How wrong he was. I recently had a new client ask for help with his eCommerce Web site. He sells jewelry online. His high-end products cost on average about $200 each. So when sales dropped by one sale per day, it cost him.
Sales are Down. What Else Could it Be?
He told me he was sure his traffic was down. But when I asked how much traffic had dropped, he drew a blank. I came to find out he wasn't even measuring his site traffic at all.
So how did he know the problem was traffic? Simple. In the past, he had spent money increasing site traffic. When he spent money to get more visitors, his sales increased. That's sound logic, but incomplete at best.
He concluded that the only factor to influence sales on his site was how many visitors showed up. Now the plot thickens. I asked him when sales had dropped. He said they plummeted the beginning of October.
The Cause of His Failure He Never Guessed
Visiting his site, the problem leaped out at me immediately. Front and center on the home page was a big Flash ad announcing "free shipping through September 30". It was then the beginning of November.
Traffic wasn't down, but sales were. The dated ad couldn't decrease the number of visitors to his site. It did decrease the amount of sales, though. We moved the date into the future and his sales jumped back up.
I wish I could say this was an isolated incident, where a client asked for one thing, when their problem was unrelated. "If you only have a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail." His experience was limited to traffic generation, so that's where he looked for his solution.
If my experience was limited to traffic generation, I'd never have revealed the problem. This client could have spent hundreds or thousands of dollars to get more traffic. He might never have known where the real problem lay.
3 Critical Elements Every Successful Site Is Built Upon
I have to say now that this client is a great guy. He's very intelligent. He does well in his bricks-and-morter business. What he needed was just a broader vision.
Every successful Web site must do at least reasonably well at:
- Usability / Look & Feel
- Traffic Generation
- Conversion
Usability / Look & Feel
I list these three success factors in this order because that's how most Web developers rank them. They put the look of the site first. Here's something you'll never hear at a fine art museum: "Nice frame!"
The look and feel of a site is only the frame. If the content doesn't make your case better than your competitor, your site didn't do its job. The good news is, that in my experience, your competitor probably does an abysmal job of making their case. You won't have to do an incredible job to still do better than competing sites.
Traffic Generation
Most online marketing consultants focus on getting traffic to your site. And the quickest way to make that happen is Pay Per Click advertising. You can turn it on today and get traffic tomorrow. But every click costs you.
It's an absolute fact that if your site doesn't get visitors, it doesn't matter what else it does well. Because nobody will know about it. Sure you need traffic. Just don't make the mistake the client I mentioned earlier did and think it's the entire equation.
Conversion
"Converting" visitors to your site into sales, prospects, leads, newsletter subscribers or other measurable action is what conversion is all about. I can't stress the importance of "measurable action" enough. Forget branding for now. Go for action you can put a dollar value to.
How deep are your pockets? If you're IBM, Hewlett Packard, or Coke, you can afford to advertise a couple of years to brand yourself. If you're a small business, you need action now. Your new business has one thing in common with a new calf on the range. "Branding" can hurt.
Sure, branding is important to your long-term success. But if your Web site isn't producing measurable results by selling your value proposition, most likely, nobody noticed the brand as they hit their back button.
Here's the saddest part of all. A very small amount of the money spent on online marketing focuses on the content of the site. It's all about getting eyeballs on the page.
So who writes the content on your site? Most sites get their content from one of three sources:
- The President or other company officer
- The Web developer who created the site
- Existing marketing content
Why the Company Owner May Not Create Effective Web Content
I'm going to tread lightly here, because many in my audience own their company. As the president of your company, you don't want to write your own copy for the same reason you likely don't fix your own car. It's just not what you're trained for.
You have a lot of experience running a company. It's just a different skillset than successful copywriting. Even most professional writers often struggle in translating their skills to the Web. Different rules apply.
Besides, the owner of a company is often too close to the subject to get a clear picture of how the outside world views your company. And a fresh perspective can breathe new life into your message.
Don't Leave it to Your Web Developer
I'm a former hard-core Web developer geek myself. I can tell you from my own painful experience how the skills to put copy online don't extend to writing content that gets results.
Even with my extensive writing background, I was a poor choice to write Web content until I spent several years learning at the feet of the best writers of all time. Most of the truly great writers of Web copy keep their secrets to themselves. And most of those who claim to know how to get results online don't have a clue.
Why Should You Believe Me?
Here's one sure proof that I know how to write engaging Web content. You're still reading. On average, I'll bet you don't spend more than a minute skimming a Web article. If you've gotten to this point, on some level I engaged your curiosity.
As busy as you are, you vote with your time. If you don't feel your current Web site(s) get results, maybe it's time to try a new approach.
Online Marketing Advisor is here to help transform your site for measurable results. If you feel your Web site is already giving you all the sales, leads, and exposure it can produce, then the best I can hope is that you enjoyed this article.
For the rest of you, maybe it's time for results... results you can pay the bills with. I have had little success paying my mortgage with page views and "hits." You spend real-world dollars to build and promote your site.
Maybe it's time for your Web site to begin paying you back in the same currency... actual dollars. I'll show you how.
How Do I Get Started?
Call our office at (801) 859-5126 to arrange a Free site conversion consultation.
While I prefer to get to know you by phone, if your schedule doesn't permit, just send me a quick email at seomarketer@gmail.com and I'll get back with you right away. |
