Social media continues to dominate a lot of discussions for companies as they consider what they're plans are...hopefully they are in fact considering instead of just acting as this may have undesirable results! I invite you to read the following as I couldn't have said it better myself and in fact extend the concept outlined to not just social media engagement, but website development generally. Here is one way to think of it, what would you like your web presence to do for your company? If you can imagine it, it can probably be done...plan! Failing to plan is a very good plan to fail. Read on...
http://econsultancy.com/blog/3797-social-media-is-about-the-steak-not-the-sizzle#blog_comment_8529
We're at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
Showing posts with label web applications. Show all posts
Showing posts with label web applications. Show all posts
Monday, May 11, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
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
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
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
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
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
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Content is content...not!
So we'll stay on the theme of content again today. Why, because it's important to get this right if it is going to accomplish what you've set out to do...most SEO efforts will go unrewarded by increased visitor 'stickiness', the CMS you had developed for your site will be of little value because it is not being used effectively, so now the CRM is worthless because you aren't getting the conversions you started out seeking. The database aplication on which everything is based doesn't have to do anything because of low traffic...the whole effort and expense of your website design and development plan is a waste and your ROI is in the tank! Well developed content is critically important.
What constitutes good content? It starts with a methodology for development in my view. (This applies to all website development, make certain your 'online partner' has some sort of process to get you where you want to go.) This is not some big secret it just takes time and effort to get it done effectively. Any good website design and development firm should be able to clearly describe to you the process they will use in your content development and when they've described their method, you should feel good about what they plan to do, if not, look for another service provider. By the way, this is why you pay a premium to work with professionals, this is some of the work that goes on behind the scene that you are probably not aware of unless you specifically ask. Here are the steps I try to follow when developing content:
1- Understand client business model and objectives;
2- Clarify desired audience;
3- Understand audience need and relationship to client business ojectives;
4- Determine relevance of client provided keywords and phrases;
5- Investigate related terms;
6- Create content in an hourglass format, with keywords and phrases sprinkled throughout but heaviest near the top and bottom of a page;
7- Review with client to establish if the voice and feel is right and re-work if necessary.
That's it! Simple isn't it? Of course it helps to have some practice and to know where there are resources to investigate these things, but like anything, your time and effort will pay off. Your SEO will drive people to a website that has 'sticky' content that engages your visitor audience, so that any website design and development work, your CMS, CRM and web based applications, all accomplish the tasks they were designed to and your ROI is...beyond your expectations!
We're at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
What constitutes good content? It starts with a methodology for development in my view. (This applies to all website development, make certain your 'online partner' has some sort of process to get you where you want to go.) This is not some big secret it just takes time and effort to get it done effectively. Any good website design and development firm should be able to clearly describe to you the process they will use in your content development and when they've described their method, you should feel good about what they plan to do, if not, look for another service provider. By the way, this is why you pay a premium to work with professionals, this is some of the work that goes on behind the scene that you are probably not aware of unless you specifically ask. Here are the steps I try to follow when developing content:
1- Understand client business model and objectives;
2- Clarify desired audience;
3- Understand audience need and relationship to client business ojectives;
4- Determine relevance of client provided keywords and phrases;
5- Investigate related terms;
6- Create content in an hourglass format, with keywords and phrases sprinkled throughout but heaviest near the top and bottom of a page;
7- Review with client to establish if the voice and feel is right and re-work if necessary.
That's it! Simple isn't it? Of course it helps to have some practice and to know where there are resources to investigate these things, but like anything, your time and effort will pay off. Your SEO will drive people to a website that has 'sticky' content that engages your visitor audience, so that any website design and development work, your CMS, CRM and web based applications, all accomplish the tasks they were designed to and your ROI is...beyond your expectations!
We're at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
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
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
Monday, January 19, 2009
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
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
Monday, January 12, 2009
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
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
Thursday, December 18, 2008
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
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
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
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
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
Thursday, December 4, 2008
I can't get no...Satisfaction!
As the Rolling Stones belted it out, so too, unfortunately many organizations are not satisfied with their current website services provider. Whether it's the speed with which your service company answers your need, the results of what is provided as a solution or many other potential irritants, there are ways to avoid this problem. Most of us have enough challenges in our work, adding frustration with the development of services online doesn't need to be another added burden if we undertake a little due diligence.
Here's another real situation that happened recently (two weeks ago) at our firm Mediaforce. A business owner in western Canada calls us and is very frustrated. They have tried to contact their services provider repeatedly for some time (I believe the period was about three weeks, incredible.) to create a change on the company website, and they wonder if there is something we might be able to do to help. To make a long story short, 10 minutes later the change is made for this company while they are still on the phone and we have a new client. So what's my point? Pretty clear I think.
