This initial post will most likely set the tone for this blog as it’s goal is to drive home that when it comes to your online presence you need to prioritize and take care of First Things First!
I am a huge advocate of Search Engine Optimization, and quality organic placement is an extremely important component in your sites success. Email campaigns and marketing initiatives offer great returns when done well. Pay-Per-Click has a place when strategically planned, implemented and properly managed. Advertising in industry specific directories, relevant in-bound links and many other traffic generating opportunities can be utilized successfully to increase traffic to a company’s website.
Often companies attempt some, or all, of the above-mentioned projects and unfortunately often one of two outcomes occur:
1. Quality traffic is not generated to the site and the initiatives are dismissed as ineffective.
2. Traffic (hopefully qualified traffic) is driven to the site and nothing happens!?!
Either way the return on investment is not realized and the entire process is deemed worthless. The marketer is left disappointed, discouraged and usually out a lot of money!
The sad truth is that 9 times out of 10 this is all due the hard fact that the site itself was in no shape to have traffic driven to it in the first place.
Think of it this way:
You have a house and you’re proud of it. It may be big, small, multi-story, single level… it doesn’t matter because it’s yours and you want to tell everyone. In fact, you want to throw a party to share it with others!
You’re making invitations and going to get them out to whoever you can so all these new friends will visit the house and join the celebration. In various ways they get the invite and they start to show up. They’re picturing what it will be like. They are assuming they will be entertained, informed, fulfilled. And when they show up and enter your home…
Nuthin!
Yes, they are in the shell of what could be a great home but the party was thrown way too soon.
Most rooms are barren and where there is furniture its assembly is only partially complete. There is nothing to offer the guests to keep them refreshed or interested in staying.
In fact, the main entrance (your home page) doesn’t give the visitors any direction as to where in the house the party actually is, so the ones who don’t leave immediately stay for a short while meandering around until they become bored and then eventually leave as well. Additionally, since they did not know you very well before the first invite and they were disappointed, odds are they will not be jumping at the chance to come back in the future for fear of a similar experience.
Just as this is no way to embrace guests in your home or office, it is just as unacceptable on your website.
So first things first!
Look carefully at your existing website and objectively ask yourself if you took time from your busy schedule to visit the site would you find it fulfilling? Place yourself in the shoes of one of your prospective clients and surf your site.
* If you were there for the first time ever, would it be clear where you should go within the site to find what you need?
* Does each page you visit clearly state where you are within the site and what you should do next?
* Can you gather all of the information you need to make an educated decision quickly and easily?
* Do you have a clear and simple path to begin communicating with the company?
This blog will be getting into specific topics, each offering tips to hopefully give you a competitive edge.
Tonight’s post is the get the ball rolling on what is most important regarding your sites marketing and optimizing the experience once you get prospects to it…the site itself!
Complete the house and properly prepare for company before inviting guests.
Do this correctly and your guests will keep returning and bringing you gifts in the form of new business.
