Having great content and a solid design are critically important for your website. However, if you’re trying to build a business, at some point you need to sell something to someone.

Web entrepreneurs consider this the point where the rubber meets the road but, too often, it’s where the runner meets the pothole. Here are four of the most common mistakes and what you can do to correct them:

1) You’re not asking for the order:

This seems so obvious but the truth of the matter is many sites never really ask for the order. For the purpose of this conversation I consider an order any call-to-action that a visitor completes.

Every page of your site should have a clear focal point, a place where the eye is naturally drawn to, and a clear call-to-action.

That call-to-action can be to actually buy something from you but it can also be a request to have your visitors register (call, click here, etc.) to receive more information, such as a free whitepaper. Different pages may have different calls-to-action.

The good news about this problem is it’s the easiest to fix. You may be able to do this yourself but contact me (800-707-9150 or shartkopf@aligned-marketing.com) if you need help.

(Yes, that was a call-to-action in my blog)

2) Your visitors are confused

One of the first laws of selling is a confused mind says “No.”

If your website has lots of motion graphics, four or more fonts, poorly contrasted or unappealing colors, clutter, too many choices, unclear copy or 100 other things that distract and confuse the mind, you’re not going to sell anything.

The KISS (keep it simple stupid) approach works best. Again, a clear focal point, call-to-action and lots of whitespace are all that’s needed.

Video and customer testimonials are great for SEO and to help build credibility, see next bullet, but they are more icing than cake.

3) Companyspeak

Your copy, call-to-action and value proposition, your business message, needs to be clear, concise, compelling and written in simple language. It also needs to be believable.

Talk to your visitors in terms of benefits to them, which are usually very different than the way your internal team talks about your product. Internal audiences tend to get wrapped up in features and function. Customers care about benefits. How will your product make them money, healthier, more attractive, save them time, etc.

Similarly, people are skeptical. They know advertising lies, marketing manipulates and even Tiger can’t be trusted anymore. No one can afford to waste money and no one wants to feel foolish.

Talk to your audience in simple believable words.

4) Ouch!

This one hurts a bit so brace yourself; they just don’t want what you’re selling.

A lot of webpreneurs are so passionate about their product or service they just can’t understand why people aren’t beating a path to their door. Well, I’m sorry, but if you’ve done everything else right, or mostly right, then the market has spoken and you lose.

As one prominent Democrat recently said when they were struggling to sell the Healthcare Bill to the American people, “The problem is the dog doesn’t like the dogfood.” You can fix the message, the packaging, but if the dog won’t eat the dogfood you’re not going to be selling any.

The fix here isn’t redesigning your website or more creative copy, the fix is transitioning your product from something you think people need into something people actually want.

Steve

800-707-9150

A CEO of a major company recently said to me, “Your timing may be perfect.”

He was referring to me being a consultant and, indeed, there’s evidence to support his statement. The industrial market is heating up. The Industrial Supply Association’s (ISA) most recent Economic Indicator Report was up for the second month in a row. Their Manufacturer Index was 66.42% in February while the January index was 60.63%. The Distributor Index saw similar gains (61.1% and 65.72%, respectively). Anything above 50% indicates those surveyed expect economic expansion.

The subjective evidence is equally strong. I talk with frustrated marketing people every week. Their complaint is with management and goes like this: “They laid off half my staff so we’ve been struggling to keep up for over a year. Every month we fall further behind and are getting our butts chewed out. Now, because business is getting better, they want us to do a bunch of new stuff. We can’t complete our work now! I have no idea how we’re going to get any new projects completed.” Maybe you can help them?

If you’re an unemployed or underemployed marketing professional consider becoming a consultant. As my CEO friend said, the timing may be perfect.

The client benefits because they can rent the expertise they need (from you). You simply augment their staff as a variable cost solution. A competent resource they can eliminate quickly without a long HR process.

Do a great job and maybe you get hired full-time, if that’s what you want. Here are a few things you need to be prepared for before accepting your first consulting job.

