Your contact page is incredibly important for visitors. The type of business you have will guide the strategy you use for building that page. Yes, there’s a little strategy that goes into developing a great contact page. This post will take you through the entire process, from deciding what you need to actually implementing it on your site.
What type of business do you have?
Your contact page content will be determined by the type of business you have. Some business models lend themselves to more visitors reaching out, while others result in virtually no contact from visitors. What does your business look like? Mine, for example, is mainly 1:1 client based. I get submissions each day from my contact form, as well as messages on social media, but it’s not an overwhelming amount. It’s manageable.
On the flip side, I have several clients who have ecommerce shops on their website. Some sell 5 figures worth of digital downloads each month, which means they have a lot of customers who may need support or have questions.
If you are a brick and mortar store, you might also have people reaching out to ask about hours, location, etc. If you provide appointments, that’s another layer that you’ll want to consider. Determine the engagement you typically have with visitors and customers, and let that guide your contact page strategy. The more contacts, the more information you’ll likely need to add to your page.
What do you want visitors to do on your contact page?
Here’s a list of questions that will be helpful as you decide on the “journey” you want visitors to take. These questions will help you develop the strategy for your contact page.
- Do you want visitors to use a form to contact you? Or do you just want to display your email?
- Do you want them to reach out via social media? Or do you not check it enough, which would result in you missing a message?
- Do you want to make it easy for visitors? Or do you have a business where you don’t want/need to be contacted, so the contact page might need to be a little more obscure and not in your navigation?
- Do you want to encourage visitors to seek out answers BEFORE reaching out?
- What should visitors expect after they contact you? Do you reply within 24 hours?
This isn’t an exhaustive list, but you get the point. What do you want that journey to look like and how can you make it most efficient for your not only your visitors, but yourself?
What information needs to be displayed?
Here’s a list of information or features that you might choose to display on your contact page. Again, this will depend on the answers to the questions in the previous section.
- Form (Name, Email, Message, etc.)
- Social Media Icons
- Expectations (when they can expect a reply, your business hours)
- Hours, Physical Location, Phone Number
- Email Address (if you want it publicly displayed)
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs can really decrease emails if you typically get a lot of the same questions.)
What steps do you want your visitors to take?
Go through the process in your head and map it out. What do you want them to consider or do first? Structure your page in that order… or just straight out tell them what you want them to do. I’ll give you an example. My contact page is below.
I tell visitors right away what they can expect as a reply (questionnaire, proposal, quick response), when they can expect a reply, and a little clarification that I’m a work-at-home-mama and I have a somewhat inconsistent schedule. Social media buttons are next because they can ask a quick question and get a fairly quick response.
Next is my FAQ button because I get a lot of repeat questions and I want visitors to try and answer their own question before reaching out (again… work-at-home-mama with very little time). Last, I have a rather large form. Since I do 1:1 client work I really wanted my inquiries to be immediately added to my CRM, Dubsado. It helps me avoid having to manually enter client information, which saves a tremendous amount of time on my end. See? Efficiency.
Plugins You Can Use
I personally use Elementor for my site. There are two versions, free and pro. The pro version will allow you to add forms, HTML elements, social media buttons, and tons of other features like maps or FAQ accordians. My form is actually just an embedded iframe code from my CRM. The WordPress Editor (Blocks) actually has a code block so you can embed forms if needed without adding a plugin. Here’s a list of other plugins and resources that will allow you to create contact forms or insert maps if you wand a more user friendly contact page.
Elementor PRO
WP Forms
Ninja Forms
Gravity Forms
Embed Google Map
Google Map Plugin
In conclusion, your contact page shouldn’t just be a page with your email address slapped on there. Be strategic about it and give your visitors a great user experience. Make it helpful and easy. If you value those connections, then you’ll spend a bit of time making it a sweet experience for your visitors when the time comes for them to reach out.
Want to check out my contact page? Yes please.
