Turning your “online brochure” into a true marketing tool.
Web sites. Everybody has one these days. Your company, church, lawn guy, corner barbershop… heck, even your four-year-old… they’ve all staked a claim to their own little corner of cyberspace. And you know what, most of the sites look pretty darn sharp. Especially the one your four-year-old knocked out between episodes of Dora The Explorer.
The problem? Nowadays, having a sharp-looking web presence and being Googleable isn’t enough to make you stand out. Adding a photo gallery? Nice, but you’re not even close yet. Video? How very 2006 of you.
It’s time to leave behind the “online brochure” approach to building a Web site. That’s a term we often use for a site that is little more than a collection of words and pictures with a simple navigation. Not inherently bad, just not something that is going to move the marketing needle. On the other hand, creating a site that is interactive, measureable, updatable in real time… now that’s the sort of thing that can move a brand (and a company) forward.
What follows are a few strategic and tactical additions you can make to your site that will turn that online brochure into a true marketing tool.
First Things First
Lead Collection
Does your site allow you to collect the email addresses and/or other contact information of interested prospects? Can they email or call for immediate assistance?Registration
Your Web site should be your organization’s hub for customer contact. Can a customer use your site to set an appointment? Register for an event? Reserve tickets or other such things?Regular Updates
When was the last time your Web site was updated? Was it this week? This month? This year? Use recent news, press releases, and other regular updates to keep your site fresh and encourage return visits.A Bit More Advanced
Start a Conversation
Blogs, message boards and other such features encourage customer interactivity and provide a way for you to stay in touch with your audience’s ever-changing desires.RSS Feeds
Use this powerful tool to make customers and prospects aware when your site is updated. RSS feeds play especially nice with blogs and message boards.Now We’re Talking … er… Marketing!
Google Analytics
Learn more about where your visitors come from and how they’re interacting with your site. Write better ads, strengthen your marketing initiatives, and create higher-converting Web sites.User-Specific Tracking
By giving each user a username and password, it becomes possible to track when, where and how they use your site. Spend a lot of time checking out a demo of your latest product? Maybe it’s time to give them a call and try to close the deal. You did remember to gather their phone number, didn’t you?Using these tools and others like them will ensure that your site doesn’t get lumped in with the other also-ran site floating around out there in cyberspace. Then perhaps you’ll begin to reap the rewards that Web pundits have been talking up all these years.