I have worked with a lot of Northern Irish businesses over the past eight years. Solicitors, tradespeople, hospitality groups, professional services firms, startups. Across all of them, a handful of things come up again and again.
The site looks local even when the offer is not
Many Northern Irish businesses compete with firms across the UK and Ireland, and sometimes further. But their website signals local in ways that undermine that ambition. Dated design, stock photography that feels generic, copy written for a postcode rather than a problem.
Your website should look as credible as the best firm in your sector, regardless of where that firm is based. If it does not, potential clients who have not yet met you will not know what they are missing.
No clear next step
I see a lot of websites that describe a business thoroughly and then stop. There is no invitation. No reason to get in touch today rather than tomorrow. No form that takes less than thirty seconds to complete.
Every page should know what it wants the visitor to do next. If it does not, they will leave and do nothing.
Copy written for the owner, not the customer
We are a leading provider of integrated solutions is a sentence I have edited off more Northern Irish websites than I can count. It says nothing about what the business actually does and nothing about why it matters to the person reading it.
Good website copy starts with the customer. What do they need? What are they afraid of? What do they need to believe before they buy? Write to that, and the business credentials can follow.
None of this is complicated. It is mostly about asking the right questions before you start.
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