Editor’s Note: Here at Dispatches, we are always looking for ways to help our readers do things. For some of our readers, that means helping navigate the working world, for others, it means assisting in the ever challenging question, “what’s for dinner?” For still others, it means figuring out how to balance family life with everything else. In an effort to aid in all of these endeavors, we have collaborated on this article written specifically for our readers.
There’s more to a business website than pretty pictures and a contact page. Your business website will become far more useful if you add a range of apps and tools to improve its effectiveness for your operations. From generating more leads to boosting your SEO, here are some of the applications that will both improve your website and bolster your profit margin.
Generate more leads using this cost-effective B2B sales tool. It allows you to track those anonymous visitors who visit your website but never reach the end game (making a purchase). Who are they? Why did they visit? How long did they stick around? This lead generation tool will provide you with the answers, giving you an opportunity to both chase them up (if appropriate) and make improvements to your website to help with future sales.
Improve your search engine rankings with special plugins to help you with your SEO. These are some of the best WordPress SEO plugins for example, with customized options to help you optimize your website accordingly. These tools will help you place the right keywords, create backlinks and give you the ability to analyze your site visitors behavior. Don’t have WordPress? Some of the linked plugins will work across other website builders, and a little bit of online research will help you find further options to fit your site.
Enhance your customer support with helpdesk tools, giving you the ability to quickly respond to your customer’s concerns and queries. No longer will they sit twiddling their thumbs waiting for you to answer the phone, and no longer will you face the prospect losing them to someone else because you didn’t respond fast enough. Examples of customer support software include Freshdesk and HappyFox, with robust ticketing systems to help you improve the efficiency of your support.
Make the shopping process easier for your customers using designated e-commerce tools. By making their experience simpler, with smarter ways to add items to the shopping cart and faster payment processes, your business will profit as a result. We recommend Shopify, but other tools are available. Not only are these apps fast and efficient, but they are secure as well, something that will bring added peace of mind to any worried customers.
Save time traveling to business meetings by using a virtual conferencing app, be it Skype, Zoom, or ReadyTalk. You can sit in the comfort of your office and speak with anybody through your computer screen, be they in the same building as you or halfway across the world. You can share your screen with others, collaborate on projects, and transfer essential files, all with the click of a button. What’s more, some of these apps will work from your mobile devices too, so you can easily make those conference calls when you’re at home, on the train, or indeed anywhere (provided you have a good wifi signal).
There is a tool and an app for almost everything these days, and we have only touched the surface. Consider what it is you need to improve your website, and continue your research, using the latest tools and apps to enhance your business, and improve your customer’s experience.