January 31, 2025 • 13 mins
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey everybody, welcome to this episode of the
NerdBrand podcast where I'mgoing to talk about websites.
I know it's a favorite topic offolks.
It's such an exciting thing todo is build a new website.
So, anyways, five websitedon'ts not a darn thing except
strategy, blah, blah.
(00:20):
Here we go.
Welcome back to the NerdBrandPodcast.
(00:46):
We're going to describe thedo's and don'ts of creating a
powerful podcast I'm kiddingWebsite.
So there is a lot of things thatbusinesses get wrong in their
website and there's a lot ofthings that they get right, and
you know you can pick apartevery little thing and then
after a while it kind of getsvery pessimistic sounding right
Because it's like oh, thisdoesn't work, this doesn't work.
(01:07):
There's always something that'snot going to work.
Your website's always anongoing process.
It's always an ongoing animal,but there does need to be
certain things specifically thatneed to be focused on
strategically, that need to workso that when people use it,
they get the info they need.
So does it serve your businessgoals?
I'm pretty sure everybody waslike I was waiting for that, and
(01:28):
that's kind of what it boilsdown to.
Uh, if you're thinking about arevamp or building one from
scratch, it's crucial to kind ofremember that these don'ts Um,
so let's don't.
On number one uh, don't havesomeone build a website until
they know how the current one isworking.
So think of it like this youwould try to fix a car without
knowing it was broken.
I mean, would you do that ifyou were like a mechanic, even
(01:49):
if you knew how cars work?
I mean the guy on your phone?
I mean you can imagine thephone call and how it goes.
My car broke down.
Well, what happened?
Well, it made a derp, derp,derp sound and on the other end,
if you don't know, he'slaughing at you.
So, cause, he asked you that onpurpose.
But before you throw any moneyat a redesign, just understand
(02:12):
how the current site's working.
Um, what isn't working?
Are people bouncing immediatelywhen they get to a page?
And if they are, maybe theyfind what they need and that's
all they needed from you.
Um, are they finding theinformation on that?
You know they're stickingaround longer and it's a long
form copy.
I'm reading it.
There's really good ways, by theway, to track this with using
visual metrics.
I mean you can use heat mapping, all kinds of things.
(02:33):
There's some fun, scary toolsthat we have that I love to use,
but anyways, analytics at thetop.
Get Google Analytics on yoursite.
It's not the de facto, but itkind of is.
And, honestly, if you don'thave Google Analytics on your
site, it's just completelyoperating blind.
No one's going to know and youneed time.
This is the other thing whenyou're doing a website.
If they're like, well, I'll getyour website built in six to
(03:00):
eight weeks, I'm going to bestraight.
We need that to at least doresearch and gather data,
especially if it's been notconfigured correctly and isn't
watching what we need it towatch, and typically that's
usually the case.
So a lot of the research andunderstanding what pages work
and which ones don't are goingto come out of that research and
understanding.
That Many stories have.
I had somebody come to me for awebsite, do a review of the
sitemap and realize they don'thave analytics and it's like
(03:23):
well, wait a minute, what if Idelete this page that you want
me to remove because you wantall these new fancy pages now?
Well, that page could have beengiving you the lion's share of
your revenue over the lastquarter, or maybe year over year
.
Would that be horrible?
Yeah, yeah, that'd be horrible.
It's like amputating your ownarm.
So otherwise, you're just goingto be guessing.
So don't do that.
It's a waste of time, energy,money and, um, it's not your web
(04:00):
designer's fault.
They're a web designer.
So another one um, let's go onto don't.
Number two.
So don't build a website merelyjust because, um, it actually
creates a lot of problems forthe brand because there's going
to be possibly a dilution of themessage.
You could confuse your audience, you could hurt your business
essentially because the thingsyou were saying you're not
saying anymore and those peoplethat maybe were return visitors
are coming back, going.
I don't recognize you.
Recognize you and for those ofyou out there that you know,
(04:26):
have people that go to thegrocery stores and complain
about how they keep movingthings around.
Well, think of your websitelike that.
Stop moving it around.
You know, let it bake a bit.
You're going to find out thathow you have it sitting, they're
learning as you've left it, butif you change it all the time,
well, they can't learn anythingabout you, your brand and where
things are when they want to goget information from you without
calling you first, right, so,and nobody does that anymore.
(04:49):
Um, so, anyways, you need tohave a defined purpose, um, so,
whether is it lead generation,is it e-commerce membership, or
is it just?
