Heard that whole internet thing is pretty big.
Websites are so mid-1990s, aren't they? But the bottom line is that without one your business is going to seem like it's STUCK in the 90s. Remember when websites were nothing more than a telephone book listing, simply showing your contact info? Today, customers and clients EXPECT you to have a professional, elegant, easy to use and helpful website. And today's web design needs to support your brand and be integrated into an overall brand launch campaign.
The cheese may stand alone,
but your website can not.
A website strategy has to be closely intertwined with your brand's overall marketing strategy. A website needs to function within the parameters of your brand, with a design that is refined down to the pixel level. Websites are the portal to inbound marketing leads. With the right web design, supported by other marketing initiatives such as search engine optimization, your website will lead people to you. We build strategies that deliver a predictable ROI. By understanding the goals for number of leads our clients are seeking, we can execute strategic initiatives that provide expected results (or even exceed).
How do we produce results-driven websites: STEP 2. KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS
Are your customers most likely to access your site through a mobile device instead of a desktop computer? Are your customers more or less web-savvy than the general population? How much research do your customers perform prior to purchasing your product? STEP 3. SCOPE THE SYSTEM
Is your website actually the product or service you are delivering? Do you need to support a community through your site? How will you measure success?
STEP 8. DEVELOP STRATEGICALLY
During website development, how will rollovers and other dynamic parts of the page function with relation to the brand strategy? Is your content set up to collect all the analytics necessary to assess success?
STEP 9. TEST. TEST. TEST.
We develop your website on a development server and test it against multiple browsers and operating systems to insure they are fully operational before launch.
STEP 10. LAUNCH
Not a lot of questions here—it is simply time to go live! The rollout of a website is determined by the website strategy in conjunction with the brand launch communications plan. Often, there is a press release that aligns to the rollout. A website might have a soft launch (when it goes live) and be followed by a marketing campaign (print advertising, banner ads, guerilla marketing tactics, mobile marketing).
STEP 11. MEASURE SUCCESS
Is the site meeting (or exceeding) your expectations? Are the conversion goals that were established being achieved? The benefit of online marketing is that it is easy to make adjustments. With proper testing and changes, the desired ROI can be achieved.
Success is not just about design. Websites that create value for your client and customer are the payoff. A well-designed website is actually just good execution on an excellent website strategy.
Key elements of website strategy
Self-service self qualifies.
Discover > Learn > Believe > Try > Buy Re-buy > Recommend. The sales process can all happen online with a self-service website. A website that allows a prospect to self-qualify themselves as a viable prospect/client [B2B] or customer [B2C] for your brand offering. A self-service website is one that aligns with the natural progression of this sales process.
Long tail websites leverage microsites.
Craft a series of self-service microsites around a specific customer demographic, or specific problem environment that your brand specifically solves. If there are 14 different customer demographics and eight identified problems your brand solves (or objections your product overcomes), you need that many microsites to communicate your brand message in a clear, concise and memorable manner that is personally relevant to each of these buyer demographics.
A/B test your website's effectiveness at each stage of your business.
What is A/B testing? Picture two options, side-by-side, which would you pick? Take the winner and match it up against the next option. Which would you pick? Test your website's conversion effectiveness using simple A/B testing. Find the clear winner and implement your creative, message, medium (white papers vs webcasts), promotion or even the page design nuances. This process of A/B testing ultimately enables your prospect to self qualify themselves more easily, therefore making your brand more easily buyable and bringing you and your sales team more qualified leads. Find the sweet spot for conversion performance in one microsite and then roll it out, prove it consistently true with a second microsite, then roll it out to the rest of the microsites in your arsenal.
And that's just the beginning
Connect with MicroArts today to kick off your website strategy and leverage our proven website strategy design experience!
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Webcasting Best Practices
Inbound Marketing is the new way to market your brand. Webcasting is key to any online branding experience. Reach your audience via video interviews, online demos, webinars, etc. If you are new to web video marketing, here are some best practices to keep in mind ...
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"Websites have come a long way since the days of dialup and Mosaic. They've really started to become taken for granted as a marketing vehicle, but their importance and power should never be underestimated. At MicroArts, we unlock the power of websites for our clients every day."
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MicroArts Creative Agency
Since 1988, we've been perfecting our practice as an Internet marketing agency, including website strategy development as part of our Ultimate Marketing Mix.
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STEP 1. UNDERSTAND YOUR MARKET
