10 Things Your Website Must Do
10 Things Your Website Must Do
by Frank Cowell, CeM
Whether your company sells products or offers
services, you will want to make sure that you use
this list as a guide for your website.
Define your 'position' and communicate it
prominently.
Tell website visitors on your homepage what you do
and how you are different from others in your
industry. Tell them where you specialize. This can
be accomplished either through a combination of
your company name and 'slogan', through text in
an introductory paragraph or through a bold,
prominently-displayed marketing-type message.
Here is an example:
Cowell eMarketing
A small and innovative eMarketing firm for
businesses seeking new ways to attract and retain
customers. Unlike larger eMarketing firms, Cowell
eMarketing only accepts a limited number of active
clients at a time, which allows us to provide
responsive and individual service... the way it
used to be.
Communicate that others have taken the step to do
business with you.
When people browse your site they wonder if your
company is trustworthy. In order for people to feel
confident about doing business with you, you need
to help them in the trust department. By showing
that others have already done business with you,
you show that you are a real company with real
customers. Here are a few ways to do this:
Quotes/Testimonials - ask your clients for a 1 or
2 sentence quote about various ways in which you
have satisfied. Example:
"Donovan Consulting is the only firm we go to
when we need accounting work that must be
accurate and on-time."
Success Stories - compile a short, one paragraph
story about how you helped a client overcome an
obstacle. Include names of companies and people
wherever possible. Also, include factual data to
add impact.
"Susan Smith, Director of Operations at InstaNet,
was losing millions of dollars each year in
employee overtime and project overruns. With our
help, we were able to work with Susan to install
ProjectWare and after six months InstaNet reduced
employee overtime by 75%. Additionally, project
overruns were brought-down to 5% compared to 15%
before using ProjectWare."
Case Studies - a case study is typically a one or
two page report (longer in some cases based on
topic) that takes the success story even further.
A case study will provide detailed information
about the client's challenges, how those challenges
affected their business, what options they had for
solving those challenges, which option solved their
challenge and specific results of how the solution
is saving money or producing revenue.
It is important to use a combination of these tools
throughout your website as related links to relevant
information.
Position yourself as a leader.
As visitors browse your site, they start to form
an opinion of your company's offerings, reputation,
etc. One thing people will want to know is your
'position' in the industry. Does your company lead
the industry? Do they lag behind? Are you a
'me too' company? Here are a few examples of
information you can provide to establish a
position of leadership:
Write articles and white papers on important
topics within your industry. Take a stand and
give your opinion on the matter. Don't be afraid
of your opinion. If you are passionate about your
thoughts and opinions, share them!
Conduct seminars on an important topic in your
industry. Teach others how to do something that
they otherwise might not know how to do. Depending
on your audience, you can offer free seminars or
charge for them.
Speak at conferences and other business events
where your target audience is likely to be. Apply
for as many speaking events as you possibly can!
Promote your articles, white papers, seminars and
speaking engagements on your website. Invite people
to hear what you have to say.
Provide opportunities for visitors to engage with
you at several levels.
On the web it is sometimes difficult for people to
make the leap from 'just browsing' to buying.
Whether you literally sell online or are a services
company that doesn't 'do business' online, you will
want to offer your visitors several ways to start
a dialogue with your company. By giving people an
opportunity to engage your business without a major
commitment, you establish your 'foot in the door'.
Once you have your foot in the door,
'getting the sale' is easy. Here are some tools
you will want to consider to get your foot
in the door:
Free reports/white papers - not only do these tools
establish your company as thought leaders, they
also serve as a great way to get people to interact
with you at no cost!
Online calculators - a great example are the
'mortgage calculators' that a lot of real estate
finance companies offer on their websites. These
simple tools provide value with no commitment
on the customer's part.
Trial products - can your product or service be
packaged in a 'try-it-for-free' scenario? Software
companies can offer free 30-day evaluation
versions of their software. A products company
can send sample sizes of their products at no
charge. An online service can offer free access
for a limited time or completely free 'basic'
accounts. Music business can offer one track of
several for free. The possibilities are endless!
Newsletters - If you regularly write or have
access to fresh articles, you can publish an
online newsletter and allow people to sign-up
for free. As long as your newsletter is sent on
a regular basis and always has new and valuable
articles, it will be a hit!
