Frustrated with your website? You are not alone.
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When I started this journey in 1995, a website was created using HTML and CGI scripts to make forms and other features work. It was pretty easy to get found because there weren’t that many websites.
It’s easy to gravitate towards what we prefer rather than what is required. I know I’ve done that at times, especially when what is needed can be scary, challenging, and frustrating. But the sky is the limit if you tackle those fears and frustrations head-on.
For those who contact me to help with their websites, most of their frustration comes from not feeling comfortable with processes or confident in website technology. They are not “techies.”
Add all the hype and quick, fast, and easy propaganda out there that misrepresents reality, and they feel as if only they are having problems producing results. They tried some “easy” things, but they weren’t all that “easy” after all.
The reality of what online success requires smacks them in the face, and that’s a pretty poignant moment. While that can be overwhelming, let’s push through and pull you up by your bootstraps.
What’s Required to Succeed Online
Not impossible — just a lot of work.
If you want a business website, accept that online success will not be easy. Most website owners do not realize the complexity of all the tasks they would have to process regularly until they are in the thick of it.
It’s not because you aren’t intelligent. You are. You are experienced at running your business, but when it comes to your website, there are many new things to learn and embrace. A different set of skills and priorities added to the mix.
That’s where your desire to learn and apply makes all the difference.
But, there is a catch-22. If you do not want to be intimately involved and do not want to partner with someone to help fill any gaps, you cannot expect any decent results. Nothing happens by osmosis online.
Top Website Owner Frustrations
Can you relate to these frustrations?
- Rankings that never materialize.
- Site traffic isn’t where you perceive it should be.
- Website performance metrics that do not meet standards.
- The necessary time or skills required to accomplish 1-3.
- The frequency and process of updating and just keeping up.
Again, you are not alone. Based on all the folks I have worked with for decades, you are not the exception. You are the rule.
I’ve heard this from business owners just like you. Time and time again.
Regarding their online program, they tend to take a more hands-off approach and assume that their offline success will translate to their website. Best practices and required tasks can be delayed or ignored only to be accomplished when the site owner gets around to it—if ever.
Well, the thing is, search engines and site visitors may not know how great you are offline. How do they know you are the expert, the authority, the one to be trusted?
The online world is constantly evolving. Even those like me who live and breathe all things online find it hard to keep up. So what do I do? I prioritize. I set aside time to learn, do, process, investigate, and review.
You can do this as well. Here’s how.
How to Embrace Your Role as a Website Owner
When I used to develop websites from scratch (I only do so now for current clientele), I would provide clients with my “priorities worksheet.” This worksheet detailed each of our responsibilities when working on their project and the due dates.
Most were shocked at what they needed to be involved in, all the information I would need to create their vision, and how much they had not considered. It was overwhelming.
Start by making your own priority sheet. Write down what you need to do and when. Then, with the discipline to follow through, schedule time to learn what you need to understand and become a sponge.
Rankings that never materialize.
Most websites will never see “top 10” organic rankings on Google for common competitive terms. It is not impossible, just improbable. So start with realistic rankings expectations.
And if you do hit the top 10, it will be after years of consistent effort. Years? Yep.
Dependence on Google rankings is not a solid business methodology. I would not base my business plan on it, nor should you.
To reach the top 10, you would need to outperform the websites that already hold those spots in every possible metric; for small—to mid-sized businesses, that is a steep hill to climb.
So, what do you do? Your best to become competitive — over time.
Site traffic isn’t where you perceive it should be.
When it comes to traffic to your website, you can do all kinds of things to build awareness on and offline to generate traffic if you are willing to do the hard work. Start with these articles:
Think about this… Would you rather have 1000s of visitors and only convert a handful? Or would you prefer to have hundreds of site visitors and convert half of them? Hmmm…
Website performance metrics that do not meet standards.
The “standards” in this case are challenging. For example, did you know that with the Google “Page Experience Update,” even Google doesn’t meet those criteria on some of its properties? But then Google doesn’t have to worry about getting traffic, do they?
This doesn’t mean your site will nose-dive in the rankings if you aren’t at 100% compliance. 100% is a tricky metric to hit. If everything is equal regarding rankings, the website with the best page experience will have an advantage.
RANT: Seeing the big guys with name recognition and substantial advertising budgets is frustrating. They don’t rely on Google’s algorithm du-jour for their business to be found so that they can make a living. Little guys and gals like us do not have that luxury. So we have to work harder. It is what it is.
The necessary efforts are required.
And what are those? Tasks that you can do yourself. What you don’t want to do or can’t right now, find a partner to help you.
It is best to embrace what you need to know or learn and get down to it. It can be scary sometimes, but that’s how you learn and accomplish things you never thought possible.
We then work to prioritize the skills you want to learn, and you dive in. You put in the hard work—all of it.
Your Success is Equal to Your Commitment
Right now, I have four websites, and I spend a lot of time updating them, keeping them current, and all that goes with that. This includes updating themes, plugins, and designs and implementing technology trends. It’s not easy.
I set my online calendar with all kinds of color-coded reminders so I know what I need to do and when. It’s very colorful, and it keeps me on track.
But ultimately, it is up to me to keep me on track. You will not succeed without discipline and a strong work ethic.
You can do this. You have to want to do this. Ready, set, go!
At your service,
