Do You Know who Your Customer is?

Wow, it's been a while since I put up a post, long overdue but I've been really busy which is a good thing!



I wrote about how so often companies fail to make any effort regarding the concept of getting found (SEO) on the internet when they create a website in one of my very first posts in this blog. This kind of misses the whole point of the exercise doesn't it? It's unfortunate that companies would take the time to create a site but not really understand that they have to be found in order for the site to be of real value to their business. I won't comment about the companies that make these websites other than to say shame on them for taking a clients money and not really delivering the goods. Today I want to address another key element of your websites design...who are you trying to reach?



The simple and self evident answer is "My customers!" of course. But I would ask you to take a moment and reflect on just who exactly that customer is, because as the process of content development on your website continues this should be an important consideration. It could be that there are a variety of prospective clients you're trying to communicate with and each one will require individual attention. For example, a hotel has the "business traveller", "family vacation audience", "event planner" and "wedding couple" among others as prospective clients and each has their specific needs as to relevant information...it is not about the beds, pillows and bathrooms, rather it's about what those individuals are looking for and each is different. but here is the most important point I offer...it is not about you and your business, it's about your customer and the solution you can provide for them! In the example of the hotel does the business person care that you have the "best pillows in town"? Maybe, but more likely they are looking for easy access to the facilities they have to go to, great communications infrastructure and that they'll get a good sleep when they finally make it to bed. Focus on solving they're problems, not on what you're selling.

How does this separate you from your competition? If you've taken time to see what your competition is doing (highly recommended!) you'll see that most of them tend to the "Blah, blah, blah" about their business website approach. It's not their fault, they don't know any better. Now you do. Here's an exercise to illustrate my point. the next time you're looking for information about a product or service online, think about which websites you stay on in your investigations, is it the sites that say "We have great widgets!" or is it the websites that speak to your problem and offer insight about how you can solve it? This is the way that websurfers get engaged with companies and ultimately end up being customers...there is enough blah, blah, blah in our lives, separate yourself! It will generate $$$ for your business.

Want some help? Contact me.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

What Web Content Should You Create?

The short answer is anything and everything that you can because...Content is KING! No I'm not kidding. Whether it's a blog entry, an update on your "Latest News" page, a video (hmmmm, here's an interesting one), a white paper, a new landing page, well I think you get my point, there is no doubt that creating content should be your top priority for your website. Why? Because it's your content that will determine whether or not your site is relevant to your prospective clients and being relevant and engaging is what will convert site visitors to prospects to clients. That is the kind of result you want from your website right? Anything else is a waste of your valuable time and resources.



OK, so is there some sort of magic formula? Is there some preferred content you can create to generate the best results? Not really, but there are some key fundamentals that are going to ensure that the content you develop achieves the desired outcomes. To illustrate this let's look at two examples one good, and the other...well not so good. First the good. In Marketing Voices , a weekly podcast, Jennifer Jones speaks with a variety of people involved with the marketing world about what they are doing, what trends they see, what's working (or not) and you're invited in to access these insights. Why is this good content? It's relevant to her audience, interesting, well optimized and provides the visitor with the information they are seeking and opportunities for that audience to engage further. This kind of content development achieves all of the desired outcomes.

For the "other" case, consider this blog...yah, you heard me right, my blog! You have to understand, I started this as an experiment, and it's working. More and more people are coming to read my blog entries, but we are still just speaking of "10's" of people monthly which I'm not unhappy with I intend very shortly to launch a website for my new company, but in the meantime I use this blog as my platform to try and share some insight for the small and medium sized business people. OK, so what is the problem with this blog? Sorry, what are the problems with this blog? Well, the one good thing is I pretty regularly add content, so readers are getting new information from their reading, and I focus on giving readers information I know will be helpful to them if they truly want to improve the results they are achieving from their online initiatives. Where this breaks down is that the content isn't optimized and there could be much more offered, for example a video, pictures, more links etc. But as I said this has always been an experiment and this blog is a way to get my feet wet in this environment. I can't wait for my new website to launch where I'll be spending considerable time to deliver a great example of content development!

