Web Design for Small Businesses

Posted on 11th November 2022 by Chris Draper

Designing and building a new website, or redesigning an existing website, can seem like a daunting task. To small business owners a new web design is often something that gets put off due to the thought of tackling the project whilst already running a demanding business.

With nearly two decades of experience in developing websites for small businesses, we have the experience in what it takes to create an engaging and successful business website. Whether a startup or an existing business, getting the results you are looking for can depend on a number of key steps and factors, which we outline below.

Register a Domain Name

There are many factors to consider when choosing a website domain name. Some of the most important factors include:

1. The domain name should be easy to remember.

2. The domain name should be short and simple.

3. The domain name should be relevant to your business or website.

4. The domain name should be available.

There are many places to buy website domain names. Some popular options include GoDaddy, Names, and Ionos. Should you wish to, 4D Digital can quickly check availability and register a domain name for you.

Website Hosting

A website host is a company that owns and operates servers that are connected to the internet. When you create a website, you need to store the files that make up your website on a server. Website hosting provides space on a server for your website, as well as the technology needed to connect your website to the internet.

There are many factors to consider when choosing a website hosting provider. Some of the most important factors include:

Price: How much does the hosting provider charge?

Reliability: How often is the website down?

Customer support: How responsive is the customer support?

Features: What features does the hosting provider offer?

Consider your goals

Some goals that your website might have are to increase sales, to get more leads, to increase brand awareness, or to generate more traffic.

More general aims for your new website should include the following:-

To be user-friendly and easy to navigate

To have a clean and modern design

To load quickly

To be responsive (to work well on mobile devices)

To be optimised for search engines

To be secure (with an SSL certificate)

To have contact information and a contact form

To have a blog or news section

Create a memorable and engaging website

The best way to create a memorable and engaging website will vary depending on the type of website and the audience you are trying to reach. However, some tips to create a memorable and engaging website include using high-quality visuals, telling a story, and making it easy for visitors to navigate and find the information they are looking for.

At 4D Digital we work with each client to design a website that engages the user and provides clear access to all website content and information. We believe that the content of a website has to take priority when designing layout and structure. This then enables website visitors to navigate through the website more easily and access information quickly.

Optimise for search engines

There are many things you can do to optimise your website for SEO. Some important things to consider are:

Making sure your website is accessible to search engine crawlers

Creating keyword-rich content

Using relevant keywords in your titles and headings

Creating backlinks to your website from other high-quality websites

Optimising for SEO will vary depending on your website’s context and application. For more in-depth information we are happy to advise and talk through your requirements. At 4D Digital we offer full Website and SEO Audits as part of any SEO service.

Implement a maintenance plan

A website maintenance plan is a service that provides regular updates and security for a website. This can include things like updating the website content, adding new features, and keeping the site secure.

Should your website be based on the WordPress platform, it’s important to keep up-to-date with plugin, theme and framework updates.

Promote your website

There are many ways to promote a website. Some of the most common include SEO (search engine optimization), social media marketing, and content marketing.

For Social Media some common methods include creating accounts for the website and sharing links to the website on these accounts; creating promotional content such as videos or blog posts about the website and sharing this content on social media; and running social media ads that link to the website.

There are a number of ways you can use content marketing to promote your website. You can use blog posts, infographics, videos, and other forms of content to attract attention to your site and encourage people to visit it. You can also use social media to share your content and drive traffic to your website.

Commonly asked questions

Does my Small Business website need a content-management system?

A content management system (CMS) is a website framework that allows you to create and modify digital content. Most websites are built with a CMS which allows the business owner to modify and add content themselves.

If you want to create a Small Business website, you will most likely need a CMS.

What is UX and how does it affect my website?

UX, or user experience, affects your website in that it determines how easy or difficult it is for users to interact with your site. A good UX will make it easy for users to find what they’re looking for and navigate your site, while a poor UX will make it difficult for users to use your site.

Should I use WordPress for my website?

WordPress is a good choice for many websites, but it may not be the best choice for your specific website. At 4D Digital we specialise in developing for WordPress but will advise on the framework that we fell can best help your business reach its goals.

As a small business, do I need to be ready for e-commerce?

E-commerce refers to the buying and selling of goods and services over the internet. This can be done through a variety of different platforms, including online marketplaces, online stores, and mobile apps.

If your business has any plans in the future to sell products or services online, then good advice is to build the website framework with e-commerce enabled from the outset.

Do I need to add to my small business website every month or more frequently?

As a general rule, it is a good idea to add new content to your website on at least a monthly basis. This will help keep your site fresh and relevant, and will give your visitors a reason to come back.

How much does it cost to create a website for a small business?

