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Your Website Can Be a Single-Page Site
Creating an effective single-page site for a business might seem like a real challenge (and it is!), but it can be done.
As you can imagine, a single-page site needs to be really focused, and it needs to provide basic company information such as the type of business (does it offer products or services or both?), contact information (address, phone number, fax, and email), a photo (if appropriate for the business), and some type of call to action.
A single-page site needs to function like an ad in the yellow pages, where space is at a premium and every word and image really counts. In general, you'll find that single-page sites often work well for businesses that are small and local and provide a highly targeted set of products or services.
As an example, let's assume you are a real estate agent in a mid-size town in the Midwest. Your primary goal should be to get new prospective clients to call you. You don't likely need a site that lists every single property that you have for sale (or ones those other agencies have for sale).
What you likely need is a good "call to action" site that provides the information that is unique about your specialty and approach. If you try to provide too much information on your site, potential clients could get confused and turned off and never send you an email or pick up the phone and call you.
Your Website Can Have Multiple Pages
You might find that a single-page site could work for the type of business that you have, but in most cases you'll simply need more pages to get out your message. This is especially true if you have a national or international business or if your business offers a range of products and/or services. The trick with sites that have multiple pages is to not let them get out of hand.
So how many pages is too many? It's difficult to come up with a hard and fast number. I find that a good easy-to-manage range is somewhere between 5 and 20 pages, although I have seen sites that provide more pages and still do a good job at operating small with good focus.
As you think about your site, it's important to not focus too much on counting pages but rather on determining the elements that you really need. Don't be afraid to leave out elements that aren't critical.
For example, if you have a company that sells and ships metal bar stools, it might be okay to use multiple pages so that you can display all of the contact and ordering information, a list and short description of the products that you have (with sizing dimensions), information about your quality service and products, a simple shopping cart so that customers can order, samples of finishes and color swatches, and so on.
What you likely don't need is Flash graphics that show how your bar stools swivel around. Leave this kind of junk for the big and bloated sites (your competitors!).
Important Points About Single-Page Sites and Multiple Pages
- A single-page site needs to be really focused.
- A single-page site needs to function like an ad in the yellow pages.
- Multiple pages: A good easy-to-manage range is somewhere between 5 and 20 pages.
- It's important to not focus too much on counting pages but rather on determining the elements that you really need.
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