Are You Making These 7 Web Site Mistakes?

Secrets of a freelance Web site that SELLS! We are in the middle of a publishing and communications revolution. There has never been a time when it was easier or cheaper to put your message in front of a large audience.

Add to this the interconnectivity and search abilities provided by the Internet, and the possibilities for generating business for your freelance practice are staggering.

In a desk drawer, I have what remains of a box of floppy disks I purchased over ten years ago. I have no use for them now, but they were vital back then. As a freelance copywriter, it was the only way for me to send digital files to clients. I would save a file to the disk, put the disk in an envelope, and mail it. Two or three days later, the client would receive the disk.

My fax machine and phone were a lot more important then too. I would have to fax documents on a daily basis during a project. And communicating with a client meant calling them at their office (this was before cell phones were nearly universal) and usually leaving a message on a “machine” if the line wasn’t busy (this was also before voice mail).

Today everything is different. And the most different thing is how freelancers promote their business. Back then you’d have to print brochures and mail out samples. Today everything can be done on a Web site with a few lines of code.

But here’s the hitch: While it has gotten easier to promote services to a larger audience, and while Web sites have huge potential to bring in business, most freelancers don’t take full advantage of the power of their Web site. In fact, most freelancers make one or more of seven mistakes that reduce the profit producing possibilities of their site.

Part 2: The 7 Key Web Site Mistakes Freelancers Make

In Part 1 of this series, I discussed The Benefits of a Freelance Web Site and listed nine ways that a Web site can benefit your freelance practice. Now I want to share with you some observations I’ve made over the years about where freelancers go wrong with their site.

I’d love to show you examples, but I don’t want to embarrass anyone. I’m sure you’ve probably seen plenty of examples already. Or perhaps you are committing one of these errors. I’m guilty of at least one myself.

Including too little business information. A Web site provides a virtually unlimited space for information, but to look at some freelance sites you’d think they were paying by the pixel. If you’re not comfortable with creating your own site, you’ll have to hire someone, which can get expensive. So it’s understandable that you may be hesitant to include too much since every page is costing you. But remember that a Web site is a sales tool. In general, the more detail you provide, the more your site will sell prospects on the idea of hiring you.

Including too much personal information. I’m not sure what some freelancers are thinking when they put up a page for their freelance services that includes pictures of their tabby cat, a list of favorite romance novels, or a recipe for mint tea punch. There’s nothing wrong with being friendly and personal on your site, even sharing a few choice personal details. But there’s a line you have to draw between your personal life and your business life. Including highly personal information makes you look unprofessional and will cost you business. Think about it. If you were researching brain surgeons for an operation you needed, would you hire a guy whose site was filled with information about his comic book collection or his obsession with Brady Bunch lunch boxes?

Never making content updates. Guilty as charged. I nearly abandoned my site for a few years. And it’s cost me. My ranking in the search engines has slipped dramatically, which means when people do a Google search, my site is many pages down instead of on the first page where it used to be. Updating your site isn’t just about search ranking, though. Your site IS your business in the virtual world. Prospects and clients need to see that you are active and involved, which must be reflected on your Web site. You should always be adding details about your work, new services, extra samples, articles you’ve written, awards you’ve won, or anything else to keep it current.

Adding distracting bells and whistles. You know what I’m talking about — pop up windows all over the place, flashing text, rotating graphics, music that you can’t shut off, flash videos that prevent you from getting to the site, and all the other eye and ear candy. This mistake is generally committed by people who are new to the Web, think this stuff is cool, and don’t know that it’s actually old hat and annoying for most people. Yes, you have to look good. And yes, you want to be impressive. But your effort should go into the information you provide, not into frills that distract people from reading. Remember, the more people read, the more likely you are to get a client.

Forgetting the principles of “lead generation.” Like it or not, as a professional freelancer, you are in business. That means you have to be your own sales staff and identify good leads which you can convert into clients. To get leads, you need a way to get people to identify themselves as such. One technique is to offer a “special report” on a subject that is interesting to the sort of people who are likely to hire you. You send it to people in exchange for their contact information. There are countless other techniques, but the key thing to remember is that your Web site should be more than an online brochure. It should be an active business generation machine, always working to bring you new contacts and more work.

Not promoting the site. If you owned a store, you would advertise it. If you ran a restaurant, you would mail out dinner coupons to bring people to it. And when you maintain a Web site, you need to promote it. Doing simple things like adding your Web address to your e-mail footer or printing your address on your business cards are simple and smart. You can even get really busy and do mailings to bring prospects to your site. A postcard is a super economical way to drive traffic your way.

Being ignorant about the Web. There’s no getting around it. The more you know about Web stuff, the more control you’ll have over the success of your site. This means learning a little HTML and XHTML, being familiar with CSS, and maybe setting up your site on a publishing platform, such as WordPress. You’ll also benefit from knowing how to use an FTP program to transport files to your Web host, knowing how to use Photoshop to create photos and graphics, and knowing a little bit about good Web site writing and design practices to make sure you are communicating in a powerful way.

Next, we’ll take a look at what you should include in your site to give yourself a business edge. This is where it gets really interesting. Stay tuned.