The cost of creating a website for a small business can vary depending on the size and scope of the project. Generally, a simple website can cost anywhere from £500 to £2,000, while a more complex website can cost upwards of £5,000 or more.

Do you have to pay monthly for a website?

Should 4D Digital produce a website for you, you do not have to pay monthly. You may be required to pay for hosting with us, but that is separate from your website itself.

Summary

At 4D Digital we aim to use our experience and knowledge to ease the process of building a new website and, hopefully, even make it an enjoyable task. Please get in touch with us if you would like to talk further about your business website.

“4D Digital have been extremely helpful in designing and producing a fantastic website for my business and supporting the initial digital launch of the site. Chris is knowledgeable, has a wide-reach of contacts to support small to large projects and most of all trustworthy – very important in a digital market where I have little knowledge. I would recommend 4D Digital without hesitation.”
Miles Robinson – Founder & Director, Home Group Financial

Website launch – Transition 15

Posted on 23rd September 2022 by Chris Draper

Founded by ex-professional rugby international Matt Perry, Transition 15 combine world-class sport and business methodology with corporate coaching expertise. Transition 15 earlier this year asked 4D Digital to develop a new website, which was to include new video content and photography of their team.

Clean, responsive website

Using the WordPress framework for speed of build, 4D worked to migrate existing content into the revised design. A clean, modern feel to the website was to be key, keeping the information on methods and programmes Transition 15 provide easily accessible.

Video & Photography

Supported by Matt Doherty and his team at Bara Studio in Bristol, we were delighted to provide superb new video and photo content for the website. Helping clients feel and act naturally whilst in front of the lens is a skill not to be underestimated!

Ease of use for client updating

After training for the internal team on updating and managing the content, the website was launched in August this year. Additional support will be provided post-launch in marketing and maintaining the website.

“4D Digital have been superb in helping us develop our new website – from defining key requirements with a website audit to bringing new ideas to life. The level of support, advice and guidance has been fantastic. It’s a real pleasure working with 4D Digital.”
Matt Perry – Founder & Director, Transition 15

The Rise of the Website ChatBot

Posted on 15th July 2022 by Chris Draper

Along with the unmissable Cookie Notice & Privacy pop up, the rise of the ChatBot has been hard to miss on the web in recent years. Recently we put the ChatBot in our top five trends for the past year, and there’s every reason to see this continue.

At first the offer to chat on a website, as a support feature, can seem a little intrusive. A further reminder maybe, that our every move and click online is being tracked. But once you get over that concern, and occasionally even use these services, it hopefully becomes more clear as to how they could be useful when used in the correct way.

Some online chat support is still operated by a live person, and more technical enquiries are often handled this way. But increasingly these services are being replaced by an automated support ‘bot’, that has been programmed to give defined answers to a range of commonly-asked questions. These bots, or ChatBots, are fed questions and answers, and using Artificial Intelligence algorithms, are ‘trained’ to respond to a wide variety of input.

Currently it’s relatively easy to spot the difference between a ChatBot and a real support person, but as time goes by the difference is going to be hard to spot. As we move through 2022, many companies are looking to use the AI tool as a way of increasing engagement on their website. Remember that all dialog is stored, analysed and in turn educates the ChatBot through machine learning. This circle of learning means that what currently seems quite a crude tool, will over the next few years become increasingly sophisticated.

With the release of AI tools such as Google’s DialogFlow, creating a ChatBot is becoming relatively straightforward. Maybe the question is not should we use these tools, but when do we start?

Update July 2022 – Online Meeting and Call Schedulers

In addition to website chatbots, increasing use can be made of interactive widgets such as meeting and call schedulers. A number of our clients have benefitted from the ability for users to immediately book a callback or a more in-depth meeting. Not having to wait for a reply to a contact for email can give a real boost to enquiries and lead generation.

Amongst the top online schedulers are Calendly and Appointy, both of whom offer a good deal of flexibility and include a free starter package. When choosing an appointment scheduler, make sure you are able to customise the widget to present your brand in a professional way. The ability also to integrate with your own calendar, such as Google Calendar or Microsoft Outlook can save you time. More advanced features can include integration with marketing tools including HubSpot & MailChimp, and even to book meetings with Zoom and Microsoft Teams.

Website launch – NVH International

Posted on 23rd May 2022 by Chris Draper

NVH International are a leading Noise Vibration & Harshness (NVH) testing and software supplier based in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire. Formed following the acquisition of the division from Anthony Best Dynamics, NVH are looking to continue building on their 38 years of industry experience.

Brand, logo & website design

Having approached 4D Digital in the spring of 2022, NVH required new branding and website design in a relatively short time frame for the launch of the new company. 4D worked with the team at NVH to develop a brand guidelines, logo and website design. Clear access to technical information was key to the success of the website project.

