The short answer is not a lot if you can't define its purpose. When looking at an online presence for your organisation you have to ask yourself the question, what do I want to achieve with my website? Is it to serve as a promotional tool to engage your target audience and allow them to identify with your brand? Are you looking to sell products and generate sales online? Does your website serve as an information resource to educate and inform your potential clients about the benefits of your services? Maybe it's some, all or none of the above but whatever the reasons you have to be clear from the outset: what do you want your website to achieve?

Developing from this how are you going to measure the effectiveness of your website? If you're operating an e-commerce storefront then the quantity and value per sale is an obvious metric to measure by. What happens though if you're not selling online? How do you tell if your website is working?

Countless times we've come across website owners who have no idea of how many people are visiting and engaging with their website, if at all, and, as a result, have no way of measuring return on investment. Quite often their website is 'hidden' online, failing to rank on search results and generally unknown to their target audience. 

This can happen for a number of reasons. Firstly, the website may not be seen as an integral part of business strategy and is simply left to function on its own. Secondly, the website may not be marketed via cross media promotional methods, both online and offline. Finally, the website may not be structured in a way that promotes the business and its brand effectively and as a result fails to engage its target audience. Whatever the reason many website owners fail to maximise their opportunities by neglecting to invest in their website and see it as an integral part of their business strategy.

At Saints at Play we strive to work with our clients by discussing their needs and requirements and seeing whether a website is actually going to help meet those. We will be the first to say that not every organisation needs a website. Unlike some agencies we've worked with (who shall remain nameless for very obvious reasons) we are not interested in selling the client a bill of goods they simply do not need. After all if you're in business every expenditure has to be weighed against its potential for return.  And if there's limited potential for return you simply won't make that investment.

What it all boils down to is knowing what you want to get from your website. Clearly defined goals allow for  outcomes and results to be weighed very clearly.  Websites can reap rewards for organisations but only if they're clear about what they want, how they'll continue to invest in their online presence and how they can measure those results.