Are you just providinginformation?
Are you just saying, helloworld?
Uh, you know, that's just.
That's important too.
Sometimes you just need thebrand recognition and it's just
going to serve for a place topeople to go and be like hey, I
know you.
So there's, there's that.
(05:10):
Okay.
Now see what happens to kidswhen I don't have a co-host.
All right, hold on.
Number three.
Number three don't build awebsite without a longriad of
reasons for editing a staticpage on a website as opposed to
(05:48):
a blog post which is like fullydynamic, because those come out
like Facebook posts whenever youpublish something.
So what content will you createand how will you drive traffic
to it, and how you'll nurturethose leads need to be thought
of.
A lot of talk about SEO andsocial media, email marketing
and how your website will fitinto that picture should be
brought up, because without amarketing plan, you got to ship
(06:09):
without a rudder, and that's nofun.
So, having said that, have yougot a website and is it working?
Do you know if it's working?
Do you need an audit?
Do you need somebody to take alook under the hood and see if
the car is going derp, derp,derp, whatever, I don't know.
You fill in the blank.
That's something we can do.
(06:30):
We can figure out a strategicmarketing plan that fits that
brand message you've gotdisplayed on that site.
Or maybe you've got a websitewhere you're like I like the
website, I just bought it, Ilike what it says.
I don't like what it says, butI like how it's made, I like the
design.
Okay, that's fine.
You know websites, you canchange the copy.
(06:50):
It's just it's still time forus to come in and change copy.
So most agencies are going tocharge you their rate based off
some hour.
That I know sounds mysterious,but you have to really think
about professional services andhow much they cost, and if
they're anywhere between 50 to$150 an hour, that's you know
you can pretty much figure outlike well, how many hours is it
going to take?
Look, math is on you.
I'm telling you how long it'sgoing to take and it is what it
(07:11):
is.
So you know, be very, verythoughtful before you approach
an agency about what do you wantto do?
Because you could approach thatfreelancer.
You could approach, and that'sperfectly fine, if your budget's
that small and you have to.
That's what you have to do.
But with an agency, you get alittle bit more care and you get
a bit more people thinkingabout um, then what now?
(07:32):
What you know with that?
So let's move on to don't.
Number four, and this is a bigone.
Do not build a website with afreelancer alone and then also
ask that person to manage yoursocial media and this and that
and this and that.
Even if you have a small agencylike ours, the and this, and
(07:54):
that will probably diminish theoriginal request greatly, to the
point where it's just not goingto work very well for either
party.
When it comes to reviewing atthe end of the month, what in
the world is going on, becausethere's only so many hours in a
day and I like to eat and sleepDon't know about you.
So it is fair to assume thatI'm not 24-7 and neither is
(08:19):
anyone else out there, frankly,that would be doing this work
and so.
And neither is anyone else outthere, frankly, that would be
doing this work and so.
And it's very difficult, it'stime intensive, it's intense to
think on and do and execute.
So I see it all the time.
Freelancers can be fantastic forspecific needs to manage the
brand and its online presence orcohesive strategy, and
sometimes, if it's starting out.
(08:40):
But when you really get to thatmany like multiple marketing
channels and everything, youreally get to that many like
multiple marketing channels andeverything you really need to
have an agency on board.
So you know, the business, akabrand, is going to come first.
Your website, your social media, content, creation everything
should flow from a core brandidentity.
And as nerd brand, nerd brand,that's our, that's what we do as
(09:00):
a brand agency.
We make sure that it all comesout of that brand identity.
It does not negate marketing orlessen it.
It is a support tool for it.
So often, handling everythingyou know to one person,
especially without a clear brandstrategy in place, it can
really lead to a lot ofinconsistencies and a diluted
message across all platformsthat you're talking to.
I mean it's just it can go badleft unchecked.
(09:24):
So focus on building a brandidentity first and then bring in
some specialists, special tasksto ensure they're all working
toward the same goal.
And finally, don't number five.
Don't forget that people useyour website primarily for
information about you, youraddress and if you're relevant
and how much it will cost, andso fancy designs and interactive
(09:47):
features, they're nice, they'reactually secondary.
We always say pretty is easy,smart is hard.
Here at NerdBrand, because we'retrying to build something that
is going to last and notnecessarily the website last for
five years, because technologymoves at breakneck speeds but a
strategy that can and be agileenough to allow for room for you
(10:10):
know what, if something changessocietally that we have to
address because we have to, wecan't go down that path we
thought we could go down.