OK, time to wrap up. What is my point today? Once again, content is KING, so if someone is offering you a quick fix to generate traffic to your website there's a better (much better) than 50% chance you're money or resources are being wasted. Make certain that as you consider your online development that whoever you engage to help you understands that there is a process involved and that after you've evaluated your current situation thoroughly, content is where the process begins, anything else...is costing you money, not creating an ROI!

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Website Marketing and Conversion, Step 1

Do you really want to boost the business results from your website? Then you have to begin taking the steps like SEO (search engine optimization), web content creation, competitor analysis, email management and many others but today let's focus on step 1, generating traffic. Traffic to your website is critical to making it a success and here are 5 simple tips to get you off to a good start. Once you have traffic, you can create conversion which leads to revenue and the more you invest in getting this formula right the more it will pay off for you in the growth of your business. Ok, let's get into the traffic building...

1- Create real content that your website visitors are looking for. Of course you need to know what they're looking for, but let's assume you do, well provide them with what they want to know. There is nothing as simple as telling them the truth about your offering and how it addresses their problem. The more material both written, images, video etc. that you can provide that talks about your solution for their problem the more that they are going to like your website and engage with the information.

2- Make certain that your content is SEO friendly. This takes time but pays off big in the long run. Using something as simple as the Google Adwords Keyword tool will give you some good ideas on how to make your copy and the html tags for your images and other content SEO friendly. When you use this information to create relevant content that uses the kind of language that site visitors use to find you, up go the traffic numbers.

3- Blog! This is one of the quickest and easiest ways to create content that your target audience is looking for. Don't make the mistake of using an application that hosts your blog, but instead, host it on your own website in a sub-domain like "yourcompanyname.blog.com". By doing this and creating content with SEO in mind you'll become a favourite of the search engines and the internet super highway will have a main road through your website for the targeted traffic you are looking for.

4- Engage with social media. Create a company facebook page, twitter, linkedin and others and participate in the discussion. Don't be overwhelmed by this, it can be as simple as you want, but again, as you create more doors and windows to your business, more traffic will follow.

5- Here we go again...MAKE A PLAN! Detail what and when you are going to do the things that are outlined here. Failing to plan is a plan to fail, it can't be said any more clearly.

There you go. These tips are certain to help boost the traffic that's coming to your website. Next we'll talk about converting the visitor and beginning to have a relationship with them with the goal of making them a new client. If you're looking for an all in one solution please check out www.hubspot.com they have an outstanding software program that will help you achieve all you want online and more using inbound marketing in ways you may not know even exist. If you want help, get in touch with me, I'd be glad to assist in any way that I can.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Website Marketing and Conversion, 3 Steps

The terms web marketing, SEO, social media etc. are now heard, well in my case daily, but even for unrelated businesses, they're out there and used regularly, but are you taking advantage of what they can do for your business?

Recently I was sitting with a new prospect who owns a small business and brochure style website that wasn't really doing anything for the business other than providing a space that he could direct people to. It has a few pictures of work done, descriptions of services offered and basic contact information...pretty uninspiring overall. I asked him what he would like the website to do for the business and the answer was (as I expected) generate leads that he could turn into business, what every business wants in an ideal world. I know this is hard to believe for some of you, but if this is truly what you want, you can easily achieve your goal, but you must invest either time, capital and sometimes both to achieve what you want...more business!

The process is simple really and involves only three steps however, these three steps can vary in complexity and depend on what resources you can and will allocate to getting the job done. Over the next few entries I will expand on each step but here in very simplest terms are the steps:

1- Generate traffic- Provide optimized content, consider blogging and social media;
2- Provide for conversions- To create leads develop conversion forms, landing pages and make sure you're tracking the outcomes;
3- Monitor results- Use tools that provide competitor analysis, lead scoring and marketing analytics so that you can effectively see what's working and what's not.

As mentioned, it is really three simple steps but there is much to consider for each of these steps. Too often companies start out in only one direction and then when they don't get the desired results they throw their hands up and say "It doesn't work!". It does work, but you need a comprehensive plan that allows you to make it work and as mentioned you'll have to commit time and or resources to get it done. The result, more business, more cost effectively resulting in better profits for you.

