As a working mom at home, it can be difficult to get ideas off the ground when it comes to business. With the current situation in the world many existing companies are struggling to stay afloat and the prospect of starting anew can be even more daunting.
But a new business online might be just what the world needs right now, and working remotely at home is a great way to make money when you are looking after your family too. If you are looking at creating a business or improving your new startup this year, a good website is key.
A website has many crucial elements; and the menu is one of the most vital. Navigation through your website is important for your visitors and you should take time to create the best menu possible to ensure visitors don’t click away.
Here are some of our tips for creating a website menu that makes sense and one which will keep them coming back for more.
K.I.S.S
Keep It Simple Stupid. This should be your new motto for everything related to your business. When creating a menu for your website, don’t overcomplicate things because if you add 100 subcategories, no one will take the time to scroll through them to find what they are looking for. When designing a good website menu, keep your categories broad on the homepage and you can always drill them down when you reach the category page itself.
Sketch it out
Before you create a menu for your website it is important to gauge what it will look like, and to do this you will need a pen and paper or an excel spreadsheet. Sketch out your navigation map from start to finish taking care to understand where your menu branches out and why. It might take a few sketches for you to be happy with your arrangement, but practicing it in this way will help you better understand what you want and what you need.
Use keywords
If you are to gain high ranking in search engine results, your website needs to be littered with keywords in every way possible. You’ll want to have keywords in your meta title and description, image tags, content, and menu. Use your menu to further buckle down on those keywords you so highly covert for your business.
Understand hierarchy
When creating a helpful menu for your website, you should consider the hierarchy of menu items. Which of these looks most correct to you?
- Products – bathroom – towels
- Towels – products – bathroom
- Bathroom – towel – products
Here you have 3 different ways of creating a menu, but only one of them makes real sense. When creating a hierarchy for your website menu you need to start with the biggest items first and drill down to the smaller ones. This way, it will always make sense and you will get the most of your menu.
Test it
Testing your menu is incredibly important before you think about launching. Use tree testing to ensure that your menu works and that it makes sense to you.
Building a helpful menu is important, and you should consider improving yours this year for better success as an online entrepreneur.
