The Top 5 Ways to Turn Your Website Into a Powerful Sales, Marketing & Communications Tool.

A company website is no longer a novelty but a necessity.  Unfortunately, many businesses have websites that are underachievers.   Their websites are static online brochures that do very little to help the company.  The good news is that the next generation of website functionality has arrived.  That is, an interactive, dynamic website that can become an integral part of your sales and marketing strategy. 

By following the advice in this guide, you will learn how to improve your company's website so that it accomplishes these two main functions:

• It is a powerful sales and marketing tool that contributes to your bottom line
• It is the communications hub for your company

The Snap Website Guide contains practical advice on:

1. Website Design - Tips on creating a professional "look and feel" for your website that reflects your company's brand.
2. Navigation - Ensure that visitors (and Search Engines) are getting the most from your website.
3. Content - Turn visitors into potential customers and get them to take action. Write "Search Engine Friendly" copy..
4. Website Software - The latest products that can boost sales and save you time and money.
5. Search Engines - Valuable advice on making your website "Search Engine Friendly" to gain an edge over your competitors.

 “Packed full of practical and useful information. I encourage my business colleagues and students to get their hands on this guide.” - Dr. John English,  Applied Information Technology Professor, Kentucky State University

Who Should Read:  Business owners and executives (especially Marketing staff).  Anyone who wants practical advice on how to use their website to gain a competitive edge.
 

See below for Chapters 1 & 2.  To get the entire guide (27 pages) for free, go to the

Snap Technologies website - snaptech.ca

SnapTech Website Guide

In order to maximize the effectiveness of your website, you should take advantage of the many features, services and products that are now available.  By doing so you can achieve the following:

1. Attract potential new customers to your website. = More qualified leads.  Higher sales and profits.

2. Enhance communication with your current customers. = Higher customer retention, cross-selling opportunities and referrals.

3. Provide valuable resources for your employees, suppliers and/or distributors. = Reduced costs, productivity gains, improved satisfaction.

1. Website Design

The “look and feel” of your website is an extension of your corporate brand.  It should be representative of your company and be consistent with other marketing materials such as brochures, etc.  You need to strike the right balance to ensure that you end up with a clean, professional appearance. 

• To begin, look to other websites that you believe are effective whether they are competitors or in a completely different industry. 
• Create a list of the people that you want your website to appeal to and design it with them in mind.  E.g. One of our clients, a publicly traded food supplier, needed to provide information to 3 different audiences – the general public, retailers and investors.  Their new website has 3 areas that contain information specific to each audience. The general public section is very colorful with lots of product shots, recipes, etc.  The investor section is very plain with links to financials, annual reports, etc.
• Flash Animation is very common nowadays but resist the urge to overdo it.  Used sparingly, Flash can be an attention grabbing and appealing feature.  However, Search Engines will not read the content of a Flash file.  As such, overuse of Flash could impair your Search Engine ranking.

Top Web Design Tip: Solicit input from key sources.  Ask your clients, suppliers, partners and/or employees what they would like to see on your website.  For this purpose, questionnaires are very effective and are commonly used.  You will minimize delays and save money by giving the web designer clear direction at the beginning of the project.  Many projects become derailed and run over budget because an initial design is sent back to the designer to be redone over and over again. Go to snaptech.ca to view the SnapTech Website Questionnaire.

 Remember: An effective website is one that is built around its visitors.

2. Navigation

Map out the flow of your website using clean, simple navigation. You don’t want to lose potential customers because of confusing or complicated navigation. The navigation bar should be clearly accessible and easy to understand. It should be located in exactly the same place on every page of your website. Visitors shouldn't have to hunt for it. 

Use the guidelines below to ensure that your website contains the key elements of proper navigation.

Top Navigation Tip:  Keep the Home Page simple!  Write and organize your Home Page at a Grade 8 comprehension level.  Most people quickly scan the Home Page and only slow down and linger if they are drawn into the rest of the website.  You can provide technical information further in – visitors who are interested will drill down to find it.   

Home Page:  Your home page is the first impression for the majority of your website visitors.  It should clearly explain who you are, what you do, your unique selling proposition and the benefits to the customer.  You have less than a minute to capture a visitor’s attention – you need to generate interest and encourage them to explore the rest of your website. 

 “Call-Out Boxes” on your Home Page are an effective means of encouraging visitors to check out the rest of your website.  Your home page should include call-out boxes with excerpts and links to the following:
· News and Events
· Case Studies
· Opt-in-Offer/Newsletter
· Demo/Video/Catalog

Products/Services:  Your Products and/or Services section will likely receive the majority of traffic after your home page.  Having a well-organized product section with complete and useful information can determine whether the visitor becomes a customer or not.  Your Products section should include testimonials, contact info and links to your case studies.

FAQ: It's a good idea to include a "Frequently Asked Questions" page on your website. This is where you'll provide helpful answers to the most commonly asked questions by potential buyers. Many of the visitors to your website are browsing around on a fact-finding mission.  A FAQ section is a great self-help feature that can free up time for your staff so they can do more important things (like sales). A well thought out FAQ page can increase the likelihood that a prospective customer will contact you.

Community Section:  Consider having a section that is devoted to your current clients.  You can post comments, pictures, etc. that have been submitted by your customers.  This is a great way to encourage interaction and reinforce your value with current customers. Also, if you lack pictures, photos, etc. a community page is a great way to collect images for your website.  Post clear instructions and guidelines for submissions.  The Community section is also a great place for an online poll.  An online poll can encourage repeat visits and help you to gather valuable feedback from your customers.

News & Events: This is your chance to tell your visitors about:

• New products/specials
• Awards/Articles
• Seminars

You can encourage repeat visits and establish credibility if potential customers know that you have an up-to-date “News & Events” section.

"About Us" Page: Most people like the personal interaction of doing business face to face. A good way to express your company culture and encourage people to contact you is to include an "About Us" page.  The “About Us” page contains information that allows the prospective customer to become more familiar and comfortable with you, your staff and your business. If appropriate, include pictures and bios of management and key employees. This is especially helpful if you want to expand the geographical region of your sales and gain customers whose only contact with you is by phone.

“Contact Us” Page: In order to close sales and establish your credibility, you need to provide detailed contact information on your website. This includes your mailing address as well as fax and phone numbers. Make it easy for potential customers to reach you if they want to get more information or purchase your product.  Also, consider having a link on all your website pages to the “Contact Us” section.  The Contact Us page can simply list your contact info or it can be a place where people can subscribe to newsletters, request information and tell you about their objectives.  Create a submission form for your visitors to fill out with the info you want to capture (email address, ph no., comments, etc.).  If you want to add increased functionality, you can use email marketing software that will automatically collect the information in a database so you can send out your newsletter, product updates, marketing material, etc. (get the entire Website Guide to view the section on Permission-based Email Marketing). 
 

end of section 2 - Navigation

To get the entire guide (27 pages) please visit snaptech.ca

Here's what you will get:

3. Content - Turn visitors into potential customers and get them to take action. Write "Search Engine Friendly" copy. 

• Top Content Tip: Writing Testimonials and Case Studies for Your Website

4. Website Software - The latest products and services that can boost sales and save you time and money.

• Top Website Software Tip: Learn How to Run a Permission-based Email Marketing Campaign

5. Search Engines - Valuable advice on making your website "Search Engine Friendly" to gain an edge over your competitors.

• Top Search Engine Tip: Incoming Links For Your Website

Questions? You can reach us via our website:  snaptech.ca

Good luck and we hope the advice in the guide will help boost the effectiveness of your website!