Consultations, Evaluations - Services companies
can easily offer free consultations to qualified
prospects. The consultations can take place via
phone, email or in-person. Either way, you engage
your prospects and start a dialogue with them!
Sell with emotion and justify with logic.
You may be thinking that this one doesn't apply
to you because your company does not sell products
online, however, all companies have a 'sell' to
make. Whether you are a consultant, lawyer, doctor,
landscaper or any other type of service-oriented
business, you must sell potential customers on why
they should consider doing business with you. So
how does one sell with 'emotion' and justify with
'logic'? Let's first explain why this is important.
When people decide to spend money, they do so
based on how they think the product or service
will make them feel. For example, someone who
buys a Volvo automobile likes the feeling of
safety and security. Safety and security are the
emotions. You must know which emotions your
product or service cater to. When you know which
emotions you must cater to, you can then use words
and phrases that will resonate with your customer.
So if the emotions are why people buy, then what
is this other business about 'justifying with
logic'? After a person has the right 'feelings'
about a purchase, a conversation starts to take
place in their head. In this conversation, they
convince themselves that they are making a good
decision. Your job, after catering to the right
emotions, is to provide enough information so
they will 'win' the argument. Give benefit-related
details about your product or service.
Get specific with numbers, ratings, percentages,
etc. The Volvo buyer buys because of safety and
security but convinces themselves with data about
the specific safety rating, how many people have
survived head-on collisions, the number of
airbags, etc.
Add a guarantee about your product/service and
you will have all the right ingredients to sell
with the pros!
Use imagery of smiling, happy and
successful people.
It's cliché and maybe a bit corny, but it's
absolutely true. People want to be associated with
happy, successful people. Images of business
people looking very serious at a meeting table may
look professional, but they do not inspire.
If you sell products online, show happy people
around your product. If you are a consultant, show
your customers in front of their businesses or
homes, smiling. If you are a landscaper, show
your customers and their children enjoying
their beautiful yards and gardens.
Some may think that this technique is for smaller
businesses and that larger businesses shouldn't
use this kind of artwork. Nonsense! Don't ever
feel that by showing happy, smiling people
somehow diminishes the appearance of
company size.
Prominently post a phone number and contact
information.
Post your contact information prominently on your
site. If you can't incorporate the contact
information into your site's 'look and feel
template', make sure the link to the page that
contains this information is prominently
displayed. There are too many websites on the
Internet that seem very anonymous because you
don't know where they are or how to get in touch
with them. This small bit of information will give
potential customers a sense of security, knowing
that they can easily get in touch with your
company if they need to.
Incorporate a professional, crisp and clean design.
This is a touchy subject. Some people love
animated images, Flash, 'roll-over' menus and
anything else that they think is 'cutting edge'.
Web features such as these have their place, but
should be used sparingly. Nobody will ever do
business with you because you use these features
and your competition doesn't. Nobody. Remember
that the web is most like the experience of
reading a magazine and not like watching TV.
Keep your website design simple and clean and
use these web features sparingly!
Promote and address privacy.
If you collect information from people for the
purpose of selling goods, sending out newsletters,
etc., you will want to ease their minds by letting
them know that you value their personal
information. Post a page on your website called,
'Privacy Policy'. On this page inform visitors
that their information will not be shared or sold
(if that is the case) and that their information
is safe. Look at other sites on the Internet that
have privacy policies and use those as a guideline
for yours. According to the Customer Respect
Group, a large and well-known organization that
monitors and reports-on how online businesses
treat customers' personal information, a privacy
policy is a must-have!
Follow-up with respondents immediately.
Nothing is more disappointing than completing a
'Contact Us' or 'Request More Information' form and
not getting a call back in a timely manner. Worse
yet, a large number of business, for whatever
reason, completely ignore the communication
altogether! This negligence can completely
undermine your credibility and a customer's
confidence in the web, in general. Make it a
policy to religiously follow-up with visitors
who contact you within 48 hours. A reply within
24 hours is recommended and even better. You
should also consider employing technology to give
an immediate automated response to people who
complete these online forms. An automated reply
coupled with a 24 hour personal reply will provide
a sense of reliability about your company.
About the Author
Frank Cowell is a Certified eMarketer
(as certified by the International eMarketing
Association) and President of Cowell eMarketing.