CMS Integration

A core element of the website included integration into internal client CMS tools. NVH needed seamless progression of prospective enquiries to fit their sales processes. Particular emphasis has been given to all email form and contact enquiries as part of ongoing lead generation.

Further support

Over the coming months 4D Digital look forward to working with NVH International to continue development of the website, reinforcing its position as a key marketing tool.

How Google’s latest update could affect your website rankings

Posted on 9th September 2021 by Chris Draper

In June this year Google began rolling out a major change to the way its search engine rankings are displayed. This is important because in the UK over 93% of all searches use Google, and many businesses rely on search engine traffic to generate new enquiries through their websites.

Although Google already had user experience factors within its algorithm, the new update was to include a revised Page Experience ranking method. Previously websites were encouraged to be mobile- and tablet-friendly, and to enable secure browsing through use of HTTPS connections. The Google Page Experience update, however, included a number of new ranking factors, and after some delay was rolled out from mid-June 2021.

What are the new ranking factors?

A core focus of the update was to include metrics involving how fast your website page loads. Firstly, Google checks to see how long it takes for the most important content on the page to load. This largest contentful paint timing (LCP) is key to a good user experience, and if your website takes over 2.5 seconds to load then its ranking can be adversely affected. Large and too many images, slow scripts and poor website hosting are among the main factors that cause a poor LCP rating.

The next loading factor included is a measure of how the page loads visually. If you’ve ever noticed the elements on a page moving around and changing position as a page loads (often caused by too many adverts on the page), then you’ve seen what Google refers to as Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). A low CLS score is indicative of a website that loads smoothly and allows the user to start viewing content without too many interruptions.

If you’ve ever had to wait for a page to load before being able to complete a form, such as a contact page enquiry, then you’ve suffered from First Input Delay or FID. This delay is another sign of a slow loading page, as website code is required to load before your browser lets you enter form details. Frustrating to the user, and another usability factor that Google looks at.

Non-intrusive advertising

The last major metric Google has introduced is around the use of advertising on website pages. Not considered to be an issue in itself, the problem can arise (and we all know the media/newspaper websites that are the worst offenders) when a page has so many adverts and popup messages that the page content itself becomes difficult to access. Again, within the theme of keeping usability at the forefront, if adverts are used on a website they need to load quickly and efficiently, with minimal interruption to the main content. If not, the website will start to lose importance as far as Google is concerned.

How can these Page Experience factors be measured?

Helpfully, Google has added to its Search Engine Console tool a section for Page Experience. This includes data on Core Web Vitals as well as a report on the mobile usability of your website. Building over time as Google measures how users interact with your website, the data provided indicates which usability areas are performing well, and those that need attention.

Google Search Engine Console – Mobile Usability Report

Existing ranking factors still matter

Although these new Page Experience ranking metrics are seen as important by Google (and give an indication of how its algorithm may alter over the next few years), the existing reasons why your website will rank highly on search engines still very much remain. If your page has content that is relevant to the search term and is regularly updated, within a website that is easy to use and well presented, then you are going a long way to ranking highly for that search term.

If you think your website would benefit from some work on the points we’ve raised above, or would just like a view on what may be needed to improve it’s performance, please email us on contact@4d-digital.co.uk or call our office on 01249 561010.

Case Study – Stronghold Healthcare

Posted on 3rd March 2021 by Chris Draper

Stronghold Global are an established and growing supplier to trade of workwear and business goods throughout the UK. Stronghold required a new website to be quickly deployed in order to react to market changes – specifically to provide PPE supplies due to the second wave in the UK of the COVID pandemic. A short deadline of four weeks was needed in order to be able to offer both quoted goods for trade volumes and paid orders for new customers.

4D Digital recommended existing branding for the Stronghold Global to be used as the company is well known within it’s target market, but subtle amends were used to enable the Stronghold Healthcare website to have it’s own identity.

Stronghold Healthcare within the Stronghold Global brand

The WordPress framework was used in conjunction with WooCommerce as an ecommerce module to enable fast development prior to product and content entry. Management of the website content, orders and products by the internal team was to be a key requirement post-launch.

4D Digital worked swiftly with the team at Stronghold to specify the website requirements and deliver the website ready for launch earlier than anticipated. Orders and quote requests were active within a day of launch. Particular importance has been placed on continual development of the website, with marketing channels set up with the internal CRM for access by the UK sales team.

Ongoing support is in place with internal CMS training and website maintenance. 4D Digital continues to work with Stronghold on SEO and paid ad campaigns to progress the website.

