Website Makeovers: Three Things
Buyers Want On Your Website
RainToday.com, July 2009
By Vickie K. Sullivan
Recessions beget reinvention. And reinvention begets a boom
in new and improved websites. But website overhauls shouldn't
be taken lightly. They take time and money -- in most cases,
more than you initially expect. Before you leap into that
huge investment, stop and look at your website plans from
the buyers' perspective. What are they looking for and what
makes them reach out and contact you? What needs to be on
the site so that you can get more qualified leads? Before
deciding on the bells and whistles, compare your changes to
what buyers want on your site.
Generally speaking, buyers are on the Internet because they
are looking for something. There is an agenda; no one has
time to explore aimlessly. While different buyers want different
things, here are three things all prospects want to find on
our websites.
Hold up a mirror
The first thing buyers look for on a website: themselves.
Anyone with a healthy self-esteem believes he is unique. It's
natural for help from those who "get" us. If your
buyers are small businesses, they will skip over a site that
focuses on the Fortune 500. If your buyers are affluent retirees,
they will leave any site that looks like a teenager designed
it. They look for sites that speak directly to them about
their situation and their goals. It's a safety factor. The
last thing anyone wants is to cram a square peg into a round
hole.
Because everything moves faster on the Internet, buyers'
decisions are made in a nanosecond, without a lot of thinking.
The determining factors: direct language and descriptions
of their world.
There are three ways your website can hold up a mirror:
- Name your buyers. I love the "we
specialize" language. Example: "we specialize
in mid-sized companies who need the best talent to keep
growing." It's clear; it's to the point.
- Describe their goals or problems. Ever
see a headline on a home page that is a series of questions?
That's an effective strategy borrowed from direct sales.
Those questions help the visitor say to themselves, "Hey!
That's exactly where I am right now."
- Seduce with an idealized future. Capture
their imagination with a solution. Everyone wants a magic
bullet. Authors do this best. One of my favorites: Malcolm
Gladwell's The Tipping Point. Who doesn't want
their idea to catch fire?
Additionally, you can't identify with the buyer only once.
You must do it over and over again. Small things reinforce
the recognition. List speeches you give in their industry
to show that you're popular with their community. Choose your
white paper/article topics carefully. Relevance is everything.
You vs. Them: How Do You Compare?
Do you want to pay for advice that you already know? No.
When hiring professional service firms, decision makers look
for someone who knows more than them. They want advice or
products from someone who knows something they don't. When
they go to your website they compare themselves to you and
look for things that show that your area of expertise is one
or two levels ahead of them.
If buyers perceive you as their peer in your game, they believe
they know just as much as you. If they perceive you as a solution
for "beginners" (and they are "advanced"),
then the assumption is that your solution is too basic. It
gets worse: if you are too advanced for them, then the reaction
becomes, "Gee, I don't know if I'm ready for this. I'll
work with you later."
To make this comparison, buyers look for two things on your
site: prominence and unique content. Website design shows
prominence, as does media coverage and speech calendars. All
the cool projects you participate in and any awards are great
prominence-builders. As for content, the focus is narrow,
the thinking is intelligent and the language is simple. My
motto: go an inch wide and a mile deep. Your content proves
to buyers that you bring something to the party but are also
easy to understand and work with. The balance is between being
knowledgeable and providing value.
Clear and Easy Navigation
Once you've proven yourself as a worthy consideration, buyers
then look for how you can help them. They want to check out
what you offer and figure out the best way to work with you.
To save time, they want to have an idea in mind before contacting
you. If they see an option that's "just perfect,"
you have a much warmer prospect than a general inquiry.
When buyers are interested, they use the next benchmark to
determine this clarity: how easily can they find your services?
No one wants to spend a lot of time hunting on your site.
That's why navigation is so important. Have a services button
on every page and a link to the services section of your website
in every PDF file. You also want to be careful not to make
your service section too big. Have no more than four or five
items in your drop-down menu. When it comes to web surfing,
everyone has the attention span of a gnat. If it's more than
two clicks away, visitors will give up and move on.
Another thing buyers love to do in the spirit of clarity:
self select. Again, they are looking for a mirror. They want
to find that elusive "just perfect" option. That's
why I have two sections on all my service descriptions. The
first is titled, "this option is perfect for you if..."
In it I list the challenges this project solves. The next
section goes to the dark side: I list all the scenarios my
option won't fix. I then link those problems to my other products
and services. Result: over 90% of my prospects are not only
excited about working with me, but they want to explore something
specific. Even if we figure out they need something different,
their enthusiasm makes our conversations easier.
Once buyers determine they are interested in your services,
they want to know what to do next. That's why every page needs
a call to action -- one of those boxes that say "if you're
interested, do this now." Be sure to customize those
buttons -- nothing looks more canned than the standard "call
us now" link. Put your "contact us" button
on every page. It sounds simple, but you'd be surprised how
many times I've had to hunt for an email to ask a question
before placing my order. Again, buyers not only need clarity
on what to do next but also easy access to information.
Reach Out And Connect
You don't sell widgets; you sell solutions. You services
have price tags beyond the impulse purchases. Therefore, your
websites are built to do one thing: get buyers to reach out
and connect with you. So the next time you gear up for a website
makeover, ask yourself this: "How does this change what
I'm about to invest in to help my buyers see themselves, see
my unique talents, and determine what works for them?"
Use these three benchmarks as your north star, and your new
website will be worth all the effort you put into it.
Since 1987, Vickie K. Sullivan, President of Sullivan Speaker
Services, has generated millions of dollars in speaking fees,
book advances and ancillary income for her clients. Sign up
for her free market intelligence at http://www.SullivanSpeaker.com
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