What to put in your website sidebar

We get it. WordPress is awesome.

It’s very user-friendly, super easy for you to drag, drop, edit and augment your website to your hearts desire. It’s true, editing your website sidebar is simple and fun.

What you put in your sidebar however, requires some thought and strategy. Just because you CAN put something in your sidebar, doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

A website’s sidebar should be viewed as an opportunity to add value to the page rather than as a distraction.

Some things to think about when planning your sidebar strategy:

1. ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL
What works in the sidebar for one page might not necessarily work in another. We recommend assessing each page for its specific needs.

For example, in the blog page sidebar you might want to put blog categories, popular posts or recent comments to help facilitate interaction whereas on your Services page you’ll want to put a way to book an appointment, access F.A.Q.s or ask more questions regarding your services.

One item you do want to consider putting in most of your sidebars (aside from your “money” pages) is your main CTA (Call to Action).
Sample Side Bar Contents:

About page
1. Main CTA
2. Meet the team
3. Link to view services
Services page
1. Main CTA
2. Book a service
3. Contact us
4. Service categories for easier browsing
5. Link to F.A.Q’s regarding your services
Portfolio page
1. Main CTA
2. Book a service
3. Testimonials

Blog page
1. Main CTA
2. Blog categories
3. Subscribe to Blog
4. Recent comments
5. Popular posts
Money Pages
These are the pages where you process your transactions. Where users will be entering payment credentials to book a service or buy a product.

Keep these sidebars clutter free!
Any opportunity to go away from this page is an opportunity to ditch the sale. A great option would be to leave the sidebar off of this page altogether.

2. YOUR SIDEBAR SHOULD BE FOCUSED
Before adding an element to your sidebar ask yourself:

Does this add value to the page?
Is it relevant to the pages content?
Does it enhance user experience by helping them to find what they are looking for?
Does it act as a distraction or will it help me achieve my website conversion goals?

Every website and business is different so your specific needs will vary, but the goal is the same. Your sidebar is there to serve your customers’ needs not your own desires to utilize all the neat gizmo gadgets and widgets that come with WordPress.

The most important factor in a successful website that converts is usability. Make sure the information presented on your website assists the user in getting what they want rather than distracting them with fluff.