Cowell eMarketing provides website and eCommerce
solutions, eMail Marketing services and Search
Engine Marketing services.
by Frank Cowell, CeM
Whether your company sells products or offers
services, you will want to make sure that you use
this list as a guide for your website.
Define your 'position' and communicate it
prominently.
Tell website visitors on your homepage what you do
and how you are different from others in your
industry. Tell them where you specialize. This can
be accomplished either through a combination of
your company name and 'slogan', through text in
an introductory paragraph or through a bold,
prominently-displayed marketing-type message.
Here is an example:
Cowell eMarketing
A small and innovative eMarketing firm for
businesses seeking new ways to attract and retain
customers. Unlike larger eMarketing firms, Cowell
eMarketing only accepts a limited number of active
clients at a time, which allows us to provide
responsive and individual service... the way it
used to be.
Communicate that others have taken the step to do
business with you.
When people browse your site they wonder if your
company is trustworthy. In order for people to feel
confident about doing business with you, you need
to help them in the trust department. By showing
that others have already done business with you,
you show that you are a real company with real
customers. Here are a few ways to do this:
Quotes/Testimonials - ask your clients for a 1 or
2 sentence quote about various ways in which you
have satisfied. Example:
"Donovan Consulting is the only firm we go to
when we need accounting work that must be
accurate and on-time."
Success Stories - compile a short, one paragraph
story about how you helped a client overcome an
obstacle. Include names of companies and people
wherever possible. Also, include factual data to
add impact.
"Susan Smith, Director of Operations at InstaNet,
was losing millions of dollars each year in
employee overtime and project overruns. With our
help, we were able to work with Susan to install
ProjectWare and after six months InstaNet reduced
employee overtime by 75%. Additionally, project
overruns were brought-down to 5% compared to 15%
before using ProjectWare."
Case Studies - a case study is typically a one or
two page report (longer in some cases based on
topic) that takes the success story even further.
A case study will provide detailed information
about the client's challenges, how those challenges
affected their business, what options they had for
solving those challenges, which option solved their
challenge and specific results of how the solution
is saving money or producing revenue.
It is important to use a combination of these tools
throughout your website as related links to relevant
information.
Position yourself as a leader.
As visitors browse your site, they start to form
an opinion of your company's offerings, reputation,
etc. One thing people will want to know is your
'position' in the industry. Does your company lead
the industry? Do they lag behind? Are you a
'me too' company? Here are a few examples of
information you can provide to establish a
position of leadership:
Write articles and white papers on important
topics within your industry. Take a stand and
give your opinion on the matter. Don't be afraid
of your opinion. If you are passionate about your
thoughts and opinions, share them!
Conduct seminars on an important topic in your
industry. Teach others how to do something that
they otherwise might not know how to do. Depending
on your audience, you can offer free seminars or
charge for them.
Speak at conferences and other business events
where your target audience is likely to be. Apply
for as many speaking events as you possibly can!
Promote your articles, white papers, seminars and
speaking engagements on your website. Invite people
to hear what you have to say.
Provide opportunities for visitors to engage with
you at several levels.
On the web it is sometimes difficult for people to
make the leap from 'just browsing' to buying.
Whether you literally sell online or are a services
company that doesn't 'do business' online, you will
want to offer your visitors several ways to start
a dialogue with your company. By giving people an
opportunity to engage your business without a major
commitment, you establish your 'foot in the door'.
Once you have your foot in the door,
'getting the sale' is easy. Here are some tools
you will want to consider to get your foot
in the door:
Free reports/white papers - not only do these tools
establish your company as thought leaders, they
also serve as a great way to get people to interact
with you at no cost!
Online calculators - a great example are the
'mortgage calculators' that a lot of real estate
finance companies offer on their websites. These
simple tools provide value with no commitment
on the customer's part.
Trial products - can your product or service be
packaged in a 'try-it-for-free' scenario? Software
companies can offer free 30-day evaluation
versions of their software. A products company
can send sample sizes of their products at no
charge. An online service can offer free access
for a limited time or completely free 'basic'
accounts. Music business can offer one track of
several for free. The possibilities are endless!
Newsletters - If you regularly write or have
access to fresh articles, you can publish an
online newsletter and allow people to sign-up
for free. As long as your newsletter is sent on
a regular basis and always has new and valuable
articles, it will be a hit!
Consultations, Evaluations - Services companies
can easily offer free consultations to qualified
prospects. The consultations can take place via
phone, email or in-person. Either way, you engage
your prospects and start a dialogue with them!
