Full Transcript
Lauren: So my friend asked me the other day... she's like, is my website any good? And I'm like, I don't know... when's the last time you actually looked at it?
Honor: Welcome to the 805 Web Minute with Lauren and Honor... We make interwebs and website stuff make sense... Let's get into it.
Honor: That's such a good question because most business owners... they set up their website and then they just move on. There's a business to run! Who has time to fuss with the website?
Lauren: Right, exactly. But like... how do you even know if it's working or not?
Honor: Okay, so here's the thing that blew my mind when I first learned it. Visitors take fifty milliseconds to form an opinion about your website. That's point-oh-five seconds.
Lauren: Wait, fifty milliseconds? That's like... faster than a blink!
Honor: Faster than a blink. Before they read your services, before they see your prices, before they even find your phone number... they've already decided if they trust you.
Lauren: Oh wow. So it's like... walking into a restaurant and knowing immediately if you're gonna stay or leave just by the vibe.
Honor: Exactly! And seventy-five percent of people judge a business's credibility based on its website design. Not your years of experience, not your five-star reviews... the website.
Lauren: Okay that's terrifying. So how does someone actually check if their site is okay?
Honor: The fastest test? Pull out your phone. Open your website. Count to three.
Lauren: Okay...
Honor: Is it loaded yet? Because fifty-three percent of mobile visitors will leave a page that takes more than three seconds to load. Not some visitors... more than half.
Lauren: Oh! So if I'm standing there going one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi and it's still loading... half my customers are already gone.
Honor: Gone. And since over sixty percent of website traffic comes from phones now... this matters more than ever.
Lauren: That's like having a store where half the people can't get the door open fast enough so they just... walk away.
Honor: Perfect analogy. And while you're on your phone, try to actually use the site. Can you tap buttons easily with your thumb? Can you read text without pinching to zoom?
Lauren: Oh god, I hate the pinch and zoom.
Honor: Everyone does. And visitors are five times more likely to leave a website that isn't mobile-friendly. Five times!
Lauren: Okay so we've got speed and mobile. What else?
Honor: Contact info. If someone lands on your site and wants to call you... how many taps does it take? Because forty-four percent of visitors will just leave if they can't easily find how to contact you.
Lauren: That's like... having a store with no cash register. Like, I want to give you my money but I literally can't figure out how!
Honor: Ha! Yes. And here's the kicker... if the phone number is wrong, sixty-six percent of people would lose trust in the business immediately. One wrong number and you're done.
Lauren: That's brutal. Okay, so speed, mobile, contact info... there's a lot to check here.
Honor: There is. But honestly? The most important test is the simplest one. Open your website. Pretend you've never seen it before. Pretend you need this service and you're comparing options. And ask yourself honestly... would I call this business?
Lauren: Ooh. That's uncomfortable.
Honor: It is. And if you're making excuses like, well, people who know me know I do good work... that's your answer. Strangers don't know you yet. Your website is their first impression.
Lauren: So the moral of the story is... look at your website like a stranger would and honestly ask: would I call this business? If you're making excuses... that's the sign.
Honor: That's it. Takes fifteen minutes. And if the answer is no... every day your site stays like that, you're losing business to competitors with better sites.
Lauren: And if you don't want to think about any of this ever again... give YouGrow a call!
Honor: Yeah, with us... you get a site that passes all these tests right out of the gate. We check your site regularly so broken stuff gets fixed before you even notice. Seventy-nine dollars a month, month-to-month, cancel anytime. And I'm local, here in Arroyo Grande... you call, I pick up.
Lauren: Love it. Alright, this has been 805 Web Minute. Thanks for listening.