Everything You Need to Know About Websites

Jan 30

If you are worried if your website is costing you clients, this episode was recorded for you.

Your website is not just a box to check. It is not something you build once and forget about. It is often the very first place a potential client forms an opinion about you, your practice, and whether they trust you enough to reach out. And most of the time, when a website isn’t working, it’s not because you’re bad at business or marketing. It’s because the website is unclear, overwhelming, or built around the wrong priorities.

I want to walk you through what actually matters when it comes to your website and why simplifying it can make a bigger difference than chasing trends or adding more content.

Your Website Is the Storefront to Your Practice

Think about how you behave when you’re searching for a service. You land on a website and within seconds, you’re deciding whether to stay or leave. You’re not analyzing fonts or color theory. You’re asking very simple questions.

What do they do? Who is this for? Are they local to me? How do I take the next step?

Your website is doing the same job as a storefront window. It gives someone a quick snapshot of what you offer and whether it feels right for them. If that information is buried, confusing, or missing altogether, people move on. And they don’t move on because your services aren’t good. They move on because their brain is wired to conserve energy.

This is why clarity matters so much. When someone lands on your website, the very top section should immediately tell them who you help, what you do, where you’re located, and how to contact you. No scrolling. No guessing. No clever language that sounds nice but says nothing.

The First Impression Happens Faster Than You Think

You have a fraction of a second to make a first impression online. If your website looks outdated, slow, or DIY, that impression forms before anyone reads a word of your content.

I see so many practices with websites that technically exist but quietly work against them. Old layouts, cluttered pages, tiny text, or important details hidden in the footer all signal confusion and lack of confidence, even if that’s not true in real life.

Your website should reflect the level of care and professionalism you bring to your work. That doesn’t mean it needs to be flashy. It means it needs to feel intentional, current, and easy to use.

Clear Language Beats Clever Language Every Time

One of the biggest mistakes I see on websites is trying to sound impressive instead of understandable.

Clients are not looking to be wowed by jargon. They are looking to feel understood. Most people coming to your website don’t have a diagnosis yet. They’re not searching for technical terms. They’re searching for help with something that feels hard or overwhelming in their day-to-day life.

Your website is not a dictionary and it’s not a diagnostic tool. It is a place to present solutions.

Instead of leading with clinical terminology, talk about the problems your clients recognize and the outcomes they care about. Use language an eighth grader could understand. When your content feels approachable and human, people stay longer, trust you faster, and feel more confident reaching out.

People Don’t Read Websites. They Scan Them.

This is an important shift to make if you’ve ever spent hours writing long paragraphs for your website.

Most people skim. They scroll. They look for headings that catch their attention and short sections that feel manageable. When content stretches from one edge of the screen to the other or appears in dense blocks of text, it becomes exhausting to process.

Breaking your content into clear sections, using headings and subheadings, and keeping paragraphs short makes your site easier to digest. White space is not wasted space. It gives the eye a break and helps people actually absorb what you’re sharing.

Design and User Experience Matter More Than You Think

Design isn’t just about aesthetics. It impacts trust, accessibility, and how your site performs on Google.

Consistency is key. Too many fonts or colors create visual chaos and make your practice feel less established. Simple choices like using two fonts, a limited color palette, and generous spacing instantly elevate the way your site feels.

User experience is also one of the biggest factors Google looks at when ranking websites. If buttons lead to broken pages, menus are confusing, or navigation feels clunky, your site suffers. A strong homepage should guide someone through what you offer in a logical, easy way and give them multiple opportunities to learn more before contacting you.

Accessibility Is About People, Not Just Rules

ADA accessibility comes up a lot, often framed around fear or legal risk. But at its core, accessibility is about making sure your website can be used by people with different needs.

Simple things like good color contrast, proper heading structure, readable fonts, and descriptive alt text for images make a huge difference. These changes help people using screen readers navigate your site and also improve overall usability and SEO.

An accessible website is a clearer website. And clearer websites perform better across the board.

Keywords Should Support Clarity, Not Replace It

SEO matters, but it works best when it’s built on clear, client-friendly content.

Keywords are simply the words and phrases people type into Google when they’re looking for services like yours. When those words are woven naturally into your content, paired with your location, and supported by a strong user experience, your site has a much better chance of being found.

Stuffing keywords or hiding text doesn’t work. Writing in a robotic or AI-sounding way doesn’t work. What works is speaking clearly about what you do, who you help, and how you support them, using the language your clients already use.

Your Website Doesn’t Need to Be Perfect

If there’s one thing I hope you take away from this episode, it’s this.

Your website doesn’t need to do everything. It needs to do the right things well.

Clarity over cleverness. Simplicity over overwhelm. Human language over technical explanations.

When your website reflects who you are, makes it easy for people to understand you, and guides them gently toward the next step, it becomes a supportive part of your business instead of a source of stress.

That’s what I walk through in Episode 19 of The ScaleSmart Podcast. If your website has been sitting on your to-do list or quietly bothering you in the background, this is your invitation to look at it with fresh eyes and focus on what actually matters.

You don’t need a new website just for the sake of it. You need one that works.