• Be prepared to add value immediately. One good way is to do more than you’re asked. In other words, take tasks off your new employer’s task list. Most marketing managers have presentations to create, reports to format, blogs to write and other nuisance tasks that they’d love to delegate but are beyond the skill level of most support personnel. Don’t wait for them to ask you to help. Be proactive and add value.
• Understand that there will be politics and much of it will be invisible to you. You represent a variable cost option and, as such, threaten everyone in your area of expertise that is an employee, a fixed cost. The best way to combat this is to recognize the politics exist and find a few key alliances within the client’s organization that will help you navigate through the terrain.
• You must be taken seriously so don’t walk in meekly. State your positions and your recommendations clearly and directly. Not everyone will agree but if you focus on pleasing everyone, finding the maximum in common ground and playing politician, you’ll lose. Understand your pre-designed role is to get in, complete your assignment, and get out. You are not part of the long-term extended corporate family (not yet, anyway).
• There’s nothing unethical about selling more services while you’re completing your project. Be polite and professional but keep your eyes and ears open for pain points, new projects and things the company would like to have if they had the resources. There’s truth in the old saying: “The best source of new business is old customers.” In my experience the big firms spend up to 30% of their time onsite looking for a new project while they’re completing the current project. I find that objectionable (selling while I’m on the client’s clock) so I never charge by the hour and I only spend about 10% of my time prospecting for new projects. You’ll need to find your own balance.

If you have skills and are either unemployed or underemployed I encourage you to think about consulting. The market is getting stronger, it’s a great way to leverage your strengths, and may get you the inside track on a full-time job if that’s your ultimate goal.

Feel free to call me if you want to discuss further.

Steve

800-707-9150

In my book, Communication Wins, I wrote about audience awareness and personality types. In this blog we’ll take a look at audiences by age group.

Succeeding in any business environment today requires getting the attention of one of the most entrepreneurial and text-friendly generations in history.  They are also the most stressed and distracted demographics ever to exist.  Understanding and developing new marketing strategies that appeal to customers and their personal lifestyle, both in learning and in information gathering, is the key to successfully marketing.  Finding a way to get through all the marketing noise that bombards the average person can be daunting and is more challenging than ever before.  

Who is your current market and why is understanding their information and learning style so important to the success?  They are divided into three groups: Generation X, Generation Y, and Global Tweens.  

Generation X is tech savvy and very skeptical.  They are between the ages of 30 and 50; they are the parents of children ages 8 to 18.  They are adults who want to understand their options.  Generation X is your number 1 target audience for most companies.  Marketing strategies aligned with the lifestyles and technological preferences of this age group are critical to success.

What do we know about Generation X?  We know they surf the web for information on every subject imaginable, including hobbies and specialized medical procedures.  Email, cell phones and text messaging are their primary, if not only, source of communication 24/7.  Digital organizers and recorders keep their busy lives on schedule.  They depend mostly on their friends and family for recommendations when making decisions, purchasing products and buying services.  Generation X women make the majority of buying decisions for the family.  Their purchasing decisions are based on emotion, trust, personal relationships and their own perceived value of return on investment.

Marketing studies show that traditional marketing strategies are relatively ineffective on the Gen X audience.  They retain less than 1% of the marketing messages they encounter on a daily basis and they are very skeptical of information they do retain.  Bottom line: Gen X consumers want verifiable proof of expertise, quality and good customer service with minimum sales hype.

Generation Y is Generation X on steroids.  They’re young, smart, and assuming, often to the point of arrogance.  They want to wear flip flops to work, they listen to iPods at their desk and text message to their friends every waking hour.  They want to work but they don’t want work to be their life.  They feel they are entitled to their parents’ lifestyle but without the hard work and effort it took to get there.  They are a force of as many as 70 million.  Tighten your chinstraps because this generation, ages 16 to 30, is different than any group that has come before, including their parents.

The impact of their personal attitudes and lifestyle will have a huge impact on how products and services are marketed.  Maintaining long term relationships will be very difficult with this ever questioning and fickle generation who has no tolerance for outdated thinking and lack of computer skills.  If you don’t have a good website and an effective online strategy, you are invisible to this group.  

Since childhood they were both pampered and programmed with nonstop activities, meaning they are now both high performance and high maintenance.  Gen Y do the majority of their window shopping online before buying and they are very discriminating.  Don’t be fooled by their casual dress, piercings and tattoos.  This generation appreciates quality.  They are tech savvy and a generation of multi-taskers; they can juggle emails, phone calls and Google searches on their iPhone’s simultaneously.  They would prefer to send a text message than make a cell phone call.  They are more comfortable working virtually (online) than face-to-face, through personal relationships or even on a phone like previous generations.  

For many their favorite pastime is going online to social networks such as YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and Twitter.  Most spend more time surfing the web and communicating in social networks than they do watching television.  They put a high value on self fulfillment and think nothing of making constant changes in their life to get it.  Building relationships that contain loyalty will be very challenging with Generation Y.
    
