What your corporate website needs.

Most corporate site visitors are not coming frequently, but when they do come, it is essential that they find what they need easily, and perhaps discover something new. Using your site to explain who you are, what you do and, importantly, why you do it, will build your reputation, enhance recruiting efforts, help your company weather a crisis, and support your presence in communities. Plus the positive business effects of clear purpose and social responsibility are well documented.  So, what’s missing?  

The who, what and how.  

Be definitional, and tell the world who you are and what you do—the bare minimum! But don’t forget to include your approach and guiding principles, your leaders, and give a sense of your history. This is a moment to emphasize your ethics, showcase your Board and governance, and use the story of your founding to give velocity to today’s innovations (even if the founding was not so long ago). 

Tell stories. “Content” should not be boring. 

Along with social media channels, your corporate site is a primary window the world has into your company. Compelling headlines, quality pictures and videos can turn a list of accomplishments and ‘highlights’ into stories that bring former bullet points to life with employee, customer and community voices. It shouldn’t be just a boring press release filing cabinet.

Visual impact and usability matter. 

Beautiful and easy to use… should be everyone’s goal. The site is a representation of your brand, it’s important to be visually appealing, polished and professional — engaging users keeps them on your site. White space, quality photos and uncluttered layouts let messages shine. And, visitors are always in a hurry, don’t make them work to figure it out. Logical navigation with clear hierarchy and consistent layouts with visual cues for functionality enhance the site and keep visitors on it.

Social impact and sustainability are key components.

Broadly, Corporate Social Responsibility, “non-financial” pillars of established positive contributions, will help the company build reputation with communities and job seekers, as well as recover more quickly from any missteps. 

Highlight philanthropy, volunteerism, and community interactions on the site with stories and metrics to support the themes. This builds your “license to operate” in the communities where you are based, and where your employees live. Demonstrate how you’re creating value, beyond the financial. Measure it. Consider issuing a report. Without any hard and fast rules to define what comprises a CSR or Sustainability report just get started and get something out there. Build on it and improve quality over time. 

Where to begin?

There is a huge range of possibilities, and there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. Plus, it is important to remember that more isn’t always more—be strategic in furthering the goals of your organization. Improvements are possible at any budget level with the right mindset. Don’t know where to start? Give us a call, IOP is ready to help.

Learn more about getting your site from good to great: 7 Qualities of a Great Website.