10 Website Mistakes Virtual Assistants Make and How to Fix Them
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Your website is a powerful marketing tool that will help you find clients and make money. Done right, potential clients will want to learn more about your services. Done wrong, you risk your ideal client clicking away from your site, never to be seen again.
Hello! Welcome to the Desire to Done podcast for Virtual Assistants. I’m your host, Billie Gardner.
There are common website mistakes that I see VAs make, and today I’m going to talk about 10 of them. So if you have a website or if you’re about to create yours, listen up!
Website mistake #1
Spelling and grammar errors. This website mistake is one of the worst, in my opinion. When I see a bunch of errors, I want to run. Especially if the VA does customer support through email, admin work, or social media copywriting. When I hire a VA, I want to feel confident about their abilities, and lots of mistakes are disheartening. I recommend using a spell-checker tool like Grammarly to help you spot issues.
Website mistake #2
No pictures of yourself. People want to see who they’ll be working with. Adding a picture of yourself helps people build trust and makes them more likely to inquire about your services. No need to get fancy headshots when you’re first starting out. Have someone take some pictures of you in natural light, and be sure to smile. Also, look at the camera instead of away to build more trust.
Website mistake #3
Not enough CTAs. CTA stands for Call to Action and is essential for websites. They tell the visitor what you want them to do next. For example, add a CTA at the end of your homepage to check out your pricing page. On your pricing page, tell them to fill out your work with me form if they’d like to work with you. You want a CTA on every page. When you build your site, think about what you want the reader to do next and then tell them to do it. It’s as simple as that.
Website mistake #4
Your about page is only about you. I know this one sounds weird but bear with me. You're about me page is one of the top pages viewed on your site, so you want to make it count. Instead of talking solely about yourself, you’ll want to weave in how you can help your client. Show them you know who they are, what they need, and the benefits of working with you. Also, don’t share your life story but do give fun tidbits to help the reader connect with you more deeply. I love it when VAs share a favorite food or drink, their location, a favorite quote, something quirky about themselves, and other interesting facts in a bulleted list.
Website mistake #5
Broken links. Sometimes when I’m clicking around a VA’s site, I notice that the social media icons in the site's footer are broken and don’t go anywhere. If you’re not on any social media platforms, delete the icons. Also, make sure any links that go to other sites or platforms open in a new tab, so the visitor doesn’t click away and forget about your site or forget how to get back to your site. That’s one way to lose ‘em forever.
Website mistake #6
Your mobile site looks wonky. When you build a site, always, always view it on your phone to see what it looks like. Even though most websites are mobile-friendly, they sometimes need finagling to make them look good on digital devices. When I create a new page on my site, I usually need to adjust headers and spacing so that the page looks good on my phone. So, promise me you’ll check out your site on your phone.
Website mistake #7
Saying “we” instead of “I.” I see quite a few VAs do this on their sites because they think it makes them sound more legit, but I think it’s a don’t rather than a do. When you say “we,” it implies you have other VAs working with you, and if that’s not the case, you risk looking deceptive and untrusting. Not the best first impression you want to make! Also, not everyone wants to work with a team of VAs. Some people will only want to work with you. So, if it’s only you in your business, just say it. It doesn’t make you any less of a VA.
Website mistake #8
You have a blog page but no blog. If you don’t have any blog posts, don’t add a blog tab to your website. No need to say “coming soon” either. If there’s no blog, there’s no need to mention it. Otherwise, anyone who clicks your blog link may get annoyed that there is, in fact, no blog at all. It could also make them feel that you aren’t one to pay attention to details and, therefore, not a good fit for them.
Website mistake #9
Your blog posts lack strategy. You don’t need to have a blog when you’re first starting out as a VA, but if you decide to publish some posts, please put some energy and thought into them. Posting articles on random topics is not doing you any favors. In fact, they could have the opposite effect and make people want to click away. So, if you’re going to blog, create posts that showcase your skills and make readers want to hire you right then and there. Give your topics some thought and write about things your ideal client wants to learn rather than posting whatever.
Website mistake #10
Your fonts and text are hard to read. Straining to read a website is a big turn-off. If you use script fonts, use them for titles and subtitles only, and make sure they are easy to read. Some of them are so fancy it’s difficult to make out the words. Use only sans serif fonts for paragraphs. They are more modern than serif fonts and easier to read. Make sure your text is big enough. You don’t want readers to squint to read your site. And lastly, don’t use light-colored text unless it’s on a dark background. You don’t want light yellow or soft baby blue on a white background.
Are you guilty of any of the website mistakes I’ve mentioned? If so, it’s ok! Just go fix them. Like right now.
If you haven’t built your site yet, keep these mistakes in mind as you create it so you don’t make any of them.
Always have someone review your site to let you know if there are any errors, if the spacing is off anywhere, or if anything doesn’t make sense.
If you need help with the design of your website, I have a website design freebie you can download. I’ll link to it in the episode description.
And if you ever need additional help, check out the Introvert VA Club, where you’ll find resources and support as you build your website. We also encourage members to share their sites in the community so that we can give feedback and share what’s working and not working. Just go to introvertvaclub.com to sign up.
Thanks for listening! I’ll talk to you again soon! Bye!