A great idea can hit you anywhere. You can wake him up at 2:00 am so convincing that he jumps out of bed, puts on a cup of coffee, and starts outlining his business plan.
Remember, however, in the heady rush of dreaming up the business, to build a launch pad for it. In other words, a presence on the Internet. Because in today’s buzzword search engine climate, a website is the most powerful sales and marketing tool available to any business, large or small, cottage industry, or inspired independent entrepreneur.
You don’t have to be a cyber genius to connect and get results. But unless you have a clear business goal and message, you could be wasting a lot of time and money without accomplishing much. Here are seven steps to guide you in developing your website. Use this system as a clear road map, so you don’t find yourself wandering in circles. Don’t lose your mind – just have a big latte, sit back and think things through; Ask yourself questions to which you probably already know the answers.
Step 1: Develop a strategy
Discuss strategy with your website designer – clarify how your business goals and objectives translate to a website. You can’t create an effective website design if you don’t know what you want the website to do for you.
Step 2: Define your target market and niche
What general customer base do you serve? — that’s your target market. Who are they? Any particular field or industry? What characteristics, interests or needs do they have in common? Within that customer base, find a smaller group that is more specific to your product or service, and may not be served by your competitors; or both: that’s your niche. If your target market is job seekers, for example, your niche might be job seekers, 50+, who don’t just want to change jobs, they want to change careers.
Why do you need to define your target market and niche? Because: (1) you can’t be everything to everyone; (2) you and your customer base need to find each other; and (3) the more specific you are, the more your niche will feel like you understand them and can meet their specific needs.
Step 3: Position yourself
If you’ve done your homework, then you’ve researched the competition. Who are they? What sets them apart in terms of customer base, quality, service and other aspects? What makes it unique? Look for gaps in the market that are not being addressed; Those gaps will help you position yourself and define your niche. Plus, it will help you hone your offerings, making you the sought-after expert for your knowledge.
Step 4: Describe “What” and “How”
Whether you are selling a product or a service, what you are offering has to solve something or offer something to your customers. How you do it is key to getting chosen: deliver the products. If you can’t describe the “what” element, your customers won’t know that you have a product or service that could benefit them. If you can’t describe the “how” element, it won’t be clear to your customers that it’s feasible, usable, and of value. The “how” element also provides, in precise terms, the ways in which the product or service will deliver the results that customers want. It is a descriptive road map from Point A (your need or desire) to Point B (your results or benefits).
Step 5: Brand yourself
Suppose you have already named your company. Now you need images, words, feelings, to make it distinctive. To make it a brand. The brand involves several elements:
* Perception: How do you want your customers to think about your business? How would your customers describe you and your business? What value do your products/services provide and how do you want the world to perceive that value?
* Logo – Clarify your message based on the perception you want your customers to have about your business, your niche, and how you want to position yourself. Distill that into an image that will be the visual representation of your company: your logo.
* Tagline: Then translate it into a powerful and compelling tagline. Keep it short (3-7 words). Make it memorable. Make sure it fits your business. The best slogans are evocative, which means they evoke images, thoughts, and feelings.
* Graphics – Choose images that best express and integrate with your logo and tagline. Support your message with all visible aspects: colors, typography, styles and other graphic elements.
Step 6 – Create your website
The nature of your business will drive and design your website by topic, eg content, features, addresses, contact information, blogs, links, bio, photos, itineraries. Then start writing your copy, making sure your tone fits the website design. State the key benefits customers will receive, the key values you deliver, the key concerns you share.
What topics should your website cover? — use that list to create the pages of your website. For example, a lecturer or public speaker may need:
* Homepage
* About page
* Page who we serve
* Main presentations/speeches page
* Page of Workshops, Classes and/or Retreats
* Products page (books, CD, DVD); shopping cart
* Meeting planners page; contact page
* Blog page; resource page; Electronic magazine; Special Reports
* Media Page/Press Room
Design and develop your site using the visual elements of your brand (logo, color). Please review and test it before publishing, to make sure everything works, no errors. Offer a free report or ezine that provides value to website visitors, while building your list at the same time.
Sign up for an autoresponder program to make it easy to follow up on prospects and send broadcasts to your customers. Then get started and do a final test to ensure accuracy on all platforms.
Step 7: Optimize, Market, and Network
First, identify your search engine optimization (SEO) goals and ROI goals. Hire a specialist to do basic search engine optimization with meta tags and images. With your specialist, establish strong monthly search engine optimization strategies, driven by your specific goals.
Next, establish search engine marketing (SEM). Set up pages and participate in social networking sites. Post comments on blogs that relate to your business, customer base, and market as a whole. Write and publish articles offline and online for inbound links.
These seven steps aren’t simple and take work, but they get results, and this year you just might see your business take off. With a powerful brand, backed by a compliant website.
