- Automate alerts to stay on top of your website’s health and monitor your business presence across the Web. Rest assured it’s functioning properly and will alert you if something needs your attention.
- Keep an active and optimized website in the age of online searches. Your website serves as a hub to the online world. Review sites, maps, social media, and customer search results all link back to your website. Website health alerts will help you track potential issues, like broken links, downtime, and even domain expiration.
- Attracting new customers is the #1 concern for small business owners. 90% of customers visit and shop at the businesses they find online first. This makes having a working website essential to your customer attraction efforts.
Even the best websites have bad days
We’ve all been there. We’re searching the web, and just when we think we’re about to reach the page we need, we run into the infamous 404 ERROR page notification. The 404 ERROR is common among small and large businesses.
This specific error is so common that major companies (and campaigns) code specific content just for when they occur. Pixar’s 404 Error has a photo of the character Sadness from the film Inside Out. Lego’s page features one of its characters holding a broken link. And NPR’s has a list of other things that got lost: Amelia Earhart, Waldo, 18 ½ minutes of Watergate tapes (and the page you’re looking for).
Error pages can be fun, but broken links aren’t funny
As funny as some of these site-gags (see what we did there?) are, broken links and pages on your website pose a big problem for small businesses. It hurts the customer experience and erodes trust amongst potential customers. And in turn, it hurts your customer acquisition efforts, because if people can’t find what they’re looking for on your site, they’ll look somewhere else.
Bigger companies may have a bit of fun with the potential website error, but they also have teams of people constantly on the lookout for issues so they can act quickly to fix them. Most small businesses don’t have those resources and usually aren’t aware of the problem until a customer points it out. By that point, you may have already lost potential shoppers.
Keep your website healthy
Today, small businesses with a healthy website thrive and attract more new customers. Your online presence is key to attracting new customers, even if you run a brick-and-mortar business. And the key to a healthy online presence is a healthy website. Simple tools can help you keep an eye on the health and optimization of your website, so you can focus on your daily tasks.
While optimizing your store’s website is serious business, it doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. Create a 404 ERROR page that fits your brand and redirects customers to a location on your site where they may be able to find help. Hopefully, you never need to use it, but at least if you do, it feels on-brand and fun, not just frustrating for your customers
Pro tip: Include contact information on your 404 ERROR page. Should a customer run into a dead-end they’ll have the information they need to find the answer.
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