Just Don’t Bother If…

“I have the kid next door doing our site, he has software and knows allot about this stuff”. Life should have taught you by now that you get what you pay for. Cutting corners when it comes to your company’s image and reputation will never, ever be a winning proposition.

Because you may be a bit “TechnoChallenged“, doesn’t give you the excuse to turn over something as important as your Web presence, your businesses image and perception of credibility to someone who “knows” computers or who is the least expensive - or just because they give the perception they know more than you.

When Web site visitors hit your home-brewed looking site - bet on the fact they won’t be back. Especially if your competitors have realized the importance of giving a professional polished impression and have invested accordingly to attain that result. So the point of this article?

Just don’t bother unless…you are
going to do it right!

Successful marketing of an online business flows from a commitment to partner with those who will truly ensure your success by basically mentoring you throughout the entire process, including whatever the future may bring. I hope that as you review the methodology necessary for your online success, regardless of your goals, some of it will strike home and help you find the success which may have, up until now, eluded your efforts on the Web. Here are five vital elements to having a successful online marketing methodology.

1. Service, Service, Service! What about the customer?So very many Web sites talk about themselves: Our Product. Our Service. Our Company. Me, me, me! Us, us, us! Many Web site owners make the mistake of making sure that the visitor is told what the site owner wants them to know. But where is the customer in this? Why should the potential customer come to your site?Why should he or she be interested in your product or service over the other sites with similar focus? Web sites need to be designed with the customer in mind from functionality to navigation to content. Why would a potential customer visit your site; what may they be looking for? Provide it! What are their questions? Answer them!You should plan on including a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page that covers commonly asked questions and concerns - based on what you know off-line or are asked via site input online. One of the rules I have here at The IStudio^® is I don’t get asked anything 3 times. The first time I get asked a question, I consider and investigate the issue at hand.The second time I am asked, I either add the info to my site or Consulting Services or in some cases, create a whole Web Site targeted at that specific topic. And, if there is a third time, I can conveniently point to my online resources to address visitor’s inquiries.Dealing with a customer’s concerns, questions and even objections is one aspect of marketing, but getting them there in the first place is even more important. This is accomplished with aggressive, consistent campaigns within established methodology both on and off-line.Once a potential customer shows up on your site, the more information you can give your potential visitor on your business or industry, the more likely they are to find you on the Web Search Engines perceive you as an expert in your field. Content can only be created with experience you know! Many Search Engines are adding the human or popularity factors to review sites and list them based on “valuable content”.

   By providing information above and beyond the hard sell of what you want to commercially gain from, you are solidifying your expertise within your industry. The sheer number of Web pages being in the billions, makes your site next to impossible to find without a strategic, aggressive, ongoing online marketing campaign - which should include Search Engine monitoring and tracking.

   You need to ask yourself: What do I have to give my potential customers a reason to visit my site, to speak to their needs, and to give them a reason to trust me? Quality design, graphics, layout will immediately impress visitors and lure them to continue to tour your site.

2. Be the Best! Strive to be “the” site for your product, service, industry!With billions of Web pages and thousands of competitors’ sites on the Web, the only way you can succeed is to offer all around excellence in your company’s presence on the Web - to stand out from the rest. Nothing less will do.Stop. . . go back and read that last sentence again. If you take nothing else away from your visit to my site, embed that thought in your brain. This is marketing and perception - don’t forget it for a moment!The Web calls for excellence in writing and logical presentation, although based on most sites you will run into when doing a simple search you would think otherwise. My clients are always surprised at the amount of work involved on both sides to accomplish their goals - many of them become quickly overwhelmed.If I had one dollar for every time I see that infamous “deer in the headlights” look from clients during their initial development meeting! On the Web you have space to explain in detail, to make your case, to highlight the benefits, to give your customer multiple reasons to buy, and to stimulate them to click on the “Order” or “Request Info” buttons.When a customer shows up at your Web site, you have the opportunity marketers dream of - a captive audience who has already made the conscious decision that they are interested in your products or services! Don’t let that opportunity slip by with an unprofessional, sludgy, unorganized presentation.Your Web Site must look attractive if you expect to capture your Web visitors’ attention, to convince them that your company is a high quality, reputable firm, able to deliver on your promises (and don’t make promises unless you can deliver).

   Excellent photographs, sized appropriately, contribute to a high-class look and feel. We don’t just scan in snapshots. Spend enough on either stock photography or custom shots that tell your story with panache. Poor graphics, commonly found animations or stock clip-art are immediate signs that the site owner has cut corners. If they cut corners on something as important as their online image - hmmmm - what else could they be cutting corners on? Service? Product quality? Integrity? Ethics?

   Do not for a moment believe the Web page building software hype that all you need is their product to produce a professional-looking Web site on your own. Tools are great and getting better every day. But without a trained artistic eye and years of Web production experience with numerous clients you will be unable to equal that level of professionalism.

   This is nothing personal or a dig at your skill levels. Simply a statement of fact that is evident in any trade. Those with years of experience who are committed to excellence, full-time, are those most likely to produce a superior product. And in the competitive arena of the Web, only excellence will do.

   Remember, all your potential clients have to do is find a competitor that has invested in their image and the quality of their Web presence and you will immediately be perceived as a hobbyist or amateur. Consider yourself on notice: the bar has been raised. The days of just having a “home page” regardless of quality and content have long since passed.

   This applies to your business approach as well. Don’t just be like everyone else; be unique. Include all the information you would want to find when searching for your products or services. Take your business owner hat off and put your customer hat on. As a customer what you would want to know when arriving at your site?

