There is both an art and a science to creating an effective B2B website and it goes well beyond good-looking graphics and design. A B2B website should work on two fronts: enabling potential customers to end their visit with answers to all of their questions about your services/products, and turning buyers into high-quality leads for your company.
Just as with all of your company’s marketing materials and social media accounts, laser-focused marketing tactics should impact each and every decision you make with your website design. Before you get started, consider what your company does best and for whom — and create every aspect of your site with this in mind.
Plan a Winning Keyword Strategy
In order to successfully use your website, potential customers have to be able to find your site in a sea of internet search results. You’ll want to SEO optimize all of your content — from web pages and blog articles to social media posts — but before you do so, you’ll need to plan out your keyword strategy. Popular tools like Moz and SEMRush will help you see where your site currently ranks for specific keywords, how much search volume those words get, and how they compete against others.
Identify keywords that not only rank well, but that will be desirable for use throughout. Create a master document of these words to keep at hand as you move through the overall design of your site.
When it Comes to B2B Website Design, Less Is More
Designing a B2B website can feel like walking a tightrope. On one hand, you need to offer up all the information people will be looking for when they find your website (this is especially important since according to Gartner, B2B buyers spend almost one-third of the buying process independently gathering information online). On the other hand, a website design that’s overly complex or loaded down with information will discourage visitors from digging in and learning more.
One way to point people in the direction you’d like them to go? Create a variety of B2B landing pages for visitors arriving at your site for different purposes/from different places. This will enable you to highlight the information required for various types of visitors, as well as direct them to the parts of your site that feature the products/services they’re likely to be searching for, whether it’s a blog post or a page that details features or pricing.
Don’t Neglect Your ‘About Us’ Page
In addition to doing a great job of telling customers what sets your products apart from the competition, you’ve got to make it clear what sets you apart from the competition. That’s what your About page is for. Even in this highly digitized, fast-paced world, customers like to understand the people, story, and mission behind the company they are considering for a business partnership or service provider.
The worst kinds of About pages feel like an afterthought. These are hastily thrown together using a brief boilerplate bio or a description blurb and visitors leave feeling like they have no sense of the company's history, personality, or approach to client relationships.
The best About pages are designed with the customer in mind. What would they most like to know about your business? What will inspire and drive them to reach?
Some ideas for a compelling About page include:
- Why did the founder start the company and how has it grown since?
- What is the mission of the company?
- Who are the people behind the company and what is their expertise? This is a great opportunity to showcase your products/services without talking about it directly.
Don’t be afraid to get creative with graphics and even a well-put-together video.
Keep User Experience at the Forefront
Finally, and most importantly, focus on user experience as you design your B2B website. Keep users' goals in mind and make it easy for them to achieve them by paying attention to website flow and page load speed. And while you're researching and planning, check out your competitors’ websites to see what elements make their sites attractive and easy to navigate. Functionality such as a built-in online chat is a helpful way for visitors to get questions answered quickly before they navigate away.
By putting all of the elements in place while keeping your brand’s values and mission at the forefront the entire time, you’ll emerge with a website that’s well-designed and tells visitors exactly what you’d love to tell them in person: why your company is deserving of their business.
Need help with your About Us content or B2B website design? Contact us here.
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