Consider this; my prospective client spent about $10,400 in trade shows last year and figures that he got about $20,000 in business for his efforts...not good! Spend that same money to create a better website properly planned, constructed and implemented and you'll get the results you are looking for, more business with greater profitability...Make it so #1!

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Keeping Social Media Fun

As I speak with more and more businesses on the subject of social media engagement and what they can expect from their effort, I'm also recognizing that these initiatives can get tiresome and become just one more thing that has to get done on a list of many. Questions start coming up about whether this is really worth the effort. Do you want to achieve a richer web presence? Elevate your search rankings? Drive traffic to your website? Ultimately these are questions you'll have to answer for yourself but before making any rash decisions consider this; if you aren't engaged who is? You're competition? If so, why are they and not you? In the end analysis it all comes down to ROI. A well planned and thought out social media campaign will drive traffic to you and assuming you have a website that has been carefully designed to achieve the conversion you want, more traffic = more conversions = more customers. If not yours your competitions...what does that cost you?

This article I found today and it gives great direction about how to keep your social media initiative vibrant and on track: http://econsultancy.com/blog/3936-keeping-social-media-sustainable It's a very worthwhile read and only takes about 2 minutes to get through, well worth the investment if you're considering some sort of social media engagement or need to re-ignite the effort.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Blended Search, the Holistic Approach

It won't be the first time that you've read here about looking at your plans for the development of your web presence using an approach that is as comprehensive as you can imagine. When it comes to developing your website, relevant content, social media positions and any other developments that will assist with your over search engine optimization and communications with your target audience, think big! It will pay off with improved ROI for you. It turns out that those of us who are thinking this way are not alone (not that I thought I was!) and in a recent article at One Degree.ca, I think the sources Kate Trgovac reaches out to for input pretty clearly articulate that this is the right way to go. I can't say it any better so here's the link, it's worth the read. http://www.onedegree.ca/2009/05/universal-and-blended-search-inside-the-marketers-studio.html#comments

Continue thinking about one thing or another it's important, but please, I implore you, think in the greater context of a well thought out plan, it is the surest way to achieving the outcomes that will improve your bottom line. If not yours...the competitions.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

B2B or B2C Blogging for...What?

There is some disagreement out there about whether or not corporate business blogging is really beneficial or not. On one side, those who adamantly feel this is an important component of your company image, an the other side that feel it has no value particularly because the ROI is not clear and so it is a waste of time and resources. One thing is certain, if you don't have a blog, the ROI is...zero! I personally believe that a blog does have value but there are certain conditions required to achieve returns...uh oh , here we go with PLAN again!

Before beginning to blog brainstorm some questions for example, who is your audience? What information do they want? What problem(s) are they looking to solve?...and so on. A good next step is to determine what blogging is to accomplish in the scope of your overall corporate strategy, is this an info, dialogue, branding or other type blog? If you're comfortable that you're on firm ground up to this point get to blogging...with certain conditions.

Speak truthfully in a clear voice that will be heard by your audience, there's enough 'stuff' out there. If you offer information or insight that is not the truth expect to be called out on the carpet, we don't have time for it. A key to successful blog development is that you become recognized as a trusted source, so stay true. Reflect on real experience or comment similarly but you must have a motivation that stays on the high ground or you will not develop any loyalty from your readers.

It's true that there are many blogs that are not generating the desired outcomes and there is little or no ROI, but a well planned blog, that forms part of a consistent corporate strategy and is patiently nurtured and adheres to the highest level of integrity will have tremendous ROI. Want to invest the time? Ultimately this is your decision but here's a final thought. If your blog initiative resulted in one more satisfied customer, what would that be worth to the company? What about two? Three? If you don't blog, it could be that you would never generate that business, its lost to a competitor...

