When Xanda was first conceived in 1997, we barely had Internet browsers let alone websites, the Internet was a word most people had heard but few actually understood. In a few short years the land rush to the web had well and truly begun. The Internet was a place for your website and nothing else. Today the Internet provides the infrastructure for Social Media goliaths feeding data into and extracting from the insatiable minds of more users combined than there are good people on this earth. There are so many million apps we are reliably told there’s one for everything and there is, so, the younger generation especially, will be forgiven to think that the Internet begins and ends with the App Store or simply TikTok. But the Internet is the biggest market place the world will ever make, nothing else will present comparable opportunities to your business or a faster or more direct route to global audience. So what is the macro view?

Constitution (2021 Estimates)
The Internet is made up of:

  • Websites: 43.3%
  • Social Media: 27.2%
  • Apps: 29.5%

Platform Usage (2021 Estimates)
Percentage of users who use each platform at least once per day:

  • Websites: 87.6% use a website at least once per day
  • Apps: 58.2%
  • Social media: 53.6%

Trends

The trend is certainly away from a website dominated Internet to a more diverse one. The evolution from a text based Internet, through image and now video is not over, the metaverse or a more immersive web 3.0 is bubbling under the surface, crypto and block chain will challenge all centralised governance, AI will change the world, and with trillions in disruptive investment the biggest changes are in front of us not behind.

Compete & Succeed

The challenge to compete is far more complicated now that it was in 1997, so the importance of having a digital strategy has never been greater. Your strategy should understand your brand, your audience, your messaging and your objectives. Once you know these you will select the platforms where your audience is more densely populated, the platforms where your messages will resonate and where your objectives can be achieved. Websites are still the most frequently used channel on the web accounting for similar levels of traffic as social media and apps combined. It is likely that a strong website will be part of your strategy and more likely it will prove to be the cheapest and most productive part of it!

Must haves

What your website must have in 2023..

  • A strong mobile responsive design: With the ever-increasing number of mobile users, having a responsive website that adapts to any device screen size is essential.
  • Look great! The site must look fantastic, promote your branding, your messaging and image as positively and powerfully as possible.
  • Improved User Experience: A new website should leverage the latest design trends and technologies to improve user experience. By providing an intuitive and user-friendly interface, visitors are more likely to stay on your website, find the information they need, and engage with your brand.
  • Better Security: Cybersecurity threats are increasing every year, and a new website can help you stay ahead of these threats. By using the latest security measures, you can protect your website and your visitors from potential security breaches and cyber-attacks.
  • Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Search engines are constantly updating their algorithms, and your new website built must be optimised for current best practices. By implementing effective SEO strategies, you can improve your website’s visibility in search engine results pages and attract more traffic.
  • Integration with Marketing and Analytics: A new website must integrate with the latest marketing and analytics tools, allowing you to better understand your audience and optimise your digital marketing efforts.
  • Fast, clean and easy to use: A clean, minimalistic yet sophisticated website will be easier to use, will be faster to download, kinder on mobile devices and user data plans. All will help improve its performance and productivity.
  • Integration with your other channels: Your website is only a part of your digital strategy and must integrate with the rest of it, possibly serving as the centralised hub connecting your Social Media Accounts, hosting landing pages for your advertising campaigns, linking to and working with your Apps, providing a platform for your rich content, whilst collecting, maintaining and learning from as much data as it can lawfully collect.

Conclusion

The formula to success online is more complicated than it has ever been, your website is still a central and leading part of the answer, if your website is not performing you should probably be looking at it.