I recently came across an article that discussed how customers place more importance on some parts of a company's web page than others. It has also been revealed that people are increasingly focusing on how the website actually looks and the layout used. The aesthetics of a page, along with load times and content functionality, are more important now than ever. If your customers believe you have a good website, they will usually be more willing to dig deeper and look more closely at the website. content. It means more eyes will be on the services you offer to people. Remember, in the business world first impressions are everything, even in the online world. Poor looking websites can create a whole host of problems for a business; including customers who don't give the content you have there the attention it deserves. In some cases people might even close your webpage without even giving it a second look, this is especially true for those involved in e-commerce. I've also witnessed people closing a page because they simply "didn't like" what they saw, without even exploring the page to see if the site's appearance improves. Web design should always be a high priority if you want to present a visually pleasing and professional image on a page, so don't take the look of your website lightly. To blog or not to blog? Blogging may not be new, but it has certainly entered a boom period in recent years as more and more people choose it as their chosen form of reading material. In fact, many now use blogs as a way to gather opinions on products and decide whether or not to buy them. No matter what products or services you sell, you should have a blog in place that is relevant and at the same time ugly. In addition to this you should always prioritize content, ensuring it is high quality and valuable to readers, this will lead to readers linking to your blog via other websites. Targeting those in the same niche will increase your chances of backlink building, with Google placing higher value on websites that have been linked to similar websites in the field. Simply put, targeted marketing regarding your blog will help increase potential customers reaching your website. It may seem more convenient to opt for a free blog like one from WordPress or Blogspot, however using those can negate the effective visibility of your blog. Whenever possible, use a web address that is more SEO friendly and try to host the blog on your actual website. This gives an image of greater authority and can offer greater SEO benefits.