Key Questions to Ask When Considering If Your Website Aligns With Your Brand

When we take on new web projects, we like to ask our clients to describe their brand’s voice in a few adjectives. Surprisingly, many of our clients find this challenging. Looking at the websites of these businesses, it’s often clear to me that thinking about voice and brand were not properly considered during their past design processes. Other times, the brand represented on a site is entirely different than the one our client describes.

B2B marketers can forget how important their brand is, especially on a website. Product and solution demos might eclipse telling a compelling story unique to your company. But without a strong brand that is consistent across all channels, prospects aren’t likely to connect with your company and convert.

Websites are often people’s first interaction with your brand, so it’s important to make a great first impression. Studies show that website visitors generally decide whether to stick around or bounce to one of your competitors in less than a second. Your logo, color palette, design style and messaging all play a role in your brand, and you’ll lose customers if you don’t have a consistent voice and look on each of your platforms.

Your brand should line up with how you see yourself as a business, from your tone to the characteristics that define your product. Building and managing a strong brand leads to recognition, and ultimately, trust and confidence in your business. As you consider whether a website redesign is necessary to revamp your brand, ask yourself:

• Has our brand changed significantly since our website was designed?
• Is our brand sending the message we would like it to? Does it set us apart from competitors?
• Who is our target audience and how do we want to communicate with them?
• What is our company’s tone, and is that reflected on our website? Are we funny and clever? Informative and friendly?
• Do we talk about our company with the same language across all of our channels?
• Have we recently been acquired and need to fit into a new set of brand guidelines?

Websites become outdated quickly, and businesses are at a huge disadvantage when they fail to react. Whether your brand has evolved as your company has grown and your website isn’t keeping up, or you simply haven’t found a good way to make your voice stand out among competitors, it may be time for a redesign.

At Walker Sands, we think about branding and strategy from the very beginning of each web project. We work with our clients to develop comprehensive plans based around user experience so we can determine the best ways to connect with and compel your prospects. Connect with us to discuss a redesign strategy that amplifies your brand and business.