Creating a WordPress website is not as easy as using a free theme, uploading some pictures and text, and then sitting around to wait for the sales to come in. As technology advances, web visitors have become more savvy and have a high expectations about who they do business with. If your WordPress website doesn’t follow these 7 guidelines, it could be the reason that you are not seeing significant traffic or sales.

Build your credibility using social proof

Building your credibility using social media can be very easy. Make sure that you are an active member of Facebook/ twitter/ meet-up or some other online community that your readers like and trust. For example if your WordPress website is about social media, make sure that you show buttons of how many people follow you on twitter and Facebook. If your target market is local, I would recommend using Meet-Up.com to build a local audience, and post your events on you WordPress website.

Don’t make people THINK!

As soon as visitors land on your website, if they don’t know what to do they will leave! So the message here is to be as clear as possible and keep your website clutter-free and ad free so that it is easy for your visitors to focus on your main offering. One big thing is to make sure that your website loads fast, visit http://tools.pingdom.com/fpt/ to check your website’s load time. Also make sure that your navigation is easy to read and follow, and use plenty of white space. The more that you make your visitors think, the less likely that they will stay on your website. Make it as simple as possible, remember KISS! Keep it simple silly!

Tell them what their pain is and how you can solve it

The simple fact that your visitor found your website means that they are looking for what you have, or a trusted friend sent them there. Now that they are there make sure that you connect with them and speak in their words. Tell them that you understand their pain, and that they are not alone, and how you can solve it. Remember to use emotion and explain what is in it for them.

Use the proper SEO to make your site visible

No matter how amazing and beautiful your website is, if nobody can find it, that does not do you or your target market any good. Make sure that you use the proper WordPress Plug-ins, as well as the right H1 tags, titles, keywords and tags to label your pages and posts. The All-In-One SEO pack and Platinum SEO plug-ins are both great to make sure that you use good SEO on each page. Using a good theme is also key because Google loves clean code and this single thing can boost your SEO. Also if you use images or videos make sure that they also have proper SEO settings.

Make your site EASY to share

One of the best things about WordPress is the huge community of people that are constantly reading and sharing content. Make sure that your website is easy to share using many social networks. I recommend using the “Share This” plugin to allow people to share your content on Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, LinkedIn and more. Make sure that you pick the “classic” widget as this allows people to share your content without ever having to leave your page. The easier you make it for people to share, the more likely that you will get social shares and more visibility you will get.

Show your face and personality Remember people buy things from people that they LIKE and TRUST, so don’t hide yourself behind an e-mail address. Show them your face, and that you are a real human being. Make it easy to contact you by letting them know that you are available to help them in more than one way. People have different comfort levels with varying communication channels, so let them know that they can reach you in more than one way.

Make the mobile experience seamless Keep in mind that not everyone that comes to your website will be using a desktop. It is good practice to use a responsive WordPress theme to allow viewers with tablets or smartphones to see your website. Keep the pages to a minimum and post the most important information on your first page. If you are a local business publish your map and phone number where it is easy to click and call or click and get directions.

“But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for…”

This famous line from the famous U2 song is an emotional confession that paints the emotional state of searching for something on Google. Leaving all technical topics aside (This isn’t an SEO post, sorry!) search is actually a very vulnerable and emotional “confession” and admittance that there is a void and there is something missing . . .

Is Google your biggest confidant?

The second that you start searching for something on Google telling them some or all of the following: 1.) I’m incomplete, I need this solution to help me be happy.

2.) I believe that it’s out there and I’m willing to search to find the answer ( and willing to pay! )

3.) This is worth my time, I am taking time out of my busy day to search for this because it’s important to me.

4.) I have tried other solutions and shortcuts and nothing has worked for me so far, please help.

5.) I’m open to new possibilities or opportunities on how to solve my problem.

6.) Something is missing from my life, or something is wrong!

Think about it, would you search for something that you have an abundance of in your life?No! This is a confession to Google or any other search engine that you use that says … “Hey I’m LACKING this in my life…” or I’m incomplete, but I hope that if I invest my time and energy I can find the solution here.

Tell them that they are not alone

This if POWERFUL! When we search we are vulnerable, yet we feel empowered when we find others who have experienced the same pain. Somehow it comforts us to know that we are not alone, and other’s understand us.This is why it is crucial not to just look at your site visitors and view them as possible dollar signs, you need to make them feel welcomed, understood, and like they belong there. In short humanize their experience.

Here’s 2 real life examples :

The emotional level when “searching” may be higher or lower in different situations. Searching for a book: (Oh Yes I did! Hey I wanna get smart like him! ) Searching for a book on ” How to think like Da Vinci” – What I’m really saying here is “Hey I hope that this book will make me a smarter and a better thinker. Plus it was recommended by a friend and I really look up to them. I want to be more like them. Hope this helps.” Searching for a product: ( My sister really did this recently and searched through 3,000 results on Ebay to find “just the right one”) What she’s really saying is this : ” I hope that this license plate cover adds uniqueness to my new car, I want it to look girly and right now it looks so plain. I really want a pink one because that’s been my favorite color since I was little.”

Know their purpose and speak to it!

You see both of these searches had an emotion reason behind them and we were both searching with a PURPOSE to solve something that we felt was missing in our lives. Notice all the things we don’t really tell Google when we look for “pink license plate” or “How to think like Da Vinci Book”. This is where your part as a marketer comes in, and why you should really know your audience and their motives for their search and find out what they are really saying.

7 Proven Facts to build WordPress Websites that Work & Convert