If you’re a technology services firm, you likely appreciate the critical nature of having a strong online presence.
Most technology services firms not only are found online, but also deliver their services through a digital environment. And your website is the hub of your online presence.
According to research from the Hinge Research Institute, 8 out of 10 buyers will check out a technology services website as the very first step in the process of determining whether a firm is a potential fit for the problem they’re trying to solve. Knowing the right components of a technology services website then becomes the key to standing out in a crowded, competitive environment and, ultimately, to winning new business.
In this article, we’ll show you the critical things to keep in mind as you build or reevaluate your own technology services website.
The importance of being mobile-responsive
So what components make a technology services website excellent? First and foremost, it must be mobile responsive. Why? A mobile-responsive website provides a great user experience by adapting to the device of the website visitor. Mobile-responsive design means that visitors won’t struggle to find the information they need.
The good news is that you no longer need to be a web designer to build an effective mobile-responsive website. But if you happen to be a web developer, you’ll want to forgo outside solutions and design your own technology services website as a way of showcasing your capabilities set.
Additional tools for your technology services website
There are two other critical tools that must be incorporated all throughout your website: SEO and calls to action.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is your strategy for being found. Think about how people will find your website. You can’t rely on them knowing your name – if that’s the only way people can find you, think of all the business being left on the table by limiting your visibility to only those who happen to know your name!
SEO is the practice of incorporating keywords throughout the pages of your website that not only relate to what you do, but that will also place you on the first page of a search. This can take time, so patience is required.
Secondly, how will people move through your website and make decisions around selecting you as their preferred solution? This is the role of calls to action, which, simply put, gives visitors a decision to make. A call to action can be “contact us” or “join our team.” But the highest-performing technology services websites will also have calls to action that invite visitors to take actions such as downloading a valuable white paper, connecting with an expert, or signing up for a free consultation or demo.
Not everyone is ready to hit the “contact us” button when they come to your website for the first or even second time. But if each time they visit your website, they have other actions to take that yield useful information, your company will likely be the one they think of when they are ready to make their selection.
5 critical website pages and what they should communicate
Finally, many companies struggle to understand what types of pages they should have on their website and the role each of those pages plays in the buyer journey.
In our view, there are five key pages that comprise a high-performing technology services website:
Homepage
This is a no brainer – your site has to have a homepage, but unless your homepage provides succinct answers to what you do, who you do it for, and how you do it differently from the next company down the street, visitors will likely bounce. Your homepage provides front door access to the rest of your company, so this is the place to make your case.
About page
Because your homepage should be clean and succinct, your About page is the place where you can do a deeper dive on what you do and how you’re different from competitors. Spend less time on your firm’s history and prioritize an explanation of how you impact the thing your audience cares about most – and how you impact it differently from the competition.
Services/Solutions pages
This is your opportunity to incorporate service or solution-related keywords that can help you be found for the problem your audience is trying to solve. Avoid industry jargon and use plain English to help visitors understand your expertise.
Team page
If possible, include a page that introduces your company’s experts, and then include individual bio pages for a deeper dive on the background for each of those experts. At the end of the day, you’re selling expertise, and behind that expertise are people.
The websites that really stand out are the ones that provide access to the people behind the services and solutions. You don’t have to include everyone in the entire company. Leadership and key delivery or customer-facing people are the ones you want to prioritize.
Contact page
Of course you can build “Contact” calls to action throughout your website, but having a dedicated page where visitors can fill out a form provides a straightforward way of getting in touch with you. Paint a clear picture of your hours, location if you have one (this is not as relevant these days), and how long it will take for them to hear from you.
Final thoughts
At the end of the day, your technology services website’s structure and design are the means through which you accomplish the website’s ultimate goal – getting the right information to the right people, and eventually converting those visitors into customers.
As you consider your own website and the role it plays in the marketing of your technology services firm, make sure to prioritize the goals and best practices outlined above. If you follow these guidelines, you will be well-situated to stand out from the rest of the marketplace.