The last group is Global Tweens.  They heavily influence the buying decisions of their parents.  Today’s children are increasingly aware and very well informed.  Global Tweens between the ages of 5 and 15 are much more tech savvy than prior generations.  They are the first generation to be totally raised in the digital age of computers, iPods, cell phones, text messaging, gaming, DVDs, and the ever expanding internet.  Most of these kids learn to read on a computer.  Digital technology is second nature to them.

It is easy to underestimate their highly developed preferences and the effect they have on global marketing, and the buying decisions of their parents.  They do not like being treated like the children they are.  These kids are 8 going on 18.  They learn more from interactive educational software than the written text, and they respond to trendy marketing that immediately grabs their attention and gives them something to talk about, photograph or text to their friends since the vast majority have their own cell phones.  

Tech savvy audiences of all ages have shifted their information gathering to the internet and are always on the go, and they look to the internet to quickly research their buying decisions.  They all respond to visual kinesthetic marketing mediums, like video, as one of their favorite forms of communication.  Your website, especially with video, is the first step in emotionally engaging these groups with your personal message.  Your first contact with new customers and clients is no longer a phone call; it is the Internet.  Does your website project your image the way you want it to?  Is your website keyword optimized so prospects can easily find you on Google in your demographic and geographic footprint?  Are you listed on Google Maps in all your surrounding areas?

Digital technology is changing and advancing at lightning speed.  It is difficult to keep up with it all.  Discovering how to synergistically meld your current internal and external marketing strategies under the umbrella of an internet marketing program will save you time, money, and level the playing field among competition if you know how to do it correctly.  No matter how big or small the practice or what your experience level, most websites look the same and deliver the same written message.  In order to stand out you must do or say something different to engage your audience today.  

Without the PR component advertising alone lacks credibility, third party endorsement and the ability to generate that elusive buzz to increase referrals.  Now Web 2.0, the latest in internet technologies, provides the missing link to complete the PR component with many different options available.  With the latest downturn in the country’s economy you can’t afford to lose existing or future customers.  Now is the time to reevaluate and update your current marketing plan to include Web 2.0 internet marketing tactics if you want to set your website apart.  

Don’t be left in the dust wondering what happened when you weren’t paying attention to your online competition.  The most valuable real estate you can own in any business is in your market’s mind.  Communicate with them on their terms in a format they are comfortable using.  It’s all up to you.  Are you going to be a leader on the digital road to success?  Or are you going to join the growing list of companies known as digital road-kill?

There are a number of reasons why websites don't work. Five of the top reasons why websites fail to meet expectations are listed below.

1. Your nephew Jimmy: Leaving your company website in the hands of a relative, student, or anyone with a little computer knowledge to save money is unwise. Aside form the obvious qualification issues, there typically is no sense of obligation in this type of relationship. The psychology is the person building your site probably believes they are doing you a favor so almost any result is acceptable. An important business tool (investment) should be connected by an important business relationship.
 
2. Amateur quality: You would not present a business card to your customer that is made from notebook paper. So why would anyone allow their company to be represented by a website lacking professional quality? Amateur production extends beyond the inappropriate use of graphics. Poor navigation, excessive load times, unnecessary or unclear text, poor images, and unappealing colors all contribute to a bad impression and quick exit by potential clients. In short, having no web site is better than a bad web site.

3. Unclear Objectives: Failure to thoroughly plan your website from the beginning can result in costly and time-consuming changes. A properly planned web site begins with clear objectives. Take the time to understand your business needs and objectives before making recommendations. If you need help, hire an expert. Isn't that what you do for legal or tax issues? Technology is a tool, not a toy. A professionally planned web site should be a component of your business plan and an important investment in your business.
 
4. Stale sites: Stale websites do not work. As your business changes and grows, your online representation should evolve as well. Having to pay someone for every little change, usually on their schedule, results in headaches for you and unnecessary expense. Content editing tools have become so user friendly that administrative personnel should be able to make minor changes to your site, which means minimal expense and no waiting for IT. In addition, the best firms offer standard editing packages on an annual subscription basis. Either solution lets you keep up with your business and budget accurately.
 
5. Customers can’t find you: "Build it and they will come" only works in the movies. Recent surveys indicate that 60%-70% of all product and service searches begin online. If you can’t be found, those potential customers cannot become your current customers. The proper tools and strategies can insure that the major search engines will find your website and deliver new customers.

Reason #5, is really reason #1!

Steve