Articles > The web marketing cycle
Introduction
Websites have most value when they actively seek to meet the needs of customers, rather than providing a bland online brochure without any thought of context. Just like any sales cycle, online marketing should look carefully at what potential customers want and how you can meet their needs and bring in sales. The cycle explained here is naturally simplistic, and every company will have a different idea of how customers find and decide to use their services, and what they want from their website.
Getting people to your site
Use your page titles to capture specific key phrases for your website, e.g. "kittens for sale Gloucestershire uk" or "buy pedigree cats online". The next important step is to submit your site to http://www.dmoz.org, which is an online directory referenced by all the major search engines. In time - and dependent on your site's structure - your website should be reviewed and added to the list.
Beyond the keywords, search engines establish the value of your site (and your relative ranking) by two principle aspects - content and links in. Obviously, a larger amount of content suggests that your site is busy and will be more useful to most readers - exploit this by providing online articles, lots of information about your products, and details of client projects - this will also populate the site with relevant keywords.
The number of sites linking into yours also suggests how well established and useful the site is, so get yourself on free web directories, messageboards, trade association sites, etc. One great way to find out the best directories is to enter your competitor's URL at http://www.alexa.com, and look up the listing of sites that link to their site.
Offline, it is obviously important to include your web address in business stationery, email signatures, and other promotional material. You may even want to send out specific email or print mailouts to promote your site or specific aspects of it. A regular email newsletter is another good way to keep in touch with your customers and have them visit your site.
It is also important to use your website as an active part of your business. Provide information online so that when people phone up with enquiries, you can encourage them to use the website. You may even want to provide forms online, for example insurance quotes or property searches. Make it easier for people to find information and build the presence of your website.
Establishing credibility
The main thing readers want when they visit your site is to find out if you are any good. You can meet this enquiry by providing plenty of information on the products and services that you offer, and giving lots of detail about previous clients, including testimonials and case studies if possible.
You can also improve your credibility by providing articles and other information or advice online. This allows readers to use your site without seeing it purely as a sales tool, and also projects your expertise in that particular area.
Depending on the kind of business your website is promoting, it will make sense to promote any qualifications, experience or trade associations your company might be able to list.
Your content in this aspect should be answering the question, how do I know you're any good? It is also very important to promote the distinctiveness of your business - how you stand out in the market, what services you provide that competitors don't, and what makes your service or product special.
Getting readers to make contact
You want to get people to phone, spend money online, register for your service, etc. You also need to meet the customer's needs - whether they want to email you, get a brochure delivered, or have you call them back.
While you need to provide your standard contact details clearly and prominently on your website, a contact form can also provide a great way to give readers a more tailored method to get in touch.
You are likely to gain their contact details, which allows you to get in touch and explain your services. You can also get feedback about the website itself, but perhaps most importantly you can allow the customer to choose between specific options - order a brochure, call me back, register for a newsletter, send me a quote, etc. In addition, you can promote these options throughout the site. And importantly, as well as building on your marketing, you are pre-empting your readers' needs and giving them the opportunity to make contact on their own terms.
Turning readers into customers
Perhaps the most important step of web marketing is turning a casual reader into an active customer. Most importantly, you must treat your website seriously - respond to emails quickly, confirm receipt of enquiries, and take advantage of the opportunity to contact potential customers by phone.
You may also want to provide "not now" options, which allow you to keep in touch with the customer until they are in a position to spend money. Give them a subscription to a newsletter, a brochure by post, or just add them to your email marketing list. This will expand your customer database, and build your presence not just with the readers themselves but the people they know - you are increasing the chance that when someone is looking for your products or services, they or someone they know will have heard of your company.
The website should not stand alone as a marketing strategy, but be combined with your sales cycle and business as a whole. Phone people who have visited your site; allow customers to do certain things online; provide staff systems on the website; link your publicity back to a similarly-branded area of your site.
Marketing online is just another way for customers to view your business and get in touch, albeit a much more flexible and sophisticated method. And it is by integrating your website into the rest of your business that you will see the most benefit.
