August 2015 - Newsletter

- Does your website elevate your business? If not, you are missing out on opportunities. Learn how you can improve your web strategy to connect effectively with your audience and drive revenue, in The Edge.

In This Issue:

• Web Strategy - Do You Have A Defined Web Strategy?
• Content Marketing - Develop A Content Plan That Connects With Your Audience.
• Nurturing - Does Lead Nurturing Pay For Itself?
  

Do You Have A Defined Web Strategy?

In general terms, websites typically fall into three categories:

1. No defined strategy
2. Defined but in need of updates and improvements
3. Defined and effective

Depending on which bucket you're in, there are unique steps you can take that will elevate your current position.

From No Strategy to Successful Strategy

If you don't have a defined strategy today, before you do anything else, define the purpose of your site and start building towards that goal. Is your website an information source for customers? Does it serve as a lead generation tool? Does your product offering lend itself to an ecommerce offering? What type of content benefits your audience? How do you follow up with interested prospects?

A quick way to define your strategy is to answer the following questions:

1. To convince { - your target customer - }
2. To { - action you want them to take - }
3. Instead of { - action you are replacing - }
4. Because { - the main reason you want them to take this action, aka your value proposition - }

For example, your strategy might read like this. We are revising our website to attract prospects that use the web to start formulating their purchasing decisions. We aren't visible online today so companies that start with research online likely don't know about us. We want them to learn about our capabilities and consider our brand. It's important for prospects to learn about our services because we can help them attract their target customer and increase their revenue.

Once you have defined your goals, the next step is research. Industry, competitor, customer, company and keyword research will help you uncover critical information about your audience which drives site design, navigation and content. It's the most important step in developing and designing a website that targets customer needs.

How do you start the research process? Download the Content Tool Set White Paper to learn more.

Develop a Content Plan That Connects With Your Audience

Did you build your website with specific goals in mind but haven't been able to dedicate the time and resources for continuous improvement? The competition, changes in customer needs, technological advancements, search algorithms and numerous other attributes mean that what worked well yesterday often doesn't today.

Just like a printed brochure, it only takes a few months for information to get outdated or simply stale. Examine your clients and your brand. Are you effectively communicating your capabilities and your unique selling proposition? If not, you may be decreasing your value or even targeting the wrong audience.

To better target your content, review analytics data. This will help you understand how your audience searches for you today. The words they use, the pages they frequent and the user path they follow are insights that will help you identify potential content areas allowing you to revise your site based on actual user experience.

In addition, both your audience and search engines value fresh content. The "freshness factor" is one method that search engines use to judge your content. Search engines value new web pages, more frequent blog posts and resources like case studies and white papers. So do your customers.

Fresh content will likely improve your bottom line. But maintaining that freshness factor requires a plan and a consistent effort. Devoting the resources is an important first step. If you don't have a regular content update schedule, then develop one. Define the areas that matter to your audience. Then determine a few key areas to build out.

How do you identify topics and develop relevant content? Download the Content Tool Set to learn more.

Does Lead Nurturing Pay For Itself?

If your web strategy is defined and effective then your site is designed to expand your audience, generate leads and increase revenue.

Understanding audience behaviors and identifying the most interested prospects will allow you to fully leverage the time, resources and budget you've allocated online.

Online or in person, buyers interact with you at different stages of the buying process. Those steps typically include:

• Consideration
• Preference
• Intent
• Repurchase

Each phase requires unique communications to assist the prospect through that stage and onto the next one. The communications parallel the steps a sales rep takes with a prospect. Depending upon the their industry knowledge, product knowledge and needs, that conversation is vastly different.

Today, purchasing decisions are formulated long before a buyer contacts a seller. Using online tools in the selling process is more important than ever. Much like an effective sales rep, a successful nurturing program allows prospects to learn about your services, even if they aren't speaking with you directly.

Plus, an effective nurturing program should pay for itself. Gartner Research found that automated lead management results in a 10% or greater increase in revenue in 6-9 months!

A website is a vital part of your business but just like any other investment, you need to define the level that works for your business and your audience. A planned, consistent approach will expand your audience and revenue.

Learn how lead nurturing will increase sales ready leads and drive revenue - Schedule a Demo.