Sell with emotion and justify with logic.
You may be thinking that this one doesn't apply
to you because your company does not sell products
online, however, all companies have a 'sell' to
make. Whether you are a consultant, lawyer, doctor,
landscaper or any other type of service-oriented
business, you must sell potential customers on why
they should consider doing business with you. So
how does one sell with 'emotion' and justify with
'logic'? Let's first explain why this is important.
When people decide to spend money, they do so
based on how they think the product or service
will make them feel. For example, someone who
buys a Volvo automobile likes the feeling of
safety and security. Safety and security are the
emotions. You must know which emotions your
product or service cater to. When you know which
emotions you must cater to, you can then use words
and phrases that will resonate with your customer.
So if the emotions are why people buy, then what
is this other business about 'justifying with
logic'? After a person has the right 'feelings'
about a purchase, a conversation starts to take
place in their head. In this conversation, they
convince themselves that they are making a good
decision. Your job, after catering to the right
emotions, is to provide enough information so
they will 'win' the argument. Give benefit-related
details about your product or service.
Get specific with numbers, ratings, percentages,
etc. The Volvo buyer buys because of safety and
security but convinces themselves with data about
the specific safety rating, how many people have
survived head-on collisions, the number of
airbags, etc.
Add a guarantee about your product/service and
you will have all the right ingredients to sell
with the pros!
Use imagery of smiling, happy and
successful people.
It's cliché and maybe a bit corny, but it's
absolutely true. People want to be associated with
happy, successful people. Images of business
people looking very serious at a meeting table may
look professional, but they do not inspire.
If you sell products online, show happy people
around your product. If you are a consultant, show
your customers in front of their businesses or
homes, smiling. If you are a landscaper, show
your customers and their children enjoying
their beautiful yards and gardens.
Some may think that this technique is for smaller
businesses and that larger businesses shouldn't
use this kind of artwork. Nonsense! Don't ever
feel that by showing happy, smiling people
somehow diminishes the appearance of
company size.
Prominently post a phone number and contact
information.
Post your contact information prominently on your
site. If you can't incorporate the contact
information into your site's 'look and feel
template', make sure the link to the page that
contains this information is prominently
displayed. There are too many websites on the
Internet that seem very anonymous because you
don't know where they are or how to get in touch
with them. This small bit of information will give
potential customers a sense of security, knowing
that they can easily get in touch with your
company if they need to.
Incorporate a professional, crisp and clean design.
This is a touchy subject. Some people love
animated images, Flash, 'roll-over' menus and
anything else that they think is 'cutting edge'.
Web features such as these have their place, but
should be used sparingly. Nobody will ever do
business with you because you use these features
and your competition doesn't. Nobody. Remember
that the web is most like the experience of
reading a magazine and not like watching TV.
Keep your website design simple and clean and
use these web features sparingly!
Promote and address privacy.
If you collect information from people for the
purpose of selling goods, sending out newsletters,
etc., you will want to ease their minds by letting
them know that you value their personal
information. Post a page on your website called,
'Privacy Policy'. On this page inform visitors
that their information will not be shared or sold
(if that is the case) and that their information
is safe. Look at other sites on the Internet that
have privacy policies and use those as a guideline
for yours. According to the Customer Respect
Group, a large and well-known organization that
monitors and reports-on how online businesses
treat customers' personal information, a privacy
policy is a must-have!
Follow-up with respondents immediately.
Nothing is more disappointing than completing a
'Contact Us' or 'Request More Information' form and
not getting a call back in a timely manner. Worse
yet, a large number of business, for whatever
reason, completely ignore the communication
altogether! This negligence can completely
undermine your credibility and a customer's
confidence in the web, in general. Make it a
policy to religiously follow-up with visitors
who contact you within 48 hours. A reply within
24 hours is recommended and even better. You
should also consider employing technology to give
an immediate automated response to people who
complete these online forms. An automated reply
coupled with a 24 hour personal reply will provide
a sense of reliability about your company.
About the Author
Frank Cowell is a Certified eMarketer
(as certified by the International eMarketing
Association) and President of Cowell eMarketing.
Cowell eMarketing provides website and eCommerce
solutions, eMail Marketing services and Search
Engine Marketing services.
posted by JB at 2:00 PM
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