As our relationship with this new client is unfolding we have learned some of the reasons for their frustrations, as there had been many similar events with he former "website service" (and yes, I do use the term loosely here) company. When our new client began working with the former company, they really didn't know what to expect as it was new to them and they had no point of reference...and they didn't seek other points of reference as part of their vetting process. Since your online presence is an increasingly important part of your business plan (or should be) it's really important that you check out who you're going to work with and it doesn't have to be a difficult or long process. As I said recently in another post, it comes down to planning, and if you've have a plan, you will most likely avoid much of this aggravation.
You may already have a process in place for scrutinizing service companies that you will be working with, great. If not just a couple of suggestions regarding your choice of online services provider:
1- How promptly did they respond to your initial inquiry? Quickly, average, slow...remember, once is noteworthy, twice is a pattern, three times a sure thing.
2- Do they have testimonials on their site? Of course this is subject to manipulation but it is a good starting point. If there are names and companies, most likely the testimonial is real and verifiable.
3- How mature are they as a company? If you find a company that is over ten years old, this company must be satisfying thier clients because in the web services business this is a VERY old company.
With that as a starting point, I'll leave you with this thought. Our new client is very happy with the service they are now receiving although it is a little more expensive than the previous supplier. A little more expensive. The results of the small change and others that we (http://www.mediaforce.ca/) have made for them so far, have had a positive impact on their business by creating a better website visitor experiece, which has generated new business for them, business that they otherwise may not have had the opportunity to win. What are your decisions regarding your online presence costing your organization? Call me!
We're at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
Here's another real situation that happened recently (two weeks ago) at our firm Mediaforce. A business owner in western Canada calls us and is very frustrated. They have tried to contact their services provider repeatedly for some time (I believe the period was about three weeks, incredible.) to create a change on the company website, and they wonder if there is something we might be able to do to help. To make a long story short, 10 minutes later the change is made for this company while they are still on the phone and we have a new client. So what's my point? Pretty clear I think.
As our relationship with this new client is unfolding we have learned some of the reasons for their frustrations, as there had been many similar events with he former "website service" (and yes, I do use the term loosely here) company. When our new client began working with the former company, they really didn't know what to expect as it was new to them and they had no point of reference...and they didn't seek other points of reference as part of their vetting process. Since your online presence is an increasingly important part of your business plan (or should be) it's really important that you check out who you're going to work with and it doesn't have to be a difficult or long process. As I said recently in another post, it comes down to planning, and if you've have a plan, you will most likely avoid much of this aggravation.
You may already have a process in place for scrutinizing service companies that you will be working with, great. If not just a couple of suggestions regarding your choice of online services provider:
1- How promptly did they respond to your initial inquiry? Quickly, average, slow...remember, once is noteworthy, twice is a pattern, three times a sure thing.
2- Do they have testimonials on their site? Of course this is subject to manipulation but it is a good starting point. If there are names and companies, most likely the testimonial is real and verifiable.
3- How mature are they as a company? If you find a company that is over ten years old, this company must be satisfying thier clients because in the web services business this is a VERY old company.
With that as a starting point, I'll leave you with this thought. Our new client is very happy with the service they are now receiving although it is a little more expensive than the previous supplier. A little more expensive. The results of the small change and others that we (http://www.mediaforce.ca/) have made for them so far, have had a positive impact on their business by creating a better website visitor experiece, which has generated new business for them, business that they otherwise may not have had the opportunity to win. What are your decisions regarding your online presence costing your organization? Call me!
We're at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Hello, hello? Where are you?
I had an interesting experience the other day that I want to share with you because it happens far too often.
A colleague had heard about a great place to buy snow tires and went online to try and find them so he could get some information about the company etc. He couldn’t remember the company name, it was on the tip of his tongue and knew that as soon as he saw it he’d recognize it, so like most of us he ‘googled’. He googled for ‘snow tires ottawa’. (yes, here in Ottawa snow tires are a good idea, snow and bad drivers are not a good mix!) This seemed like a pretty logical search to him. You know what I’m about to tell you, they were nowhere to be found, not near the top, not in the middle, not on the first page, or the second or the third! Who cares, the likelihood of being visited if you’re not on the first page is very low. Here is information you might not have been expecting, on that first page in the organic results, there was only ONE direct listing to a company who sells tires, the rest were indirect links to directories and lists and…stuff. Do you want to be in the ‘stuff’ or do you want to be there in the top links?
Call me, email me, and tell me what people are searching for when they are trying to find you and we’ll get you to the top, that’s part of what website maintenance is all about. What does it cost your operation when potential site visitors can’t find you?
