Future Proof Feature: Optimized 404 Pages

As of Q4FW v2.7, all sites come with an updated 404 page.

Turn errors into opportunity

  • the idea is to transform dead end pages where customers can bounce into opportunities to reengage and funnel customers back into the site
    • Featured Rooms
    • Featured Properties
    • Blog Post
    • Calls To Action

By default, this page will show a random selection of 6 rooms/properties and the 4 latest blog posts. This can be customized if desired to show a manually chosen selection of featured rooms/properties and/or posts by following the proceeding steps.

How to Enable This Feature (required)

  1. Log into the backend of the website
  2. Using the left-hand menu on the admin dashboard, click: "Appearance > Customize > Q4 Future Proof™️ Features > Q4 Custom 404 Page"
  3. Tick the checkbox next to "Enable Q4 Custom 404 Page" to turn it on
  4. Click "Publish" to save your work
  5. Navigate to an invalid page (for example, starfishluxuryrentals.com/404-error) to view the page and confirm your new 404s are in place.

How to Customize the 404 Page (optional)

By default, the new 404 page will show a random selection of 6(max) rooms/properties and the 4 latest blog posts.

However, this can be customized if desired to show a manually chosen selection of featured rooms/properties and/or posts by following the proceeding steps.

After enabling the 404 page feature using the steps above...

  1. Return to the dashboard on the backend of WordPress
  2. Hover on "Settings" in the admin menu and click "Q4 Custom 404 Page Settings"
  3. Clicking this menu item will present you with three settings.  The first is "Custom 404 Message".  If desired you can put a custom message in to display on the 404 page.  If nothing is entered it will default to a standard message.
  4. Next is the "Featured Rooms/Accommodations/Properties" setting.  Clicking the select box will present you with a list of rooms/accommodations/properties depending on site settings and whether the Q4VR plugin is installed.  You can also begin typing the name of a property or room to narrow the list of selection options accordingly.
    1. Selecting an item from the list will close the list and show name of the selected item in a small gray box.  Click anywhere inside the select box to reopen the list and choose more items.  Previously selected items will be highlighted in gray.
    2. To clear any individual item from the list click the small x to the left of the name.
    3. To clear all items click the x in the top right of the select box.
    4. Only the first 6 selected items (in order from left to right) will be shown.
    5. Items and their display order can be rearranged by dragging and dropping the gray boxes with the item names into the preferred order.
  5. Lastly is the "Featured Posts" option.  This works the same as the previous "Featured Rooms/Accommodations/Properties" setting except that it allows you to choose any blog posts and will only show the first 4 selected.
  6. Once you have made your selections click the "Update" button under "Publish" in the top right of the page.

Template Email: Announcing the Update to Customers

When you have completed the setup and are ready to let your customer know, here is a message you may copy/paste to them:

Subject Line: Future Proof™ feature: optimized 404 pages, turning errors into opportunity

Body Copy:

Hi [CUSTOMER NAME],

Great news! Our Development team just released an update to our Future Proof ® Platform and I wanted to share it with you. As a reminder, website enhancements like these come at no cost to you and are a part of our ongoing website improvements for you.

Our most recent Future Proof ® Platform feature is called "Error into Opportunity 404 Page Optimization." With this feature, we've updated your 404 page so that it may be used as a re-conversion tool to keep website visitors engaged with your site.

In the past, when users landed on a 404 page, they essentially hit a dead end. Now, the 404 page has links to featured accommodations and recent blog posts.

These additions will:

    • keep users engaged and browsing on your website
    • increases our chances of converting visitors into a lead or booking
    • help reduce site-wide bounce rates
    • help increase time on site

You may view your new and improved 404 page here: [INSERT URL OF NEW 404 PAGE for example,starfishluxuryrentals.com/404-error ]

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