Are you looking for ways to reach more women in need? One of the key ways to attract women to your center is to optimize your site for search engines. If you’re looking to create your first site or upgrade your center’s current website, you might want to consider a content-first strategy. It is the method that an increasing number of top website builders are gravitating toward. Here is what you need to know about how to build your site around a content-first strategy.
What is a Content-First Website Design Strategy?
Content-first is a website design strategy that many of the top digital agencies have adopted to guide websites in a more efficient direction and ultimately create an improved user experience. A content-first approach places the primary emphasis on written copy, images, video, and downloadable content. Design and function are important, but the content is ultimately the reason potential clients visit your center’s site. The information you provide about pregnancy, abortion and your services is the most crucial element. Thus, making content the starting point for planning a site is the best strategy for creating an effective site for your audience.
The Issue with a Design-First Approach
People are visual. So, you might think that a visual-first approach is the best way to build a website that appeals to your clients, but that’s going to result in a waste of resources. Trying to design a site before you have the content created is comparable to making the packaging before you know what product is going to fit inside. If you make the packaging first, then you will need to either force the product inside even if it does not fit well, or you can completely start the building process over. Neither one of these options is ideal.
Put the Emphasis on Content First
Content should always be the top priority. It begins with developing a content strategy. To make your strategy, you must take a client-focused approach that provides the information that will most benefit the women who might potentially visit your center. They’re searching for answers on the web, so provide answers to the questions they most commonly ask. This will increase the chances that the women will find your site and the information they need.
By developing the content strategy before designing the site, you will ensure that the client can find the most needed and most accurate information on your site. Making the content first will inform the design of your site and ultimately lead to the creation of a more user-friendly website.
Why is a Content Strategy Important?
A content strategy lays the foundation on which you will build your website. A strategic approach to choosing and creating your content will make the site-building process easier on everyone. Laying out the content structure early in the website-building process allows you to choose a hierarchy of the information. In other words, you can choose what information is most important and feature it on pages across the site. You can also add the most essential information to drop-down menus on your site’s homepage. Think about what you would want to see as a website visitor, then craft the layout to suit those wants/needs.
How to Organize Your Website Content
Sort out your content strategy first. Then brainstorming and outlining your content goals will be seamless because you have given yourself a clear starting point. Use your strategy to create an outline that will serve as a map for your website. You can prioritize and organize the content into a structure that users can navigate intuitively. The easier the site is to use, the more women you can help by providing them with the information they need.
Content and Design Should Work Together
Keep in mind that a content-first approach does not mean that design is not important. The design should work around the content, and the two should work together. Realistically, a site can function with little or no design (e.g. Wikipedia) as long as the content is helpful, but that style is not the preferred choice for your center’s site. The most successful websites have a mix of content and design elements that function together in harmony. By getting design and content in sync, you can create a website that will engage, inform, and help women in need.
An appealing site that is easy to navigate is crucial for your center. If you are looking to build your new website or redesign your current site around a content-first strategy, reach out to us. We can help answer questions and even build your website for you.
