It seems like everyone wants to improve their website design these days. Maybe it’s that time of year, or maybe we get bored with our website after six months or so.

Of course, it could be that nagging feeling that your website isn’t getting the results you’re looking for… like lots of visitors, leads, and sales!

Whatever the reason, here are seven important questions to consider before starting your website design project.

1.  What’s the (real) purpose of your website?

• Generate leads and phone calls?
• Support the efforts of your sales team?
• Sell your products?
• Offer engaging content to build an audience?
• Provide helpful information about your company?

It’s okay to have more than one purpose. Just be clear on what the main one is so that you can design your website with that purpose in mind.

2.  Who is your target audience?

Can you describe them in detail? I hope so… since you’ll be spending plenty of time and money trying to find them on the Internet. Not to mention, hoping to get these prospects addicted to your website and offering. Again, who are you targeting?

3.  Can prospects find your website in search results?

Make your website “search friendly” so it shows up in the search results of your target audience, since the more people that find your site via “natural search” the less you’ll need to spend on marketing to find them. Not sure how to search engine optimize (SEO) your website? Get an expert to do it for you.

4.  How will your website visitors know they’ve come to the right place?

Your logo, “tagline”, and a handful of short benefit statements (with search-friendly keywords!) are really important for explaining what your website is all about and why your business is different. Photos, videos, and testimonials can also help tell your story and engage your target audience.

5.  How easy is it for prospects to find and act on what they’re looking for?

What do your website visitors want to do? And have you designed your site with these actions in mind? Take the time to figure this out before you redesign your website. For example, is it easy to learn about your services and pricing, or (gasp!) reach out and contact you?

6.  Have you made social media part of your website design?

Get customers and prospects to “like”, “tweet”, and otherwise share your website content with their social network. Put your business on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Start a blog, and post reviews and testimonials. Bottom line: make it easy for everyone to “spread the word” about your business!

7.  How will you know if your website is getting results?

Create clear goals for your website and marketing efforts. Track and measure your progress. This is where having a good web anlytics software is critical. How many website visitors are you getting? Are they doing what you want them to? Do they ever come back? All intriguing questions for sure…

Start your website design efforts by first answering these questions. Then worry about the “look and feel” of your website. Do this and your website will have a better chance of generating the results you’re looking for. Otherwise, it’ll soon be time to work on your website design (again).

Want to learn more about this fun topic? Check out these posts:

Who are you targeting with your online advertising?

Let’s talk about SEO basics. You first…

Ready to grow your business with social media?

Without web analytics your website is flying blind

And don’t forget, we’re here to help… just give us a call at 888.330.3236.

We’re often asked the question: “Where should I advertise online?” And it’s a good question… since there are (literally) thousands of online advertising options!

From paid search, to ad networks, to online directories, to websites, to social media… and the list grows longer all the time. Maybe all these options make sense for your advertising dollars, but then again, maybe not.

No worries, as our job is to help you get on your feet and moving in the right direction with online advertising… and hopefully keep you from taking too many wrong (and expensive) turns.

Now back to the question: “Where should I advertise online?” The answer depends on the following:

1. What’s your monthly online ad budget? There’s a big difference between relying on “word of mouth” and having lots of money to throw around. Not sure what you should be spending? Do the marketing math and find out.

2.  Who is the target audience you want to reach? The more you understand about your prospective customers… the better you’ll be able to reach and influence them with your marketing message. Who are you targeting with your online advertising?

3.  Are your customers local or everywhere? On the Internet, it’s easy to waste marketing dollars finding prospects who can’t buy from you. Yes, even online you need to think geographically. Getting started with your local online advertising?

4.  How will you know if your advertising was successful? What results are you looking for… orders, leads, sign-ups, phone calls? Figure this out in advance so you can measure the performance of your ad campaigns. And remember: without web analytics your website is flying blind.

With these questions in mind, here are some guidelines to help you figure out where to advertise online:

If your monthly online ad budget is less than $1,000, then consider:

• Paid Search: Google is the most popular but you should also test Yahoo/Bing. Keep in mind there are lots of other search-oriented sites that you can try such as Facebook, Business.com, LinkedIn, and (even) Amazon.com.

• Directories: These include the Internet yellow pages such as Superpages.com, Yellowpages.com, and DexKnows. Many of these providers will also create your very own web page if you don’t need a fancy website.

• City Guides: Yelp, Yahoo!Local, and Citysearch offer advertising options that can be really effective if most of your customers live nearby. And if you have a local store then make sure and put it on Google Maps.

• Social Media: It’s time to get your business on Facebook and Twitter. Why not since it’s free to set up an account and get started building your audience! Ready to grow your business with social media?

If your monthly online ad budget is $1,000 to $10,000, then consider:

• Paid Search, Directories, City Guides, Social Media (as described above)

• Small Blogs and Websites: This is where knowing all about your target audience pays off… since you want to advertise on sites that your prospects frequent. Expect to spend between $100 to $1,500 per month. Need help? Find out where to advertise online.

If your monthly online ad budget is $10,000 or more (lucky you!), then consider:

• Paid Search and Social Media (as described above)

• Blogs and Websites: Focus on sites that reach your target audience. The better the match the better your advertising results will be. Keep in mind that many popular consumer-oriented websites require a minimum order of $5,000.

• Ad Networks: There are hundreds of ad networks to choose from. Select those that best reach your target audience. For example, vertical ad networks specifically target many consumer categories such as autos, travel, health, women, and even eco-friendly consumers! And like with popular websites, most ad networks want you to spend at least $5,000.

Remember these are just guidelines. So, yes there are ad networks you can try even on a smaller budget; and sure there are popular websites which sell affordable text links. But when in doubt, stick to the guidelines until you feel comfortable with your online advertising efforts… or you risk taking one of those wrong turns we talked about.

Don’t spend your whole adverting budget on one option (i.e., Google). Instead, test different alternatives to see what works best for you… based on how you measure success. And make testing your online advertising a standard practice!

With all that said… are you ready for your online advertising roadmap?

Thanks and let us know how it goes!

Or reach out as we can help too… just give us a call at 888.330.3236.

(Btw, this was an update to our December 2008 post)