Jun 11
22
As a marketing consultant I get asked this question frequently. Over the years and over much discussion, my answer has changed. Years ago, it wasn’t all that easy to change your design without some technical skills and rather expensive software. These days, changing a design is as simple as uploading and selecting the theme with some web providers. Yes, you have heard me say many times how “homemade” this can look if not done well, but alas the option is out there and being used by many Legal Nurse Consultants. As a result, I’ve seen people change web site themes like they change clothes. To me, that is a problem and here’s why.
Even if you eliminate the idea of branding from the discussion (although I am loathe to do that), there is still the problem of usability. Have you ever been to the store to find out they moved the bread aisle? That recently happened when my Super Walmart was remodeled. I was forced to wander all through the store to find a freaking loaf of bread; my four inch heels just click clacking away. It was frustrating. In a retail store you just may end up staying longer in the store and perhaps buying more, online, people just click away. So my first bit of marketing advice is when you do update your site, try not to confuse visitors and keep your basic structure intact. Of course, if you are doing analytics and you find you haven’t had any visitors in the last two months, then I think you are safe to do major renovations.
My second piece of advice is to make moderate changes that still make the site look fresh, new and updated. Things like tweaking a few colors, making background changes, updating the buttons, removing blocks that are not effective, and adding interactive tools like a quiz or article bank can give an old site new life. Sometimes tweaking the working to make you service offerings clearer and better defined is all that it will take to turn visitors into paying clients.
Does this mean you really shouldn’t change your site’s design? Not at all. I’m saying; don’t make complete changes too often. Overhauls are good and should be done with a purpose in mind. If your practice is taking on a new focus or you have added partners or you haven’t made any changes in two years, then it’s time to investigate the idea of a site overhaul. My personal belief is that if you haven’t changed or added to your site in more than a year then your practice hasn’t had much growth.
My response to the question of website redesign is often met with resistance and hesitation. Generally, LNC’s tell me that the web isn’t bringing them much business so why invest more money. We go back and forth with a series of questions. I ask them how they determined that the web wasn’t generating business for them. The answer usually has to do with no contact form submissions or no people calling them indicating that they found them on the web. To which I counter back that unless they are doing ROI Web analytics, they probably do not have a very accurate picture of the number of people that actually visit their site or the pages that they stay on the longest, etc. How many times a day do you look something up online but never actually call the store and tell them you just looked at their website? The same holds true for your potential clients. They may look up your practice online, yet never fill out the form or tell you they saw your website.
You might be surprised the number of people that look at your website every day. Are you presenting the best possible image of your Legal Nurse Consulting practice? If that was the only thing they ever saw about you would it be convincing enough to get them to call you
? If not, perhaps it is time to take that site in for a tune-up or even a complete overhaul. After all, like it or not your website says something about you and your practice.
If you would like to learn more about LNC practice website redesign, check out our website at www.lncpracticebuilder.com or email us at info@lncpracticebuilder.com
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