I mean social media.
You can end up with that.
Maybe it's not a good time nowto post that thing because, well
, let me just point you to StateFarm and their ads, with Arnold
Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVitoStanding in front of a house
that's burning and thenadvertising that to the LA area
(10:32):
and the residents.
There is not a good time andthat's why they pulled that ad
from the Super Bowl.
So you do have to think abouttiming and it's good to have a
good team on your side that willthink about those things and
cover your butt as best as theycan.
So you know, you want to makesure that your contact details
getting back to your website andlocation and physical presence,
(10:55):
your pricing structure.
If it's applicable, they shouldbe front and center, easy to
find.
Don't bury the information inobscure pages or make it hard to
find.
Just be clear and, you know,use good UX design.
It goes really a long way here,more than it does just
something pretty.
So that's pretty much it.
I know this flew by because I'ma fast talker, but thank God you
(11:18):
can rewind and listen again,and I like that because it gets
a repeat listen on the podcastand that's always fun.
So there you have it.
There's five crucial don'tswhen it comes to a website
strategy.
Now, if you want to know somedo's, then that'll be another
episode.
But remember it's an investment.
(11:39):
Your website that is.
Don't look at it as an expense,please.
And like any investment, itrequires careful planning and
strategic thinking.
That's what you're paying forand that determines the
difference between the costs.
And so focus on your brand,understand your audience and
develop a clear plan before youstart building anything.
Do that and you'll be on yourway to having a website that
(12:03):
actually works and you can seethe ROI, because many people
think that it doesn't actuallyprovide any value or return, and
that is incorrect, right?
Turn it off.
Yeah, take the website down andthen guess what?
You don't exist anymore.
So there's your ROI.
(12:30):
Also, I want to thank you forlistening to this episode and
we'll probably be talking aboutmore things in the coming weeks.
I hope to have Jacob back withme.
He's out hustling doing histhing.
He's become now a associateaccount manager, so everybody be
happy for Jacob Woo.
You know I can't reach thebutton, jacob.
The board is on your side ofthe podcast table and I can't
(12:50):
press it, and I know you want todo it and I'm sorry.
So everybody, pretend thatthere's an audience clapping and
a sound effect and with that Iwill see you all next week.
And remember, keep your nerdbrand strong.
Hey everybody, welcome to this episode of the
NerdBrand podcast where I'mgoing to talk about websites.
I know it's a favorite topic offolks.
It's such an exciting thing todo is build a new website.
So, anyways, five websitedon'ts not a darn thing except
strategy, blah, blah.
(00:20):
Here we go.
Welcome back to the NerdBrandPodcast.
(00:46):
We're going to describe thedo's and don'ts of creating a
powerful podcast I'm kiddingWebsite.
So there is a lot of things thatbusinesses get wrong in their
website and there's a lot ofthings that they get right, and
you know you can pick apartevery little thing and then
after a while it kind of getsvery pessimistic sounding right
Because it's like oh, thisdoesn't work, this doesn't work.
(01:07):
There's always something that'snot going to work.
Your website's always anongoing process.
It's always an ongoing animal,but there does need to be
certain things specifically thatneed to be focused on
strategically, that need to workso that when people use it,
they get the info they need.
So does it serve your businessgoals?
I'm pretty sure everybody waslike I was waiting for that, and
(01:28):
that's kind of what it boilsdown to.
Uh, if you're thinking about arevamp or building one from
scratch, it's crucial to kind ofremember that these don'ts Um,
so let's don't.
On number one uh, don't havesomeone build a website until
they know how the current one isworking.
So think of it like this youwould try to fix a car without
knowing it was broken.
I mean, would you do that ifyou were like a mechanic, even
(01:49):
if you knew how cars work?
I mean the guy on your phone?
I mean you can imagine thephone call and how it goes.
My car broke down.
Well, what happened?
Well, it made a derp, derp,derp sound and on the other end,
if you don't know, he'slaughing at you.
So, cause, he asked you that onpurpose.
But before you throw any moneyat a redesign, just understand
(02:12):
how the current site's working.
Um, what isn't working?
Are people bouncing immediatelywhen they get to a page?
And if they are, maybe theyfind what they need and that's
all they needed from you.
Um, are they finding theinformation on that?
You know they're stickingaround longer and it's a long
form copy.
I'm reading it.
There's really good ways, by theway, to track this with using
visual metrics.
I mean you can use heat mapping, all kinds of things.