Progressive Web Apps – How they can help your business

Posted on 25th November 2020 by Chris Draper

Most businesses realise that mobile technology needs to be at the forefront of any digital strategy. We all know how powerful and addictive mobile apps and websites can be. However, businesses can harness this (in a good way) by using a technology that creates a new type of mobile app or website – the Progressive Web App.

Add to Home Screen

A Progressive Web App (PWA) is a website or application that interacts with the user just as a native app would do. Unlike a native app, a PWA is not installed via an app store such as Apple’s App Store or Android’s Google Play. The application is simply a website visited by the user, who is prompted to install a shortcut onto the mobile home screen.

This seemingly small difference offers a huge benefit to anyone developing and maintaining the app. No app store means no commission fees, no time-consuming approval process every time the app is updated. In addition to bypassing the app stores, being based on web technologies enables the application to written in only one codebase – not the multiple versions that are needed to maintain iOS, Android and Windows apps. Reduced development and maintenance costs, quicker release to market – it’s easy to see why many some of even the world’s largest brands are pursuing the PWA route to market.

PWA Functionality

Only in the last two or three years have PWA’s been given access to the hardware device functions a native app could use. Camera, Microphone, Push Notifications, Geolocation, File system – all of these and more can now be accessed by mobile web technology and therefore a PWA. Transferring data on secure https connections, the ability to work offline – these are now default functionality for a PWA and make for exciting possibilities.

Starbucks leads the way

Let’s have look at three of the best PWA examples currently in use. All are from big brands who are slowly moving away from building native iOS and Android apps.

Starbucks

Like them or loath them – Starbucks have led the way with PWA apps. Featuring geo-location for nearest stores and good offline capabilities.

Twitter Lite

The Twitter PWA or Twitter Lite as it’s referred to, can be installed via https://mobile.twitter.com

The performance is so good that it’s easy to forget this is not a native app.

Debenhams

The might not be considered bang up-to-date in the fashion stakes, but the team at Debenhams are ‘en mode’ with this one.

https://www.debenhams.com/webapp

The future’s bright – the future’s PWA?

There may always be a place for native apps. But we would suggest that anyone looking to build a new app should seriously consider the PWA route. Reducing development cost and time as well as removing the need for app store approval, can make a serious difference to any new project.

Update – November 2020

Since we put this blog together in August 2018, the PWA has grown even further in popularity. Major brand names such as Uber and Lyft have both explored the PWA route.

Website launch – Industrial Mergers & Acquisitions

Posted on 18th May 2020 by Chris Draper

4D Digital are delighted to launch the new website for Wiltshire-based company Industrial Mergers & Acquisitions (IMA). IMA are a team of consultants working with acquisitions and mergers in the energy and industrial sector.

4D Digital have worked with IMA within a short timescale to provide branding, website, email, social media setup and printed materials, supporting the company launch in May 2020.

Improved website build times

Using the latest WordPress framework enabled a fast development time, thus keeping down project costs. The framework has superb content management and straightforward integration with external providers such as MailChimp and Google Analytics.

Ongoing support

We look forward to working with IMA, offering ongoing support and experience in helping their business grow. Our services include Web design in Wiltshire, SEO and Digital Marketing.

WordPress eCommerce Plugins to get your business selling online

Posted on 11th May 2020 by Chris Draper

WordPress continues it’s growth as the most popular website CMS and blogging platform, and here we look at the most popular and effective ecommerce plugins available.

Updated May 2020

With the ongoing government restrictions due to COVID-19, the ability for businesses to sell online is clearly gaining in importance. With over 14 years experience in helping clients move into ecommerce, we would like to help businesses should they wish to make the step to sell online. We are offering free phone call consultations, simply call our office on 01249 561010 to arrange a callback or video meeting.

WooCommerce

By far the leading ecommerce plugin for WordPress, with over 29% of market share according to Datanyze most recent report, WooCommerce is still the leading solution for selling online with the framework. It’s a go-to platform for 4D Digital, and we have extensive experience in developing and extending it’s capabilities.

With a large selection of extensions, WooCommerce can cover most website needs and it’s huge contributor base means that any security updates are monitored and released with good regularity.

Easy Digital Downloads

As it’s name implies, Easy Digital Downloads offers a solution for those who are looking to sell download files such as music, articles or eBooks. With an easy set up, website owners can relatively quickly have their very own digital sales platform running.

With the basic plugin free, the premium very of Easy Digital Downloads offers extended functionality regarding email marketing and payment gateway integration.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is a standalone ecommerce software solution that has gained popularity in recent years. Many would argue that it’s checkout experience is superior to WooCommerce. Now that the WordPress plugin for BigCommerce has moved out of beta, this is going to be a serious option for WordPress retailers in 2019.