Having been in the online industry for over 12 years you get to see how the industry has changed/changing as well as the many misconceptions people have about their online business. Even today many factors hold true and many business still don’t know the power of the internet and whats possible. At the same time they still hold many misconceptions and then wonder why their website is not making them any money or not getting them quality leads.
Firstly I highly recommend you stop treating your websites as a joke and actually start to treat it as a tool which will help you grow your business, so take it seriously. Today the number one way to find out about something or someone is pretty much Google, hence the term just Google it. (But facebook is not too far behind so would not be surprised if people start to say just facebook it soon. ). Really think about how your website could best serve you but more so how it can serve the industry you supply.
Secondly shift your attention from the classic brochure website to direct response web design, lead capture and sales pages, which are designed to highly target and convert leads into prospects. The days of the brochure site are gone in terms of “build it and they shall come”. It’s still ok to have content pages so people can find out more about you but the way you attract and what you offer to your prospects is much more important.
One of the main misconceptions people have about websites is that they think as soon as the website is live, “that’s it” , “its all over “, “I’ve done it”, “gonna make my millions”, and then …….. NOTHING! And because no one has explained it to them , or sat down to formulate a digital marketing strategy they wonder whats happening and start to assume their web guys are rubbish, or their design is not good enough, they think “I have the perfect product why does no one want it?” But then if you dig deeper and look at the traffic to the site you see it’s only getting about handful or zero traffic on a daily bases.
Imagine this, you own an Island in the middle of the ocean. How would people find out about it? How would they get there if they don’t know it exists? or know how to get there? or even know what you offer? You need to build the bridges (links) from one Island to another in order to create the pathways along which traffic (people) can travel, so to lead them to your landing pages (offer page) which best serves them. Then once they get there offer them exactly what they need, get into their mindset, understand how they work and what the issues and problems are.
When you can start to structure your website FOR YOUR PROSPECTS and understand their NEEDS and show them you have the SOLUTION to their problems only then will you start to see traction and movement on and around your site. And not because you want it to be a particular way because you think it looks good, do take on board what is being suggested in terms of direct response. Google and other search engines only love you when others love you first, so get others talking about you.
Let me tell you a little secret, it’s not just because of all the points mentioned above that you don’t see the results, its because :
- Nobody knows you exist online
- You have no idea who your target audience is and what they want / are looking for
- When people do land on your site they have no idea what you do
- and they have no idea what to do when they land on your site (no clear call to action)
- Your message is not clear hence why would they choose you? Whats in it for them?
- Your offer is not strong enough or appealing to them
- You are doing nothing extra to increase traffic
- You don’t follow up with them
- You create or provide no value for them
- No compelling headline to grab their attention.
These are just some of the basics, business owners still do not address. In order to win online you have to do your homework (or get someone to do it for you). After doing your home work then you can really start to create you website, pages and offers with direct response to create more conversions and hence generate more leads and sales.
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Digital Business Coach | Web Revenue Strategist | Award-Winning IT Consultant | Author
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With over 18 years of industry experience in business and personal development, I’ve successfully been working with coaches, consultants and authors set up the right systems and implement strategic content strategies to start, grow and scale their businesses online with automation, digital products and services. (To work with Jatinder – click here)