Vogue Magazine recently introduced a fun shopping and styling app for iPhone users aptly named Vogue Stylist.  The app is aimed at female users and allows you to style and update your existing wardrobe based on Vogue’s latest trend predictions.

Users can upload photos of their clothing items and accessories to their virtual wardrobe and mix and match it with clothing items and accessories selected by Vogue based on the season’s latest trends.  Users can select a fashion item (say for instance leggings) and match it with pieces in her existing wardrobe. If she wants to buy leggings, she can search through a product database of Vogue’s selected partners to find stores that stock leggings.  To complete the experience users can share their favourite looks with their friends on Facebook.

What is the catch?  Users can only ‘style their wardrobes’ with fashion items from Vogue’s partners. The app was launched with the participation of 91 high-end brands including Gucci, Nine West and Valentino among others.  I’m suspect this app is going to hurt a lot of bank accounts…to have so many (designer) items available at the touch of a button can not be good news!

Do you ever ask yourself if your website is worth a return visit from a visitor’s point of view?  To ensure an optimal browsing experience it helps to think about what visitors would possibly want to derive from the website as well as the actions you would like visitors to take on the website.  For instance if you sell a product visitors would most likely want to obtain more information and details about your product or buy it directly from your website.  To make your website worth visiting and to ensure return visitors, keep the following tips in mind.

Informative, high-quality content

Offer your visitors content that is thought-provoking and will pique their interest.  With website copy, less is often more.  Concise copy that is easy to read and that has links in the text to relevant information elsewhere on the website will draw visitors deeper into your website and increase the chance of them performing an action.

Easy navigation

Even though this has been discussed numerous times before, navigation is still one of the most important elements on a website.  Make it easy for visitors to find the information they’re looking for. Also ensure that they know at all times where they are on your website by highlighting the relevant menu tab in the navigation pane.

Additional information about your company

Let your visitors know more about your brand and the people behind your brand.  Not only does this add credibility to your brand but it gives visitors a sense of security.  Especially when Internet users buy products online they want to feel as if they’re dealing with a company and not a robot.

Easily connect with your brand on other networks

Does your brand have profiles on social networks?  Include buttons to these on your website so that visitors can easily connect with you on the social network of their choice.  This provides you with the opportunity to connect with current and potential customers more frequently and on a different level.

The above are only a few things to keep in mind.  When you visit a website for the first time, what would persuade you to come back?

It’s most likely that your website will be your customers’ first point of contact with your brand. Your customers will form an impression of your brand, whether it is justified or not, based on your website’s appearance.

Negative first impressions are difficult to alter and this is why it’s important to ensure that your visitors have an optimal browsing experience and can easily find the information they are looking for.  Below are a few things you can do to improve your website’s performance.

Provide information on the people behind the brand

People enjoy seeing the faces behind a brand name.  An “About Us” page focussing on the overview of the brand and the brand’s values can be supplemented with a page giving more information about the individuals making up the brand’s management team.

List proper contact information

Many companies make it difficult for website visitors to contact them.  Not only does this defeat the point of a website as a marketing and sales tool, but it also gives an impression that the company is not credible.  Include your physical address, phone and fax numbers and an email address on the contact page.  If you don’t want to list all your contact details, at least include a contact form and ensure that emails from this form are responded to promptly.  Furthermore, if your brand has profiles on social networks, include links to these profiles on your website to provide an easy way for current and potential customers to connect with you on the network of their choice.

Provide additional information

Have you been mentioned in the press lately? Or do you contribute articles to an industry portal?  Upload these to your website under a “Press” or “Media” section and link to the original article.  This adds credibility and if these pages are well optimised, they will enhance your website’s visibility on search engines.

Are there certain things that you look at when you visit a brand’s website to determine its credibility?  Let us know in the comment section!