We live at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
A colleague had heard about a great place to buy snow tires and went online to try and find them so he could get some information about the company etc. He couldn’t remember the company name, it was on the tip of his tongue and knew that as soon as he saw it he’d recognize it, so like most of us he ‘googled’. He googled for ‘snow tires ottawa’. (yes, here in Ottawa snow tires are a good idea, snow and bad drivers are not a good mix!) This seemed like a pretty logical search to him. You know what I’m about to tell you, they were nowhere to be found, not near the top, not in the middle, not on the first page, or the second or the third! Who cares, the likelihood of being visited if you’re not on the first page is very low. Here is information you might not have been expecting, on that first page in the organic results, there was only ONE direct listing to a company who sells tires, the rest were indirect links to directories and lists and…stuff. Do you want to be in the ‘stuff’ or do you want to be there in the top links?
Call me, email me, and tell me what people are searching for when they are trying to find you and we’ll get you to the top, that’s part of what website maintenance is all about. What does it cost your operation when potential site visitors can’t find you?
We live at the edge of the future!
Andy Xhignesse
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Let's get started...
OK, first blog entry so I'd like to start at the beginning...a plan!
Too often I come across companies and organizations that really haven't thought about what they want their web presence to accomplish. You may have heard terms like web analytics, email marketing, CMS, CRM, traffic conversion, lift and many others, WHHHAAAAA!!! For many of us small and medium sized organizations, we are focused on our core activities and busy executing on our business plans to improve our desired outcomes and we can feel really confused about all this jargon we don't really understand. At the same time, there is this niggling feeling we have in the back of our minds that there is something there for us, we just don't know what that might be. This is where the plan comes in.
The first thing I'd like you to consider, whether you have a website or not is what you want your website to do for your company/organization. One way to think this through is to answer the question what do you want visitors to your site to accomplish? Is it only for information? If so to what end? Do you want them to contact you? If so what information would you like in preparation for your follow-up?
Let me finish this first entry with an example. Recently, I was in discussion with a business owner who's business is a very successful small operation and they didn't have a website. The owner felt that it was time for a website because they felt that it would add value to the business and there is the possibility that the business will be sold in 5-15 years, but they really didn't have a clear idea what the site should accomplish and so I asked a question based on my personal experience: "Do you spend any time talking with prospective customers about the same things over and over again and if so, how much time?" Bingo! The first purpose of the website was clear, implement an FAQ. Frequently Asked Questions are just that, questions that are asked over and over again and that someone in your organization spends valuable time answering instead of being focused on business deliverables. Don't misunderstand me, of course answering these questions is an important part of establishing your relationship with a prospective client, but if your real conversation starts after the FAQ is addressed, you have saved valuable time and resources and can re-allocate those same resources to other business activities. You've automated an important part of your business process, and you've just scratched the surface of what is possible. By the way, in the real example above, the owner estimates that, based on results to date, this will save them about two weeks on an annual basis, what's that worth to you?
We live at the edge of the future...
Andy Xhignesse
Too often I come across companies and organizations that really haven't thought about what they want their web presence to accomplish. You may have heard terms like web analytics, email marketing, CMS, CRM, traffic conversion, lift and many others, WHHHAAAAA!!! For many of us small and medium sized organizations, we are focused on our core activities and busy executing on our business plans to improve our desired outcomes and we can feel really confused about all this jargon we don't really understand. At the same time, there is this niggling feeling we have in the back of our minds that there is something there for us, we just don't know what that might be. This is where the plan comes in.
The first thing I'd like you to consider, whether you have a website or not is what you want your website to do for your company/organization. One way to think this through is to answer the question what do you want visitors to your site to accomplish? Is it only for information? If so to what end? Do you want them to contact you? If so what information would you like in preparation for your follow-up?
Let me finish this first entry with an example. Recently, I was in discussion with a business owner who's business is a very successful small operation and they didn't have a website. The owner felt that it was time for a website because they felt that it would add value to the business and there is the possibility that the business will be sold in 5-15 years, but they really didn't have a clear idea what the site should accomplish and so I asked a question based on my personal experience: "Do you spend any time talking with prospective customers about the same things over and over again and if so, how much time?" Bingo! The first purpose of the website was clear, implement an FAQ. Frequently Asked Questions are just that, questions that are asked over and over again and that someone in your organization spends valuable time answering instead of being focused on business deliverables. Don't misunderstand me, of course answering these questions is an important part of establishing your relationship with a prospective client, but if your real conversation starts after the FAQ is addressed, you have saved valuable time and resources and can re-allocate those same resources to other business activities. You've automated an important part of your business process, and you've just scratched the surface of what is possible. By the way, in the real example above, the owner estimates that, based on results to date, this will save them about two weeks on an annual basis, what's that worth to you?
We live at the edge of the future...
Andy Xhignesse
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