   Yes, the bigger your site, the more expensive it will be - but this is serious business. Being just another special gadgets vendor won’t make you a Web success in an already saturated market. Find an unfilled niche in your industry, and make your mark there. Offer nothing less than excellence and your excellence will be noticed and rewarded.

3. The only thing consistent - is change! The Web is evolving almost daily. Sites as old as 6 months can begin to look dated. Be prepared to evolve with technology and stay on the edge. Those on the edge will be the survivors with the highest success ratio. Analyze your Web server, Search Engine and financial statistics to see what seems to be working, which pages are visitors naturally migrating toward, what campaign seems to attract the most visitors and orders.You can also learn a lot from simple online surveys of your Web visitors. Offer something for free or a small gift to get visitors to take the time to tell you what they like and, don’t forget to ask them what they didn’t like. Survey results can be determined by how questions are asked. Ask the tough questions - you need those answers most! Then take those answers and use them to improve and nurture your site.Visitors will generally not hesitate to let you know what they want by virtue of the questions they ask via e-mail - keep these e-mails and review and categorize them - this is invaluable info! Remember the “don’t get asked 3 times” rule!Upon careful review of your Web server statistics and your off-line marketing campaign, determine what is working and what isn’t and modify your business plan accordingly today - next week or next month could be too late.  Direct marketing has shown that while one classified ad may not produce a single inquiry, slightly different wording or position may be a winner. Make minor changes and track results using different “Departments” or e-mail addresses.You won’t know what works best until you try different things. That is what really makes this gig tick! So plan on continuous, incremental improvements until you get it just right. Not to mention keeping up with the trends and “looks” as the Web grows and changes. If the past decade is any indication, we have our work cut out for us!

   The Web still offers tremendous opportunity for each of our businesses so different from each other, that no one has it all figured out. Even those like me who live and breath this business 10-12 hours a day are learning and growing with each and every bit of bandwidth we consume.

   Every industry is struggling with what will work for them, what has worked in the past that is no longer effective and how to implement these issues into their Web site program. Constant experimentation is the only way to determine your formula for success on the Web.

   If you have a concept that has yet to be tried you need to work with someone who has been involved in the evolution of the Web, they know trends, study them daily, and know how to advise you on how to make your next move. Without this experience on your team, you could be left floundering in a sea of personal home-pages that are only visited by those who personally know you.

   By all means hire experts to bring excellence to the look and feel of your Web presence. Working with a firm that has extensive marketing experience is crucial!

4. Be prepared to go to the next level!With any business, including those online, how to you get to that level that will ensure your success?
   1. Know where you are. You must see the plateau where you want to land. Most new entrepreneurs are only motivated when they are sick of sitting on their current level. Only when you’re entirely fed up with being where you are will you be motivated to move on to the next necessary step.
   2. You must want to reach for those loft goals. Climbing to towards that seemingly impossible goal will require change. It will require extra effort. It will take commitment. You have to want it badly enough to pay the price. In time, money, sacrifice!
   3. You must have a plan. Put your goals in writing. You don’t need a formal fancy-schmancy business plan. But ensure you make your plan clear, specific and measurable. Break your long-term goals into short term milestones. Focus on achieving one step forward each day, week, month, year. Track you progress and push yourself to remain where you need to be to reach your goals. Heck, who said this would be easy?

   Don’t for a moment forget that those who have a successful online presence, work at it. From the beginning they partner with those professionals necessary to their success. They make the necessary financial investments and dedicate the required time to accomplish their goals, from the very beginning and as their project’s growth dictates. Without this methodology you will not get meet any realistic goals.

5. Don’t have the time? MAKE THE TIME!Even though I try to be very customer-responsive, I realize that if I do not actively, aggressively set aside regular time to market my business, it just won’t get done. We are all extremely busy. Geeze, all of us run around every day in “Emergency-Mode”. There’s not enough time to develop strategies, to improve my Web site. But I make the time. I make it a priority. I also budget the funds it needs to succeed.I found I need to take both a short and a long view toward my marketing efforts. To stay one step ahead of obsolescence, I am constantly learning new technologies, developing new strategic partnerships, and then, when they are mature enough, announcing them to you, my potential customers here at this site.My strategy includes planning articles as well as new Web site sections which will help position my business more effectively in the constantly-changing Technology consulting market. Does it take time? Yeah, man! Will it be effective? There’s only one way to find out! And if the past 7+ years is a clue, I think I am onto something. ;-)Most of you have been led to believe the myth that all you have to do is put up a Web site and the world with beat a path to your door. Web marketing is no less work than marketing in any other arena. It can be effective, and for some businesses extremely effective, but it is hard work, make no mistake about that!  Fail to plan, plan to fail. Plan your work, work your plan. You’ve heard these phrases countless times. Nor is there anything unique about any of the five points noted above.
   • Focus on your customers and visitors.
   • Offer excellence.
   • Keep tweaking your marketing strategy.
   • Schedule marketing time and money
   • Have the necessary attitude!

The only unique element for you will be if the above inspires you to actually apply what you learn to your Technology efforts. Just presenting a great product on the Web is not enough. Even having a great Web site is simply not enough.

You must work and market it effectively if you expect potential customers to visit and more importantly come back again and again. And you can’t market effectively without utilizing these five marketing mindsets, many of which can just be considered the basics of running a successful business on or off-line. So, are you up to the challenge?