(02:33):
There's some fun, scary toolsthat we have that I love to use,
but anyways, analytics at thetop.
Get Google Analytics on yoursite.
It's not the de facto, but itkind of is.
And, honestly, if you don'thave Google Analytics on your
site, it's just completelyoperating blind.
No one's going to know and youneed time.
This is the other thing whenyou're doing a website.
If they're like, well, I'll getyour website built in six to
(03:00):
eight weeks, I'm going to bestraight.
We need that to at least doresearch and gather data,
especially if it's been notconfigured correctly and isn't
watching what we need it towatch, and typically that's
usually the case.
So a lot of the research andunderstanding what pages work
and which ones don't are goingto come out of that research and
understanding.
That Many stories have.
I had somebody come to me for awebsite, do a review of the
sitemap and realize they don'thave analytics and it's like
(03:23):
well, wait a minute, what if Idelete this page that you want
me to remove because you wantall these new fancy pages now?
Well, that page could have beengiving you the lion's share of
your revenue over the lastquarter, or maybe year over year
.
Would that be horrible?
Yeah, yeah, that'd be horrible.
It's like amputating your ownarm.
So otherwise, you're just goingto be guessing.
So don't do that.
It's a waste of time, energy,money and, um, it's not your web
(04:00):
designer's fault.
They're a web designer.
So another one um, let's go onto don't.
Number two.
So don't build a website merelyjust because, um, it actually
creates a lot of problems forthe brand because there's going
to be possibly a dilution of themessage.
You could confuse your audience, you could hurt your business
essentially because the thingsyou were saying you're not
saying anymore and those peoplethat maybe were return visitors
are coming back, going.
I don't recognize you.
Recognize you and for those ofyou out there that you know,
(04:26):
have people that go to thegrocery stores and complain
about how they keep movingthings around.
Well, think of your websitelike that.
Stop moving it around.
You know, let it bake a bit.
You're going to find out thathow you have it sitting, they're
learning as you've left it, butif you change it all the time,
well, they can't learn anythingabout you, your brand and where
things are when they want to goget information from you without
calling you first, right, so,and nobody does that anymore.
(04:49):
Um, so, anyways, you need tohave a defined purpose, um, so,
whether is it lead generation,is it e-commerce membership, or
is it just?
Are you just providinginformation?
Are you just saying, helloworld?
Uh, you know, that's just.
That's important too.
Sometimes you just need thebrand recognition and it's just
going to serve for a place topeople to go and be like hey, I
know you.
So there's, there's that.
(05:10):
Okay.
Now see what happens to kidswhen I don't have a co-host.
All right, hold on.
Number three.
Number three don't build awebsite without a longriad of
reasons for editing a staticpage on a website as opposed to
(05:48):
a blog post which is like fullydynamic, because those come out
like Facebook posts whenever youpublish something.
So what content will you createand how will you drive traffic
to it, and how you'll nurturethose leads need to be thought
of.
A lot of talk about SEO andsocial media, email marketing
and how your website will fitinto that picture should be
brought up, because without amarketing plan, you got to ship
(06:09):
without a rudder, and that's nofun.
So, having said that, have yougot a website and is it working?
Do you know if it's working?
Do you need an audit?
Do you need somebody to take alook under the hood and see if
the car is going derp, derp,derp, whatever, I don't know.
You fill in the blank.
That's something we can do.
(06:30):
We can figure out a strategicmarketing plan that fits that
brand message you've gotdisplayed on that site.
Or maybe you've got a websitewhere you're like I like the
website, I just bought it, Ilike what it says.
I don't like what it says, butI like how it's made, I like the
design.
Okay, that's fine.
You know websites, you canchange the copy.
(06:50):
It's just it's still time forus to come in and change copy.
So most agencies are going tocharge you their rate based off
some hour.
That I know sounds mysterious,but you have to really think
about professional services andhow much they cost, and if
they're anywhere between 50 to$150 an hour, that's you know
you can pretty much figure outlike well, how many hours is it
going to take?
Look, math is on you.
I'm telling you how long it'sgoing to take and it is what it
(07:11):
is.
So you know, be very, verythoughtful before you approach
an agency about what do you wantto do?
Because you could approach thatfreelancer.
You could approach, and that'sperfectly fine, if your budget's
that small and you have to.
That's what you have to do.
But with an agency, you get alittle bit more care and you get
a bit more people thinkingabout um, then what now?
(07:32):
What you know with that?
So let's move on to don't.
Number four, and this is a bigone.
