In the current digital world, which has accelerated with the pandemic, websites are crucial to surviving and thriving in business. As the great football coach Vince Lombardi stated, Winning isn’t everything. It is the Only Thing. Your company website must be a winner as defined by generating business opportunity and not by art. Now, art is certainly a key ingredient of a successful website, yet not the most important. To win in the game of business, a website must get customer benefits into the mind of the consumer in a quick and efficient way.
People and businesses shop to improve their world through a purchase. The essence of marketing is to show the consumer how this change will occur. If they believe you, then transactions take place. If not, an opportunity was squandered. A tour of the digital marketplace shows a swamp of dysfunctional websites designed by self-centered website developers, who are more interesting in making themselves look good instead of moving the e-commerce needle.
In an attempt to capture the attention of younger consumers, companies often make the tragic mistake of buying into the misguided notion that if a website has a cool, hip appearance, then customers will beat a path to their doorstep. However, customers of any age will not stay on a website, which makes navigation difficult and finding essential information a chore. Visual buttons, learn more options, and phone numbers should be abundantly visible on the homepage.
Are you as tired as me of searching all over a website to find a phone number? Obtaining a phone call from an excited customer is a gold nugget. An opportunity exists to win a customer and potentially earn the most valuable prize of all. A raving fan, who is satisfied and excited about your business and becomes a walking, talking billboard to promote your company for free. To find these customers, the homepage must reach out to them in an emotionally-compelling way and make a positive impact in less than five seconds. Without these types of moments occurring hundreds of times throughout the day, your website is worthless.
If you want to be more artistic, then spend Saturdays in an art gallery. Don’t allow artsy hipsters to mess up your business with trying to make themselves and your company look cool. Step back from their gimmicks and Instagram-fueled frenzy and focus on the time-tested practical principles that generate revenue. Long before the Internet was the advertising medium, which has struggled with the same concerns.
Focus relentlessly on the customer. How can we improve their world and make their life better? Use website tools to accelerate their excitement with brochure downloads, video clips, white papers and compelling content of any kind. Content is king and Google will reward with you with vastly higher search engine rankings by continually publishing Internet-friendly content. Just be a good digital neighbor. Increase practicality and decrease art to watch your business grow.
If you want to build a lead machine, then visit http://www.marketplace.net.