In today’s market, maintaining a successful business that can weather the ups and downs of the economy can be a tricky job. You’ve worked hard to establish your company and brand, and you’ve found your niche market to pour your resources into. Your hard work is paying off. But, if you’re like many businesses, you may be falling behind in one area: your website. Too many companies fail to successfully tie their online presence to their physical business, and miss out on potential customer growth along the way. Don’t fall victim to this same fate.
For many companies, walking in the front door no longer offers customers the first impressions. Your website is a digital reflection of your business, and often the first place where your audience will come in contact with you and your services. What do you want your customers to see and experience when they visit your site for the first time? The last thing you want and need is for an ineffective website to turn your audience away before they even get a chance to experience the best part of your business- you!
What exactly does that mean? Simply put, there are some specific characteristics that make your business stand out from the competition. Your website should clearly reflect the main characteristics of your company, and communicate the solutions and services you provide to your target audience. Your business also has a voice that is reflected in your marketing and sales strategies. Be sure to incorporate that into your website. Remember, what you say is just as important as how you say it.
When it comes to running your business, you probably have a specific plan for how you run the day-to-day. You understand that all aspects of your business must work together for growth and success. Your online marketing strategies should effectively model a similar strategy. Don’t look at your website, email marketing, and paid advertising as compartmentalized methods, but rather as a joint effort to share your company with the digital world. The way you market online should be a natural extension of your branding efforts.
You expect nothing short of professionalism from your employees, and work hard to establish a reputation of trust, reliability, and loyalty. You want your customers coming back over and over again, and will do everything possible to make that happen. Don’t forget to let that professionalism carry over onto your website, too. Be consistent with your designs (fonts, color schemes, logos and backgrounds). You have a focused, single message that your brand is communicating. Keep your designs focused and simple, and in line with that specialized brand you’re promoting. Use high-quality graphic images to reflect your high-quality service. And, make sure you website includes professional content that is creative, relevant, and most importantly, spelled correctly!
You understand that as your customers’ buying habits change, you must regularly make business changes to stay relevant and reliable. Maybe you tweak your products or services to accommodate changing buyer needs. You expand or downsize your locations based on projected sales growth patterns. You business has to adapt when needed in order to stay successful. Your website should be no different. Are there marketing efforts on your website that just aren’t working as planned? If so, change things up and try something new. If your site visitors see the same thing every time they land on your page, they’ll quickly stop coming back. Change the content on your website regularly by including blog posts, news articles, and other relevant content that your audience will be interested in reading on a regular basis. This provides you with more opportunities to further connect your actual business and staff with the digital world of customers that awaits you.
Your website opens up a world of opportunities for you to connect with your ideal customer base. Just don’t get carried away and promote a false or unclear image of your company through an ineffective website. You’ll just waste your time and money and gain very little in the process. Make sure that your website paints a clear picture about who you are and what you have to offer, and you (and your customers) will reap the benefits in the end.
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By Ken Franzen
President / Co-Founder of Neon Goldfish
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