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Improve Website Results 100%, 5 Steps

You may think this is a joke, not possible...what if it was guaranteed? Don't look for a guarantee like this on this blog, it's not my style, but I will say that these kind of improvements are very possible with a well executed and organized web development plan...oh no, here I go with the plan thing again. Yes, hear me, you are not going to get those kind of results without planning unless you are unbelievably lucky. For those who think this isn't possible I offer this, if it is possible and you don't engage with this kind of process, then the new opportunities that would have been yours? Well, they'll be go to someone else. How much will that cost you?

Five Steps

Step 1- Content, content, content. Check it over, are you giving your visitors the solutions they're looking for? Nobody cares about your product except you, they care about their problem and solutions for the problem, get your answers lined up and give them what they want.

Step 2- Check out your competition, what are they doing? What are they saying? How are they ranking in searches, why? How are they converting site visitors? Standard business. You don't have to re-create the wheel, just improve it a little and you'll win all the business you want.

Step 3- SEO, you think I'm crazy mentioning this don't you? Well let me tell you something, I surf a lot of websites and an unbelievably high percentage don't even have keywords and those that do well, many have the same keywords on every page of the website. Missed opportunities.

Step 4- Blog. Yes, again I say blog. This is probably the easiest way to improve rankings with the search engines. A blog provides your website with changing content, blog more, more change, more search engine relevance.

Step 5- Social network campaign. It's time that you engage in the conversation, offer your tweet, your wall space, your flick...beware, this isn't where you advertise, this is where you provide good conversation, want to be interesting? Be interested.

There you go, five steps. Yes, there are many more, no I haven't said all there is to say, there are many details, come back again soon and I'll have something else.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

In the beginning...5 steps to a website idea.

Since I've been having a number of discussions lately with companies that are creating their first website I want to go through what I believe to be a good planning process for that first website. This will be done in a number of installments, what I hope to do is give you a road map that will take you from your initial idea, to being live on the internet, so here we go...

1- Requirements: Meet with your key personnel, stakeholders or trusted advisors to brainstorm what essential requirements you have for the website;

2- Define objectives: What is the purpose of your website? Information, sales, registration, membership, employee communications? What do you want the website to accomplish? At this stage let your imagination run wild, if you can think it, it can probably be done;

3- Competitive analysis: You know who the competition is, what are they doing, and what are they NOT doing that you can address;

4- Business processing: Are there repetitive tasks associated with new client development? Would automating these improve efficiency, and profitability?

5- Budget: Decide how much you can afford in both human and capital resources.

I've saved the budget for last intentionally. When you are planning don't think about the budget first because you want to be as creative as possible. It may be that your first website isn't everything you had conceived but if you know where you would like to get to it will help the overall development process. It's also important to think of this budget item as an ongoing expense because just like any other asset you have it will require at least maintenance, and in all likelihood, once you see the results you achieve with a well planned and implemented website, you will want to add the next level of functionality that you had initially dreamed of. Budgeting appropriately is key to the long-term project success.

As a final observation, too often I talk with companies that think of the website as something that is separate from the rest of the business. I strongly urge you to think of your website as a partner or another tool for your business. This kind of thinking will allow you to see the future more clearly and achieve the greatest ROI. By the way, companies who go through this kind of process and implement an effective website and internet presence plan, end up identifying this asset as having the greatest ROI for their business. Take time, get help, engage!

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Website Maintenance...To Do or Not To Do...

You have a website and you're pretty much happy with what it does for your company. It doesn't have a database management system, or a CMS, or even any formal email management system, but, from all the feedback you've received, the visitors that have been coming have found at least some of the information they were looking for and some followed up with a phone call. You do wonder about a few things, for example, you've been looking over the traffic numbers, and the number of calls compared to the number of visitors you get sure seems low, no conversion. The other thing you've been wondering about is the new line of 'widgets' you now have in stock and there's no information on your website about them. Finally, you're going to be having the big promotion on ______'s next month and again, no online info about it. Oh yeah, there was also that 'blog' thing that someone was telling you about at the chamber of commerce business lunch last week, it seemed to be generating some good results for them and you've been wondering about that...even though you're not really certain what a blog really is. Maybe you're not so happy with your website after all...you're not alone, a surprising number of companies are frustrated with their website for one reason or another.

