This type of question comes up more often than most people would think. What makes a good website that both serch engines and visitors will like? They might also follow that question up with something like: Are there any special characteristics that can help you differentiate your website from the competition? The simple answer to both of these questions is yes. The fact is, there are some elements that every good website needs to have and that is exactly what you will learn from this post!
What is a good website?
A good website is one that satisfies three specific objectives:
To satisfy all of these objectives, a website needs to have some special qualities which makes them different from all of the other websites which are competing for the same topics.
4 Important Qualities Of a Good Website
Below are the 4 qualities which will make a good website stand out from others.
1. Great Content – Great content is the foundation of every great website. Google and other search engines have become great when it comes to surfacing websites with high-quality content and that means if your content isn’t good, your site cannot survive online. When I talk about content I’m not just referring to any type of content. It needs to be content that users want to read. This is a critical success factor and you can tell how visitors react to your content just by looking at Google Analytics. Metrics like time on site, bounce rate, exit rate and average session duration can give you a better idea as to how users are liking the topics you’re writing about.
2. SEO Optimized – You can create awesome content, which is great, but what next? You need to make sure Google and other search engines can both read and understand what your website and content is all about. In plain terms, you need to create an SEO friendly website that is free of technical SEO errors. The more information you can give to search engines in a way they can understand it, the greater your chances are of achieving high rankings. SEO optimized websites provide a great user experience because they’re easy to use, accessible and well-structured. This combination makes them great websites!
3. Trusted By Users – Gaining user trust is an important success factor because even if you manage to win Google trust you’ll still need to win the users trust as well. User trust has to do with the quality of your content, but it also relates to treating your users with respect. You respect your visitors by providing them with accurate information that’s easy to access without trying to trick them into clicking ads. It’s also about making sure that any information they share with you is going to be secure and private and not shared with marketing companies without their consent. If your website offers downloadable products, users also trust that you are giving them clean files which are not infected with malware or a virus.
4. Optimized For Mobile – The vast majority of people use their mobile device to start or continue a search which means it is more than necessary to have a website which is properly optimized for mobile. Google has added mobile-friendliness as a search engine ranking factor which means if you fail to provide your users with a mobile-friendly website it will damage your Google rankings. Keep in mind a mobile-friendly website is not the same as a mobile-optimized website. Having a responsive website that shows on mobile devices without scroll bars is the first step, but not enough. Pay special attention to how users interact with your website on mobile and make sure that they can find what they want fast and easy.
