MassNet Marketing Blog

Internet business owners realize the importance of proper search engine optimization (SEO.) They know that the best way to make sales from their website is to correctly optimize the website so that it can easily be found via the search engines.

Unfortunately, many small business owners fail to realize the importance of proper search engine optimization. If you fall into this category, you are painfully neglecting your most effective advertising resource  – which is of course; your website!

Money that is currently being delegated to expensive newspaper ads, radio ads, and/or television commercials could drastically be reduced simply by implementing an effective website marketing strategy that includes proper search engine optimization, solid design principles, and a well implemented marketing system.

Sound complicated?

It is!

Think about it;  if it was easy, everyone would be doing it – right?

The important thing to realize is that it is never too late to start doing things the right way!

If you are not seeing the kinds of results you expected from your website, or if you simply don’t have time to implement SEO, eye catching graphic designs, and results oriented marketing strategies, then by all means find someone to do it for you! Afterall, the web is not going to wait for your business to start doing things the right way…but, it will reward those who do.

Today, I want to discuss the various things that you need to check to ensure that your website is ready to receive traffic.

Think of this: If you were expecting company at your home, there are certain things you might do in advance. You would make sure your home was clean, that there was fresh soap and clean hand towels in the bathroom, and you might prepare some snacks, or even an entire meal.

Preparing your website follows the same concept. You want to make sure that things are neat, tidy and pleasing to the eye. Check to make sure that your navigation follows a logical sequence. Make sure everything is spelled correctly and update your website regularly with plenty of good content. (Don’t under estimate the importance of updating your website frequently – nobody wants to visit an ‘outdated bulletin board’…and search engines are notorious for rewarding frequently updated websites with higher rankings!)

If your site isn’t pleasing and welcoming, any traffic generation activities you do from this point on are wasted. Take the time, and put forth the effort to make your site is as good as possible – and learn to look at it from your visitor’s point of view.

After you do this, make sure that you are using all of the best Search Engine Optimization techniques, such as making sure that you have clean HTML code and that you’ve used your keywords effectively. If you’re not familiar with SEO strategies, find someone who is. (Kentucky small businesses can contact us for a free SEO consultation.)

Once your website is ready for company, only then are you ready to start inviting that company…

Your website is the hub of your online business; it is the virtual representation of your company whether your company exists physically or not. When you are doing business online, people cannot see you physically like how they could if they were dealing with an offline company. Hence, people do judge you by your covers. This is where a good design comes in.

Think of it this way; do you allow your salespersons to dress in shabby or casual clothes when they are dealing with your customers?  By making your staff dress appropriately, you are telling your customers that you care about quality. Realize that first impressions matter; online and off!

If your website is put together shabbily and looks like a 5 minute “quick fix”, you are literally shouting to your visitors that you are not professional and you do not care for quality.

However, if you have a totally professional looking website layout, you are giving your visitors the perception that you have given meticulous attention to every detail and you care about professionalism. You are organised, focused and you really mean business.

And, it’s not just your online marketing design that matters – you should also have anything related to your company well designed. From business cards to letterheads to promotional brochures, every little bit matters.

All of these items become the face of your business. It matters to your customers, so make sure it matters to you. Spend the appropriate amount of time and/or money to make sure your first impression is a favorable one.