A website can be an excellent asset, provided you take care to develop it properly. After all, you would choose a receptionist to welcome your customers based on a careful selection process. But beware: many companies fail to realise that a poorly designed website can harm your business. Just like an irresponsible receptionist or a technician lacking the necessary skills and knowledge. You wouldn’t keep such people on your staff and let them ruin your company’s reputation, would you?
The key is to develop your website based on the data you have about and from your customers. (We’ve already written here about how a website is your best sales representative.)
To be able to harness the full potential your website can offer, you need to consider how the website actually fits into your company’s business process. Does it influence sales? In what way and to what extent? If your website is intended to generate enquiries/leads/orders, then you need to devote the necessary time and financial investment to its development. Conversely, if the website serves only to verify that the company exists and that the site “looks presentable”, and customers visit it solely to find contact details, then there is no point in investing huge sums in the website. However, it remains true that you need to know WHY you have specific information, graphics, etc., on the website.
The website must speak to customers in a way that resonates with them. Only then will it be effective at converting visitors, i.e. selling your services. After all, the motto “The customer is king” applies in business more than ever before. Customers need to be able to find their way around your website, locate the information they need and take the desired action. They mustn’t be left fumbling about or having to search for things in a complicated way – otherwise they’ll leave the site.
Find the answers to these key questions
-
What is your company’s business process? How does the website fit into it?
-
What are your company’s goals? What are the website’s goals?
-
What is your product or service?
-
What specific problems does it solve for your customers?
-
Who are your customers? (customer profile)
-
Why do they buy from you?
-
How do they find out about you and where do they spend their time?
-
What is already working for you?
-
What is the online potential in your industry?
The answers to these questions will help you clarify your vision for your website, its importance and its role in your business process. In our experience, many companies do not know the answers to all these questions. Yet the easiest way to find the answers is to ask your customers, for example through a telephone survey or user testing. Download the free ‘User Testing Step by Step’ guide and give it a try.
5 points to remember
-
At every step, you need to know WHY.
-
Be clear about your company’s business process and the role the website plays in it.
-
Set measurable goals for your website and online marketing.
-
Start by preparing the project before implementation.
-
Ask your customers.
You can find Dan’s full presentation (including a case study) here:
You can watch the full lecture on YouTube:
About the Marketing Mix trade fair
The Marketing Mix trade fair took place in Prague on 15 September 2016 and in Brno on 22 September 2016. The fair brings together professionals from digital and offline marketing and the printing industry. Every year, the fair features a rich supporting programme packed with lectures. This year, the topics included the website and how to integrate it into business processes, email content strategies and social media.