When professional webmasters talk about getting visitors to their sites they talk about search engines and other promotional methods. On the other hand then they discuss actually getting those visitors to come back, purchase something or remain for a long period the conversation is generally about one topic: content.
It all boils down to content in the end. You see, people surf the internet primarily because they are looking for information. In fact, that's the major reason behind the internet and the reason why it was created in the first place - information and how to communicate that data.
Thus, sites which fulfill this desire, this need, for information tend to succeed very well, and those that do not tend to fail. In fact, a horrible-looking site which communicates information very well will virtually always out-produce a site which is slick and wonderful but contains very little data (or communicates it poorly.)
However, the type of content and the value of this depends on the purpose of the site. A shopping site, for instance, has very different content requirements than an HTML tutorial site. Not so obviously, a site which sells something very technical (say a computer system) has much different content needs than one that sells candy.
The technical site needs to have drawings, specifications, power requirements and all of the other information a consumer needs to make an intelligent decision. The candy site, on the other hand, might include recipes, stories from people who have tried the candy, games, quizzes and other, similar things.
When I am shopping, I want descriptions, pictures, uses for products, visitor comments and reviews, warranty information and so on. I want to get the idea of confidence - the vendor is so confident of his products and his company that I would be silly not to purchase from them.
In fact, my sites are all about content. They are intended to amuse or educate people, and thus content is not only king, it is everything. My wife's sites are the same - she has graphics and stories, articles and tips. This is what our visitors want to find.
The idea is really simple. A web site is simply a way to communicate. You add as much content as you need to communicate whatever message you want to get across. If the message is "we sell the best candy and we guarantee it and other people like it as well", then your content should push that concept.
A web site is successful if it communicates well. It is a failure if it does not.
Another factor to consider is the target age of your audience. As with any other publication, you want to include content which matches your readers. Thus, if your site is targeted towards children, you might want to include puzzles, coloring pages, fun stories and so on. This will get the little tykes to come back again and again. Children love information and they love to learn. Feed that and you will attract them and get them to return.
Of course, you must also understand what you are attempting to accomplish. If your goal is simply to sell as much as possible (period), then your site will be wrapped around that fact like it's life depended upon it. You will optimize your content to attract search engines, keep your pages lean, and make sure you don't send your visitors off to other sites if you can help it.
If you simply want to tell your readers about your hiking trip into an old abandoned missile silo, then you don't need to optimize as much, and your content will include pictures and a journal.
In addition to just slapping in some content, you want to also make sure that you change it often. Add new articles, new graphics and any other features as often as you can. Be sure and update your site at least weekly, if not much more often.
And don't forget to let your readers know all about those changes. A "what's new" page is highly desirable as it immediately let's your readers know where to begin looking for information.
So in conclusion, sites that don't have any content simply do not communicate. Sites that have lots of unrelated content tend to communicate a fuzzy message and thus don't communicate well either. Sites which have tightly focused content communicate very well.
If your site does not communicate, then it will die. If your site does communicate well, then it has a great chance of success.
Connect with me
Unless otherwise noted, all photos and text is Copyright © Richard G Lowe, Jr.