The state of the art with respect to your online presence is changing so quickly that to ever think, "There, we're done!" is no longer an option. If you want to fully capitalize on the investment you've made in your website and achieve the optimum ROI, you must consider carefully how you are going to facilitate the changes on your website as you determine what is best for your organizations evolving web presence and business development. In the list of solutions, be certain to investigate whether a website maintenance arrangement with a competent company who will be able to support you as you move forward with your plans is the way to proceed. Of course you can always resort to ad hoc measures, and many do this quite successfully, the problem with this approach can be time of delivery because more and more of the professional website service and development companies are structuring their service so that maintenance clients receive priority service and ad hoc work comes in a distant second. Understandable right? Organizations who commit to a maintenance agreement with their website services provider demonstrate that they are serious about the development of their online web presence and want to execute on a well thought out plan, their maintenance agreement is the vehicle to accomplish this. If you don't have one, how serious are you about what you want to accomplish online?

Five reasons to have a website maintenance service agreement:
1- Allows you to develop your online presence in a structured but flexible manner;
2- Reduces your capital intensity because you pay for ongoing development overtime rather than with any single 'big' hit;
3- Stay ahead of your competition with updated content (maybe a CMS), state of the art SEO, web based applications to streamline business operations and processing, email management or marketing etc. etc.;
4- Save money! Usually these arrangements offer you discounts from regular ad hoc development rates;
5- Maximize your returns on your investment.

To the best of my knowledge, given the continued explosion of internet use, there is no single investment that you can make in your organization that has the potential for positive returns that your strategic web presence does. Take advantage of what is out there for you, when executed properly, you will be impressed with the results achieved. If you don't...it will cost you!

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Website Design Do It Yourself Options

This is a different direction for me because normally I want to provide you with reasons that would encourage you to use professionally outsourced website design and development services. But (this is a big but) I've come to the realization that there are those of you who might just be better off doing this yourself. Afterall as so many people have told me, there are many resources now available online that will allow you to build a fully functioning and visitor friendly website. In this intallment I'd like to offer a plan for you if this is the route you want to go.

Step 1- Make a plan. You know what your website is about so all you need to do is make a plan that should include: site design plan, content development ideas, idea market research, competitor analysis, website marketing plan and optimization strategy and tactics, conversions desired, content management system requirements, email management and marketing requirements, client relationship development requirements, process automation needs, background database application development. This will provide you with a sound platform to move forward with.

Step 2- Define and allocate adequate resources to the project development. Again, you know what your website is about so all you have to do is decide who within your organization is going to take on the responsibility for each of the above mentioned plan elements. Depending on the competency and experience of the person who is undertaking one or more of the elements outlined in Step 1, I would allocate anywhere from 1-5 planning hours for each item for a total range of between 12 and 60 hours planning time.

Step 3- Build the website. Again, depending on the level of expertise (at a minimum you should have someone who is reasonably competent with a design program like Dreamweaver, much better to have someone competent in a variety of web programming languages) available within your organization, you should probably count on a minimum of 2 weeks to as much as several weeks to ensure that the page SEO tasks are properly done, the content is credible, coherent and well laid out for easy navigation etc. This will vary depending on the level of sophistication you've decided on. For example, if you are implementing database program applications such as email or client relationship management tools, you'll need to allow significantly more time, particularly as this will be your first design build project of this kind.

Step 4- Review the website and correct as needed. Programs like Dreamweaver or Front Page are notorious for creating websites that have W3C compliance issues so that your website visitors may have significant problems viewing your webpages properly, or the applications you've developed won't run properly. Again, depending on the expertise available and the complexity allow 3 days to several weeks for this process.

Great! You're done until you want to do some updates and you've only had to take...whoa. Hang on a second, I really didn't realize this, you've just created a project outside of your core competency area that will probably take 3 to 8 weeks person time to complete and the outcome is not guaranteed to be what you wanted!

OK, I did realize what was happening in my blog entry here. My point? How much time, energy and effort does your business save your clients? What value do you offer them? Could they do it themselves? Maybe they could, but does their investment in time and capital resources justify the outcome?

