Okay, so the easy part is over, you’ve decided to create an online presence for your company. Now, one of the hardest questions you will need to ask yourself: What is the mission of my website?

It may seem a little daunting at first, but know that by answering this question it will not only provide you with a game plan on what services to offer on your website, it is will also show how your website should be laid out to best fit the needs of your website visitors.

Your website’s mission should include the answers to these questions:

• Who are you?
• What do you do?
• Why do you provide these products?
• What are you company goals?
• What are your promise(s) to your customers?
• What do your site visitors to get from you website besides products/services?
• What do you get from your online presence besides increased revenue?
• What image do you want your website to give your company?
• What image do you want your company give your website?

Your mission statement should be between (4) and (5) sentences and should be placed on your website. Your mission statement should also state your website’s specific and divine purpose. Writing your mission statement will also assist you in writing a customer satisfaction policy which together with your mission statement provides your visitors with a real reason to come to your site, return to your site, and trust your company.

Also, you must completely understand your target market and their needs, in order to write an effective website mission statement. You probably did this research when you first began your company. You target market is simply a demographic outline of your customer base. This can include:

• Age
• Geographical Demographics
• Economical Status
• Nationality
• Gender

After deciding your target market, you will need to decipher the goals that your visitors are trying to accomplish when they visit your website.

• What product or service do you offer?
• What previous knowledge, if any, does your site visitor already have?
• What knowledge is your site visitor attempting to obtain from your website?
• What type of information does your visitor expect you to have on your website regarding the product or service they are trying to acquire?
• What medium does the site visitor usually purchase this product or service (online, in-store, or via telephone)?

The answers to the above questions will assist you in creating a website that caters to the exact needs of your customers. This will create brand loyalty and keep the customers coming back time and time again.

The next step is, understanding and preparing for the visitor’s response to your website. There are basically two ways a visitor will respond to your website: they will either stay and buy something or they will buy nothing and leave. The way your website is designed, the information that is provided, the quality, quantity, and availability of your products or services, and the ease of navigation on your website together determine your website visitor’s response.

It is important that you be able to predict your site visitor’s response and become proactive in creating a positive outcome. Use your website’s mission to ensure the trust factor between you and your customer is alive and kicking.

J.M. Davis is the owner and operator of The Site Therapist, a Website Usability Firm, dedicated to preventing Internet Suicide among websites. J.M. has almost 10 years of experience in the Internet industry.

For more information about website usability or to have a usability analysis done on your website, visit J.M.’s website at http://www.thesitetherapist.com/