevant (more on relevant later). If you look at a web site as your store front, it will help you understand what I am saying. It needs to be clean, in a safe area of town, orderly, laid out nicely and easy to navigate around (walk through). If it is dingy and dirty and confusing to find things, then people will probably just walk out and not come back. And if they do mention your address to someone, it may not be in the best light. Your web address is exactly the same. Obviously they can’t walk in, but to some degree, they actually are walking in. If they don’t like what they see, they quickly turn around and the door shuts behind them. Make sure you invest in a professional address. If you can’t find a name that you like by yourself, seek a company that can. You just have to be creative and be willing to either pay up for a premium name or compromise on the name you want but can’t have by thinking it through and lots of domain name research. Remember, your website may be the first impression that someone has with your company or you may have met them at a business function ortrade show. You hand out your business card (which matches you web site) (and is professionally designed and printed). And they go to your website only to find a mess or an ugly mess. Make sure this is not you.
Build it and they will come…
Well maybe! Without a road map how does someone know how to get there? Here’s an example. You go to Montana, find a really nice piece of property that is priced right, has an awesome view and you fall in love. You buy the property, build a building and start a restaurant. You are one of the best chefs and cook up a mean pasta dish second to none. You put up a sign on your restaurant that says we are open. You have everything in order, down to the last detail. Waiters are standing by. This is your grand opening. Doors are unlocked. People will be flocking to get in right? Probably not. Reason, nobody knows about your new restaurant. And if they did hear about it from someone, they don’t know your open. And further, they don’t know how to get there. One way to promote your new business is to put up signs, lots of them. You need to tell everyone you know and ask them to tell everyone they know. You need to place ads in the right places. You need to send out mailers, plaster the local towns with flyers, do everything you can do to get exposure for your new business. The web is no different in that respect. You need to use various advertising tools to let the world (or at least your community) know you are there and tell them what you have to offer and why they should do business with you. Do you see the importance of social media marketing, Google Adwords, Facebook Advertising, PPC (pay per click) etc.
Let us implement a plan of attack to increase your bottom line and get your business moving again!