How much is a do it yourself website really going to cost you?

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

What we don't know

When it comes to the internet, you can always make the decision to do nothing, and gain nothing from the opportunities for growth, efficiency and profitability for your company...but there are millions of people using the internet now, what is your decision costing your business?

Three wisest words my Dad ever taught me? "I don't know." It's sometimes hard to admit that we don't know something, but in the dynamic world of the internet and web applications, more often than not, we don't know, and it's important to accept this truth. Why? Simply put, there are more opportunities for your business to grow and prosper, more applications that will streamline your business operations, investments that you can make for your business that will have among the highest ROI of any you can make for your business, than have ever existed before as a result of the internet and web based applications. If you've now accepted that you "don't know", what is it that you need to know?

You need to know that there are great companies out there who want to work with you and marry their expertise in the online world, with your bricks and mortar world offering, to achieve what you want whether that's better online visibility,communication or service, maybe you want to streamline operations and or processing to prevent scalability issues. Whatever you want to achieve, the right partner can get you there. By the way, another thing you need to know is this is a process that is ongoing, don't imagine that this partner is going to do something and be done, a true partner for you recognizes the long-term nature of this process, there are benchmarks along the way, but no final events!

What else? Ah yes, you also need to know that there are companies who really don't see the larger picture, or have a paln how to get you there, and here is the trick...you need to know the difference between the two. Trust your instincts. This isn't a decision that's irreversible but taking the time to get the match right is worth it, it will save you a tremendous amount of time and financial resources.

I repeat, you can always stay the course, not make a decision, and really gain nothing from the web and all it has to offer in the way of growth, efficiency and profitability...but there are millions of people using the internet, what is your decision costing your business?

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Why is content soooo important?

Recently I wrote that content was king and I want to expand a little on that because I had a recent experience that really highlights the point...



I was driving down a highway, actually the 417 between Ottawa and Montreal, and like any highway was going past various exits without really paying much attention as they were not MY exit, when something caught my attention...the ferry boat at Hudson just before you get to the western edge of Montreal. You see, I love water, water sports, fishing (I have several seasons of professional tournament fishing in my background), snorkelling and scuba diving, canoeing, sailing, kayaking, boating, water skiing, you name it, if it involves water it pretty much captures my attention. So I pulled off on a little excursion to see this ferry link that I had never seen before...what the heck has this got to do with websites you ask? Here is my point, I got off the highway because I came across something that was of interest to me, and I went and investigated. Why? Because a sign directed me. It indicated that there was something there for me to investigate.



Your website content is like that highway sign and if your web presence doesn't have the content that is relevant and of interest to your site visitor, google won't easily find you, and prospective visitors will not 'pull off' to look and investigate! In 2008 google averaged 37 billion inquiries monthly. How much is it costing you because your "signage" isn't working?



We're at the edge of the future!



Andy Xhignesse

Web Presence=Relationships

I'm stuck on the web presence theme...I truly believe that a web presence vs just a website is what will separate online success from failure for the SMB marketplace. Why? Because generally we do business with those we like and trust and a web presence is a sure way to build that relationship online and it is in the online virtual world that more and more relationships are being initiated. How many? In 2006 Google was receiving 2.7 billion queries monthly, in 2008 that has grown to 37 billion! (See "Did you know" http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=jpEnFwiqdx8 for an informative change of perspective.) How many of these inquiries are important for your business?

When did you last 'google' for information on something you were looking for? Do you recognize that action as the beginning of a prospective online relationship? One way to think of this relationship for your website is as a site visitor...when you go looking for 'something' online what do you look for, the website that says, "Wow have we got a deal for you!" or the one that provides you with all the relevant information you need, in an easy to navigate well thought out manner? When you come across the latter (which is a very small % of websites by the way) you know that you've found a prospective solution for your need, a solution that you can have confidence in.

What truly separates a website from a web presence? A comprehensive plan that incorporates your bricks and mortar operations with your online initiatives in a manner that supports and enhances. If up to now you have only viewed your online activities as another 'item' on your list of organizational must haves, I urge you to re-think and re-engage with your online development so that your business, with a comprehensive web presence, will have a far greater likelihood of successfully converting site visitors to real world clients.

