When I sat down at my desk this morning I thought of a few things that might make one of my websites more successful.  After brainstorming this topic, I wrote this post about 10 successful website actions for 2010.  Let me know what you think…is there anything off the top of your head that would make your site more successful this year?

  1. Write new content as often as possible.  I see the same content on websites for way too long…write something new!  Another good tip when it comes to writing new content…see successful action #2.
  2. Add a blog to your site so you can start getting in the habit of writing more.  This coincides with successful action #1…write new content as often as possible!  If adding a blog to your site is not an option right now open a wordpress, blogger, typepad, or tumblr account.
  3. Simplify your forms so people don’t get confused and press back on their browser for alternate google search results.  It’s simple, don’t make it hard for your prospective customers or users to contact you because they will contact someone else if it’s not you.
  4. Make checkout fast and easy (why is so hard to buy stuff on some websites? This should be dumb easy.)
  5. Add search to your site so users can find what they are looking for.  Search is the future…wait…the future is here already…you need search on your site yesterday!
  6. Write a better “About Us” section so visitors don’t leave the minute they read the first sentence.  According to a web surfer, if your about us section sucks then your company most likely sucks.  Your visitors don’t know that you were just being lazy that day and decided to skimp on the about us section rather than the home page.
  7. Make sure your site works on multiple displays. Although people are buying some huge monitors these days some still have small monitors…especially netbook users.  Personally, I have a 10″ netbook, 15.4″ laptop, and a 23″ flat screen for my desktop.
  8. Make your site easy to read with good font selection.  If you ask me, any font under 12 point is getting too small.  Cut the BS with crazy fonts!  Pick a nice clean font and stick with it for your entire site.
  9. Create a good video whether you want it to be a funny video for youtube or a serious video for your about us/bio page.
  10. Update your design and try to get out of the 90s with your cheesy landing pages, over used handshakes, and hit counters.