Do not build a website with afreelancer alone and then also
ask that person to manage yoursocial media and this and that
and this and that.
Even if you have a small agencylike ours, the and this, and
(07:54):
that will probably diminish theoriginal request greatly, to the
point where it's just not goingto work very well for either
party.
When it comes to reviewing atthe end of the month, what in
the world is going on, becausethere's only so many hours in a
day and I like to eat and sleepDon't know about you.
So it is fair to assume thatI'm not 24-7 and neither is
(08:19):
anyone else out there, frankly,that would be doing this work
and so.
And neither is anyone else outthere, frankly, that would be
doing this work and so.
And it's very difficult, it'stime intensive, it's intense to
think on and do and execute.
So I see it all the time.
Freelancers can be fantastic forspecific needs to manage the
brand and its online presence orcohesive strategy, and
sometimes, if it's starting out.
(08:40):
But when you really get to thatmany like multiple marketing
channels and everything, youreally get to that many like
multiple marketing channels andeverything you really need to
have an agency on board.
So you know, the business, akabrand, is going to come first.
Your website, your social media, content, creation everything
should flow from a core brandidentity.
And as nerd brand, nerd brand,that's our, that's what we do as
(09:00):
a brand agency.
We make sure that it all comesout of that brand identity.
It does not negate marketing orlessen it.
It is a support tool for it.
So often, handling everythingyou know to one person,
especially without a clear brandstrategy in place, it can
really lead to a lot ofinconsistencies and a diluted
message across all platformsthat you're talking to.
I mean it's just it can go badleft unchecked.
(09:24):
So focus on building a brandidentity first and then bring in
some specialists, special tasksto ensure they're all working
toward the same goal.
And finally, don't number five.
Don't forget that people useyour website primarily for
information about you, youraddress and if you're relevant
and how much it will cost, andso fancy designs and interactive
(09:47):
features, they're nice, they'reactually secondary.
We always say pretty is easy,smart is hard.
Here at NerdBrand, because we'retrying to build something that
is going to last and notnecessarily the website last for
five years, because technologymoves at breakneck speeds but a
strategy that can and be agileenough to allow for room for you
(10:10):
know what, if something changessocietally that we have to
address because we have to, wecan't go down that path we
thought we could go down.
I mean social media.
You can end up with that.
Maybe it's not a good time nowto post that thing because, well
, let me just point you to StateFarm and their ads, with Arnold
Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVitoStanding in front of a house
that's burning and thenadvertising that to the LA area
(10:32):
and the residents.
There is not a good time andthat's why they pulled that ad
from the Super Bowl.
So you do have to think abouttiming and it's good to have a
good team on your side that willthink about those things and
cover your butt as best as theycan.
So you know, you want to makesure that your contact details
getting back to your website andlocation and physical presence,
(10:55):
your pricing structure.
If it's applicable, they shouldbe front and center, easy to
find.
Don't bury the information inobscure pages or make it hard to
find.
Just be clear and, you know,use good UX design.
It goes really a long way here,more than it does just
something pretty.
So that's pretty much it.
I know this flew by because I'ma fast talker, but thank God you
(11:18):
can rewind and listen again,and I like that because it gets
a repeat listen on the podcastand that's always fun.
So there you have it.
There's five crucial don'tswhen it comes to a website
strategy.
Now, if you want to know somedo's, then that'll be another
episode.
But remember it's an investment.
(11:39):
Your website that is.
Don't look at it as an expense,please.
And like any investment, itrequires careful planning and
strategic thinking.
That's what you're paying forand that determines the
difference between the costs.
And so focus on your brand,understand your audience and
develop a clear plan before youstart building anything.
Do that and you'll be on yourway to having a website that
(12:03):
actually works and you can seethe ROI, because many people
think that it doesn't actuallyprovide any value or return, and
that is incorrect, right?
Turn it off.
Yeah, take the website down andthen guess what?
You don't exist anymore.
So there's your ROI.
(12:30):
Also, I want to thank you forlistening to this episode and
we'll probably be talking aboutmore things in the coming weeks.
I hope to have Jacob back withme.
He's out hustling doing histhing.
He's become now a associateaccount manager, so everybody be
happy for Jacob Woo.
You know I can't reach thebutton, jacob.
The board is on your side ofthe podcast table and I can't
(12:50):
press it, and I know you want todo it and I'm sorry.
So everybody, pretend thatthere's an audience clapping and
a sound effect and with that Iwill see you all next week.
And remember, keep your nerdbrand strong.
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