Starting an Online Business All-in-One For Dummies®, 3rd Edition

Chapter 2: Redesigning to Win New Customers

In This Chapter

• Evaluating your Web site design for improvements
• Creating a plan to update your site
• Informing customers of proposed changes to gain feedback
• Making your site more accessible and user friendly
• Adding ways for customers to interact and learn

Have you ever visited a Web site and immediately thought that it was designed years ago? The site may also have left you with the feeling that the information was outdated and unreliable, making the products and service less desirable. Perhaps you also wondered whether the business owner even remembered that he or she had a Web site! If your site appears dated and neglected, prospective customers may take just seconds to decide to head over to the site of one your competitors to make a purchase.

Before the Internet became popular, companies redesigned their marketing efforts every year or two. With the fast pace of the Internet, companies have been reinventing themselves (and their Web sites) every three to six months, or occasionally even more often. Prospective customers make buying decisions that are often based on how up-to-date a site appears.

You may be wondering how you'll know when it's time to adapt. Well, Web design is a continually changing and evolving concept. Despite the rumors, there isn't a single Web guru who sits on a mountaintop and decrees, “This year, all Web sites will use blue Courier 12-point font with a polka dot background!” Instead, the collective nature ...