The cost of not pursuing this development route? You'll lose the potential relationships that 37 billion monthly inquiries (and growing) could mean for your operations. Your call...

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Web Presence=Relevant Content="Sticky info"

What, you ask does that mean? Again, I want to stay on the theme of a web presence and today a brief comment on content, in a nutshell content is king...no question about it!

You've probably heard the old adage for business success, "Location, location, location", how, if at all, is that modified in our internet world? I offer you this "Information, information, information" as a replacement. What you want is to have relevant information that engages your visitor to stay on your website and go through a 'conversion' whatever that may be for you and your organization. Is this valid? Let's look briefly at a real example...

Industry: Home renovations

Competitors: http://www.homefocus.com/ and http://www.homerenovationguide.com/

These two sites offer consumers a similar product, ultimately both want the homeowner interested in a renovation project to connect with one of their service providers. Here is a big difference, Homefocus about 1.5 page views per visit and Home Renovation Guide (HRG) about 4.5, which visitor is more engaged with the information, and therefore more likely to take action? The numbers don't lie and the HRG site has been steadily on the increase for over two years because they are progressive and offer what...relevant information! Articles, pictures, links, all to provide visitors with the information they are seeking.

No content, no traffic, no conversion, no business or...

Interesting and engaging information= interested and engaged visitors= happy to follow through and convert= great business. Take action today.

We're at the edge of the future...

Andy Xhignesse

Back to Web Presence...

The other day was having a discussion with a business owner and introduced the idea of a web presence as opposed to a website...well I had some explaining to do! So I thought I'd take a moment to clarify a little of what I mean by a web presence. I say a little because this is a lengthy topic and I already have the tendency to 'wordiness' (don't tempt me!) and so I'll uncover little by little what I mean by web presence and what the benefits are vs a website approach.

There are many elements involved in the creation of a web presence but they all start from the same place, a good plan that integrates all facets of your business. You see, I believe that a web presence allows your business or organization to benefit fully from all that the internet has to offer, it is not just about having some info up there for people to see, a presence is a way to really extend your message to your audience that is inviting and interactive, it engages your visitor to the point that they will take a next step, whatever that next step might be that is relevant to your business outcomes. Just as with anything else in your business or organization you need a thoughtful plan that views your ongoing internet activities as another doorway to new visitors. This requires that you invest adequate resources to the task, but as study after study shows, the internet is now the best investment you can make for your organization/business with the greatest ROI when properly executed.

You can think of it a little like this:

Website: A place where people end up by chance;

Web Presence: An online location that visitors go to with intent;

Inaction is costing you, who knows how much but I guarantee it is costing you, get started it's free to plan!

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Is a blog an important tool for your business?

We hear a lot about blogs, in fact it's hard not to hear about them. Should you be blogging? Is it worth the time and energy you'll have to put into it? The answer in my opinion, absolutely! Let me explain.

Have you gone online recently to google for information on something? Maybe given the time of year, you've done a little research into a gift you were considering for someone, or maybe you were looking for information to help solve a business issue within your organization. The point is, powerful information is now at your fingertips. You can now access much of the information that you need in order to make your buying decisions online...and you are no different than all the rest of us. So, how does this affect the way business is being done? You need to be noticed so that people will come to YOU for the information and ultimately for the solution to their need. Blogging helps. How?

1-Blogging is part of an inbound marketing program that will help direct inquiries to you;
2-It improves your SEO to help prospects find you;
3-It's an effective method to participate in social networking;
4-It is a permission based form of marketing that can allow you to begin a relationship with a new prospect.

Check out http://www.hubspot.com/ I think they're a well organized internet marketing company that has great ideas for the small and medium sized business.

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

W3C compliance, does it matter?

W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) is comprised of over 400 members including all the major search engines and global corporations such as AT&T, HP and Toshiba among others, that develops standards for the internet so that communications online perform consistently.

