Nathan Yerian
There are too many companies that feel that simply having a website is the extent that they need to focus their marketing resources online. Then they sit around and wonder how the competition is kicking the crap out of them at every turn.
Your 2012 marketing plan needs to include your website as an ACTIVE element. Having a website means nothing if your target market is not able to find it, if it offers them no value, and if it does not give an avenue to begin a relationship. Without those three elements, you may as well not even have a site.
Getting Your Website Found
Search engine optimization gives your company the opportunity to be found by your target market at the exact moment they are looking for your product, or service. If you are not coming up in the first page of results for the keywords your potential clients are searching, you are missing out on a huge opportunity.
Give it a try. Go to Google and type in a few keyword phrases you think your potential customer might type in to find you. What did you find? If all you found was your competition, it is time to get serious about optimizing your site and building the backlinks that will be necessary to move your site to the first page. If you are on the first page for relevant, heavily searched key terms, you will get an increase in targeted traffic.
Give Value
Great, you now have a plan that generates more traffic, but what will these visitors do when they get to your site? You need to have content that visitors find value in. This content can include your web copy, blog posts, e-books, presentations, webniars, product comparisons, product demo videos, etc.
Your website is a living entity and needs to be consistently improved. Your marketing plan must include creating elements that will make your site more valuable. The more value web visitors get from your site, the more likely it is they will reach out to begin a relationship.
Start a Relationship
Your site must have multiple ways for visitors to begin a relationship with your company. Different visitors will be in different stages of the buying process. Some have done their research and are ready to buy. You can connect with them with a "Request a Quote", or "Buy Now" call to action on your site.
Others may still be in the information gathering stage and might want an e-book, or product comparison sheet. Again, you can create these elements and display them around your site in the form of call to action buttons that lead to landing pages where they can be downloaded.
The goal is to have an option that can start a dialog between you and your visitor in every stage of the buying process. You don't have to create these all at once, but your plan should include the creation of valuable components with call to action buttons and landing pages to increase your conversions from website visitor to website lead.
If your website is not currently an active part of your marketing plan for 2012, it is time to go back and make some adjustments. Make sure your plan includes a way to drive traffic, provide value, and that it gives multiple ways for visitors to begin a relationship. Adding these elements to your marketing plan will show healthy returns in the new year.
This is the Part 2 of a 3 part series that explores three areas of your marketing plan that could hold you back in 2012.
Read Part 1: If Your Marketing Plan Doesn't Measure, It Sucks
Read Part 3: Don't Center Your Marketing Plan Around An Individual
