How to Design a Consumer-Focused Style Blog That Keeps You Booked and Busy (Part One)
Design an attention-grabbing website or blog that drives your style or beauty clients to book their next consultation in just a few steps! Part One features advice from Neil Patel & Lindsay Humes on how to create a user experience that drives website conversions and consultations.
Jumping headfirst into the world of personal styling often requires a leap of faith.
Trying to establish your brand while building your clientele and managing relationships can be difficult, and for most concierge stylists, the need to stay booked and busy can often take precedence over proper branding when first getting started.
Thankfully, forward-thinking personal stylists have figured out where most networking, engagement, relationship building, inbound marketing and customer interaction happens — the answer is: online.
By using your website as visual representation of your brand as an extension of your service, you can push clients to explore, engage, and amplify your styling business in a one visit.
Use this guide to building a quality website to take your personal style blog from a cute hobby to a profitable business.
1. Display what’s useful to your customers — and your business
When building a quality website, most people assume the essential functions are related to visuals, design or copy — while completely ignoring the user experience for those site videos.
A great website ideally combines attention-grabbing design and copy, high-resolution visuals, and an experience that leads users down the proper avenues for researching, browsing and ultimately purchasing your product.
According to web designer and Wordpress developer Lindsay Homes, you need the following to build an awesome UX for your stylish clients:
Organized content mapping
Whether you’re using this site to showcase your style expertise via blogging and video, or to highlight your consulting services, you need to organize your information architecture in a way that puts the most relevant content in front of your site visitors at all times.
Start by visualizing the user journey from your home page, and then follow the most likely steps a customer or viewer would take to reach whatever goal they’re looking for.
For example, if you want customers to request a quote for your services, determine what kind of content would most likely influence them to take this action. This could mean adding a video on your home page that describes your services or adding a section to your website with testimonials from satisfied clients.
Once your content is mapped out in a way that your audience can easily take your lead…
Call to Actions (CTAs) to naturally guide your visitors
The importance of a strong, attention-grabbing but natural call to action is as understated as a little black dress or a perfectly tailored suit.
In the same way that accessories or the right fit can turn an OK outfit into a statement piece, the impact of your site’s call to actions are based on the little things — like site placement or button size.
There’s no one size fits all approach to CTA optimization, but you can get a few more tips on what to do from SEO influencer Neil Patel.
3. Know what your customers want to see
The style industry is currently experiencing a serious boom thanks to social media.
That’s great news for seasoned fashion vets with important connections, but indie stylists and bloggers face a swell of competition as the same platforms that rebirth the industry piques with new faces. So, how can you stand out?
If you want your site to stand in a sea of style gurus, Instagram designers, and “fashion” blogs — the best way to do that is to:
Get input from your audience
You can host an AMA, run a survey for blog subscribers, create a social media poll for upcoming topic suggestions or even create a custom hashtag* that can be used as an avenue to get site feedback and provide customer support.
Focus on trending topics
Content planning doesn’t stop once you know where you want to promote it.
A big part of creating an engaging, and ultimately immersive, website is to put the content your audience wants front and center. Humes suggests developing your style content in these groups:
By Color
By Type
By Season
I would go a step further again and create an easily adaptable section that can include brand updates or an event calendar for clients who want to stay in the loop as you grow your business.
Remember, your website isn’t just a portal for driving revenue — it’s also an opportunity (and often the first one) for your brand to launch unique relationships with your consumers. It may not seem to matter much in the context of site design, but also remember: a loyal audience is easier to convert than a new one.
Stick around for Part Two and share your favorite UX or blog design tips for fashion audiences with us on Twitter (@teamwillu)! Ready to create your custom hashtag for online and offsite audience engagement? Reserve yours at www.willu.com/request today.
