by Patrick Stafford - SmartCompany.com.au

Think your website is ready for 2011? Think again. Just as you’ve mastered the latest web trends, suddenly major changes in SEO, web design and eCommerce appear from nowhere - and your business had better be prepared.

Expanding your use of video, adapting to the growing use of smartphones and using your website to become an expert in your field are just some of the tasks you’ll need to tackle this year if you want to keep on top of the competition online.

And as Martin Hosking from RedBubble says, integrating social media throughout your online strategy is a challenge every website operator must address.

“People aren’t just shopping through search now. What we’re seeing is a combination of interaction with friends, along with looking on a website. So if you’re operating a website you really need to start thinking about your whole social experience.”

Here are the big web trends you need to address in 2011.

Web sales

Add something new

Physical retailers practically fall over each other trying to stand out among the crowd, offering extras like discounts, gift-wrapping and other promotions. Hal Pritchard from kitchenware site Everton Online says eCommerce sites need to be doing this as well.

“You really have to do more than just the basics now, and add-on features such as gift-wrapping and other types of benefits. People are getting more discerning, and it’s not just enough to just have a product now, and then offer it for a good price.”

Pritchard says the high Australian dollar means retailers need to start acting now. If businesses want to keep dollars onshore, he argues, they need to offer some extras.

“The more creative you can be, the better. I know of a clothing company that puts in handwritten notes into all of their products, thanking the customers. That’s a great example of what you can do when you’re a small retailer.”

“This is the type of stuff you can do when you’re a small company, and you have the chance to do it. Make yourself stand out and keep those customers coming back.”

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