In the last few years, the discussion over compliance has become more intense and there is an increasing awareness of problems arising from non-compliance. For you the small and medium size business, here are three significant concerns:

1-Some browsers like Firefox, Opera and Lynx (among others) won't display your pages correctly.
2-Search engines will not be able to efficiently and precisely indexing your site.
3-Site and hearing impaired internet users won't be able to use your site.

So...does W3C compliance matter? Of course! The outcome of the above problems mean that you may not be found, that SEO actions may be less effective, that applications on your website may not operate properly and all of this leads to a loss of engagement by your visitors which in turn leads to lost opportunities. How much is this costing you?

Check your compliance at http://validator.w3.org/

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Do you want a website or a WEB PRESENCE?

5 questions to consider...

1- Your competition is probably on the web. Are they attracting your potential customers?

2- All of us are using the internet to meet more and more of our needs. Do you have effective SEO web presence development to drive prospects to your business?

3- A professionally developed web presence works for you 24/7, how better can you leverage your time?

4- E commerce allows clients to purchase your goods and services while sitting at their computer and it is estimated that this transaction is up to 8 times less expensive than a conventional business transaction. How much better would this be for your bottom line profitability?

5- A professional web presence is an investment that has a greater ROI than any other form of promotion since pages and pages of information can be developed at a fraction of the cost of conventional advertising. Can you afford not to develop an effective web presence?

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse

Website Service Companies...How do you pick one?

There are many ways to find a website service company and soooo many to choose from, is there a valid process for your selection? I want to speak to this today as it came up recently with a prospective client who was feeling a little overwhelmed with the task of simply choosing a company to work with let alone determining what exactly was to be done. If you don't already have a method in place for making this kind of decision here are a few key points for your consideration and when you follow them you'll establish a relationship with a company that will last for years and ensure that your online presence is effective at achieving your organizations goals.

1- First off, is the prospective company stable with a track record of client satisfaction? Web development is not a 'mature' industry and there are many 'off hour' suppliers, more and more each day. Any company that has been in business over 5 years and has a number of clients who will act as references is probably a good prospect, you should be free to contact some supplied references.
2- Does the prospective company have a well defined process for completing the work related to your needs? This sounds obvious, but there are a huge and growing number of 'basement' (off hour) web service operations (I use the term loosely) that will promise you the world but really have no procedures in place to make certain that they'll achieve what you want in any sort of reasonable timeline if at all. Look for a company that can speak intelligently to a plan. For example at MEDIAFORCE we work with a five point process as appropriate to the work to be completed: Discovery and Planning, Creative Concept Development, Technical Production, Deployment and finally, The New Beginning. This process has allowed us to maintain long-term relationships with our clients some of them since our beginning over 12 years ago. In most cases we effectively become a partner with our clients, and their success is ours.
3- How does the company propose to work within your budget? First I'd like to say that if you're looking for cheap there is lots out there, just remember that when you go to find them and...you can't, you'll have a good understanding of why. However, a good company will have ways to first get you started and then develop a plan with you going forward that will allow you to achieve all of the needs that you have. Often we talk with clients about the one, two, three year scenario so that we can spread the development cost over an extended period that fits with our clients budget considerations. One word of caution, remember that your online presence is increasingly a first point of contact for you with your prospective clients and as a result very important. Whatever you do should be well thought out so that it reflects what you want a prospect to know and understand about your organization, so ensure (as much as possible) that it gets done right. This investment is one of the most important investments that you can make for the growth of your organizations activities.
4- Ongoing service. Once you have your new or renovated presence, what then? This is what MEDIAFORCE refers to as Stage 5- The New Beginning, because this is where our work continues with you. We are constantly looking for new possibilities for our clients, whether it's a technical innovation or a new marketing option we are working to make certain that our clients have the latest tools available to them so that they are current, relevant and achieve their online presence goals and objectives.

Well, there's some food for thought, I hope it helps you with your decision because this is one of those decisions that truly has the potential to significantly impact your business. As always, wrong decisions for the wrong reasons will waste your time and resources, how much will that cost you?

We're at the edge of the future!

Andy Xhignesse