Ads are good at one thing: bringing people to your website. What happens next depends entirely on the site. We often see businesses launch campaigns onto a website that was never built to turn visitors into customers, then conclude that ads do not work.
Before you spend on ads, run through this checklist. It will save you money whichever platform you advertise on.
It loads quickly on a phone
Most ad clicks come from mobile. If your pages take more than a few seconds to load, many people leave before they see anything. Test your key pages with PageSpeed Insights and fix the biggest problems first, which are usually large images and too many plugins or scripts.
It is clear what you do
A first-time visitor should understand what you offer, who it is for and why to choose you within a few seconds. Write your headline for a stranger, not for someone who already knows your business. "Accounting for small businesses in Kathmandu" beats "Welcome to our website".
Every service has its own page
If you run ads for different services, each one needs a page that is about that service only. Sending all your ads to the home page makes visitors search for what they came for, and many will not.
There is one clear next step
Every page should make it obvious what to do next, such as call, book, request a quote or buy. Use the same wording on buttons across the site, and put the main button near the top as well as further down.
Ask someone who has never seen your website to find out how to contact you or buy from you on their phone. Time it. If it takes more than 10 seconds, simplify.
Forms and buttons actually work
It sounds obvious, but we regularly find contact forms that send to an old email address, booking links that are broken, or buttons that do nothing on mobile. Test every form and button on a phone and a computer before launch, and again after any update to the site.
Tracking is set up before launch
Without tracking, you cannot tell which ads bring in customers, and the ad platforms cannot optimise for results. Before launching, make sure you have:
- Google Analytics 4 installed on every page;
- conversion tracking for form submissions, calls, WhatsApp clicks and purchases;
- the pixels or tags for each ad platform you plan to use;
- a test conversion recorded and visible in each tool.
It builds trust
People need reasons to believe you before they hand over their details or money. Show real reviews, client logos, photos of your team or work, clear prices where possible, and your contact details and address. A privacy policy and terms page also help, and some ad platforms require them.
"A good website does not need to be fancy. It needs to be fast, clear and easy to act on."
What to do next
Work through the list and fix anything that fails. None of these changes need a full redesign, and together they can make the same ad budget go noticeably further.
If you are not sure whether your site is ready, our free audit checks your website, tracking and landing pages before you spend more on ads.
Mountics is a digital marketing agency in Kathmandu, Nepal. We write about the paid ads, SEO, social and conversion work we do in client accounts every week.