Effective networking

News: November 2011

Effective networking

Most business owners and managers invest considerable time and effort into the look and feel of their company’s website. However, making a site that looks good is only half the battle – it also needs to have top quality content. Your website is like a shop window for your business – by all means dress it up, but make sure that you send the right message to your potential customers.

Inform your site visitors – Rather than trying to “hard sell” to each and every visitor to our website, create engaging content that illustrates your expertise or the breadth of your product range. Show customers how your products and services can be used – perhaps a case study on the home page. You want to inspire your site visitors so that they have a positive image of your business. Learn about your audience, study trends in your target market and create content that informs your site visitors about who you are, what you do and the benefits of your products.

Keep it up to date – When it comes to websites, content is king. Nothing creates a bad impression than out of date content. If you have ever visited a website and found the home page offering “Latest Product Range For 2008 Season”, you will immediately begin to wonder if the firm is still in business. Old content makes your firm look lazy. You should remove very old content and regularly update your website with news stories, announcements, blogs and special offers. Customers are also more likely to revisit your website if they know that it is regularly updated. They will visit again and again in order to read the latest news stories and so forth. An added benefit is that regularly updated content will contribute to your website’s ranking on search engines – however that is a topic to be addressed on another day.

Language – Your website is designed to send a message to your customers. As such, you should send a clear message to your potential customers by using plain English. Avoid too many buzz words or acronyms, keep it simple. Remember that customers visit your website for a variety of reasons: to find out about your products and services, to find out more about the company or perhaps to research your industry. Each section of your website should have a clear message. The products / services pages should explain the benefits of your products or services and perhaps illustrate this with case studies, blogs and so forth. Equally, the “About Us” section of your website should explain what the business is, what it aims to do and who the key contacts are in the firm. If you want customers to subscribe to your newsletter or buy a product, make the message loud and clear and remember – keep it simple.