In this post, I won’t be telling you that you need a homepage, services/products page, about page, or contact page. Most of us know that those core pages are must-haves for a website to take shape.
I’d like to talk to you about the pages that a lot of us don’t even think about. Pages that further enhance your online presence, convert your visitors into customers and do some extra lifting for you as you run your business.
One of these pages is even an underdog when it comes to finishing up the standard website build.
The cool thing about these pages is that they’re so damn easy to create. You don’t need too many elements for them to be effective so that means you can implement them early on during or after your website project.
Read on to learn more about the 5 must-have pages for every website and the content that needs to be on each for them to do work for your business.
Resources Page
As an entrepreneur, by default, you end up using a plethora of tools, software, and services that help you run your business.
With a Resources page on your website, you can share your favorite tools with others just by adding links and short descriptions of each on the page. You can also include the resource logos of each to instantly enhance the design of this mighty little page.
The extra cool thing about this is that the majority of today’s leading business tools come with an easy-to-join affiliate program. You’ll typically find the link to an affiliate application in the footer (bottom) of the resource’s website.
Don’t be scared to apply to an affiliate program; these companies want individuals to help with promoting their brand! After you’re approved in an affiliate program, you’ll receive a special link that’s connected to your affiliate account. If someone were to purchase that resource’s product after clicking your affiliate link, you get a small percentage of the sale! It may not sound like you’d get a ton of money, but trust me; it does add up!
Need inspiration for your own? Check out mine here!
Link in Bio Page
On social media (especially Instagram!) you may have probably seen these links in a profile’s bio. The Link In Bio page is a powerful one because it leads followers directly to any core links that are outside of the social media platform.
This is an essential page to have because most people will find you on social media first. You’ll want them to engage with your brand and offers as soon as possible and the Link in Bio page lets you do that with ease.
You can choose to use a tool like Linktree or Milkshake for this but I highly suggest that you create the page directly from your own website. If you do it this way, you’ll get visitors directly to your site after they click your Link in Bio link from your bio. That means more eyes on your website faster.
A Link in Bio page typically consists of:
- Your logo at the top that’s linked to your site’s homepage
- Your most important links in button form
- Other social media links in icon form
Some Link in Bio pages are elaborate and fancy… but you don’t have to go crazy with the design on yours. It’s supposed to be a simple page to keep your visitors focused on the links that you want them to go to the most. When you create this page, keep things an easy day just by sticking to the elements mentioned above.
404 Page
Including a custom 404 page is key to both your site’s success and its SEO performance. A 404 page is simply a page (or technically an error) when someone attempts to visit a page on your site that does not or no longer exists.
This happens all of the time on the world wide web and most website owners forget that it can. This is why you should be mindful when you do decide to delete a page on your site. More than likely, some previous visitors may think that it still exists and will try to access it again.
The default 404 error page is ugly and may leave your visitor confused on what to do next on your website. So take advantage of this error page! Create your own 404 error page design that includes the following:
- A friendly message letting the user know that they stumbled upon an error page
- A quick blurb that states what they should do instead of just leaving your website
- A call to action button or two that takes them to core pages of your website (the Homepage, Services page, Shop page if you have an online store, or Contact page are good ones to go with)
When you have a custom 404 page created for your website, you’re further helping your visitors take the right action on it quickly while keeping them from feeling lost on your site.
FAQ Page
Here’s the underdog page; the FAQ page. This is one of my favorite pages to create for my clients for quite a few reasons:
- It further enhances your website’s user experience
- It can help you save $$$ on customer service alternatives
- Google loves FAQ pages and may feature some of them as highlighted content in search results
- You’re able to help and serve your audience better and ahead of time
- You can expertly answer questions that are asked frequently which also saves YOU precious time from having to answer them yourself
- It also helps visitors navigate through your site better as specific FAQs can lead them to other pages of your website
Do you see? The FAQ is a highly forgotten but should-be and essential part of a website. I believe that it should be a default page to think about when you’re working on your other core website pages.
The quickest way to create one is to think of 3-5 questions that your audience may or are already asking you as it relates to your business. Write them out, answer them professionally, then list them on a new page on your website. You can either use text or toggle dropdowns to keep your FAQ page compact as it grows. And it will (and should!) grow.
Landing Page (Template this!)
Got PDFs, workbooks, guides, lists, coupon codes, an online course, product, or service that you need to share more? Create one landing page design that can be used when needed.
And there’s no need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to most landing page designs. Since they are meant to be short, sweet, and actionable, creating one once and reusing it is just fine!
A good promotional landing page should include:
- a title of what you’re promoting
- a quick description of what it is and how it will help your visitor
- a button or lead capture form that gets them what they’re looking for
- a nice image or mockup of the service/freebie/or product that you want them to buy or download.
Bonus: Thank You Page
Stay personable in your marketing efforts by creating and actively using a custom Thank You page. This small but memorable page can leave a lasting impression on your website visitor.
This page would be used in place of a message from a lead magnet form, a default acknowledgment from a form submission, or after they make a purchase off of your website. You can custom design the page with your website’s current look and feel and include a personalized and friendly Thank You message.
You can go further with this page by directing your user to other resources (remember that resource page???) or content on your site that they may be interested in.