Learn how to redesign your website to be more "inbound" in eight simple steps.

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1) Who is your website talking to?

Fundamental starting points are buyer personas or target market segments. (If you don't have buyer personas, grab this free template to create them for your business.) What are the buyer personas and target markets you're trying to reach with your website? Once you outline who these people are, only then we you start to create messages, pages, and content for them.

2) Which content is needed in order to be a thought leader in the marketplace?

Odds are, you have competitors in your market. So when re-structuring your website, it’s important that you pay attention to the frequency and quality of the content being produced by your competition.

3) Build your site for Learners, Shoppers, and Buyers.

Inbound marketers often refer to the steps of the buying cycle as:

1. Top of the Funnel, or TOFU
2. Middle of the Funnel, or MOFU
3. Bottom of the Funnel, or BOFU

When talking to new clients we like to describe each of these buying cycles as Learners (TOFU), Shoppers (MOFU), and Buyers (BOFU). Call them whatever makes the most sense to you.

1. An example of a Learner or (TOFU) prospect is someone searching Google for "best midsize family car."
2. An Example of a Shopper or (MOFU) prospect is someone searching Google for "crossover SUV reviews."
3. An Example of a Buyer or (BOFU) prospect is someone searching Google for "Ford Edge for sale."

4) Finish with SEO, but don’t start with it.

SEO should solve for the reader, not search engines.

5) Make sure you talk about "why" more than "what."

If your website starts off with "why," then it's going to be much easier to convey the value of your widgets to the consumer. And if you craft the "why" the right way, then you will also have a greater chance to create an emotional connection with your prospects. Reach them on an emotional level. Simon Sinek does a great job of explaining this with his TED Talk on the "Power of Why."

6) Create stupid-proof navigation.

Popular ways to provide some stupid-proof navigation are:

• Providing footer links on every page for the content you "want" people to find
• Having a menu that makes it simple to understand what the next step should be
• Including anchor text within content to drive the visitor deeper into your website

7) Use responsive design.

Ensure that your website is responsive, and caters to that mobile audience that is growing by leaps and bounds. It's about more than just having a site looks good -- it needs to be easy to read and navigate, too!

8) Make it remarkable.

In order to stand out against your competition you've got to be remarkable. Everything you do, and especially your website, needs to represent how remarkable your company is. Make sure that your website communicates the mission, vision, and goals of your company.