Is your website working for you?

At a recent business lunch I met an accountant who had just set up his own business. Like most small business owners David was struggling with common start up issues. Marketing was one of his main concerns. As part of his strategy he had just invested what for him was a substantial amount of money to develop a company website. “They say you really need one these days,” was the reasoning he gave me for this decision.

What “They” said…
Well, I am not sure who the mysterious “they” are, but “they” seem to be talking to a lot of the business owners I meet as I have heard similar comments many times.

On the surface “they” seem to be right. A company website can be a vital part of a marketing strategy. However, it seemed to me that David had no idea why his website was important or how it could work for his business. Despite having allocated a large amount of his resources for a site, his reasoning for needing one was extremely vague.

What “They” didn’t tell you…
My advice to David was that having a website is important, but what he needed to realise was that just any website would not do. The simple fact is that a poorly thought out, unprofessional site will do nothing for your company. In fact, it could even harm your business and directly affect your profitability.

What to do?
"They” were essentially right in saying you need a website, what “they” haven’t told you is how to get one that works.

In order to make your next website work harder you will need to get inside the mind of your clients and ask the questions they will ask.

It may surprise you to learn that these questions will be the same, regardless of what you do. These questions are:

1. What can this company do for me?
   Many websites fail at answering this question and lose clients because of it. If your website is not Benefit-Driven, even if what you have is exactly what they want, your potential clients may not even realise it and leave your site before they can ask the next question which is-
   
2. How can I get what this company offers?
   This may seem self explanatory, yet many websites make it difficult for the customer to get what they want. An Action-Oriented website is essential.
   

In this article I will be discussing the importance of a benefit-driven website. In Part 2 I will be telling how to make your site action-oriented. Using these two methods is the first step in making your website work harder for your business.

First things first
A well designed and user-friendly site is essential. Your site will turn clients off immediately if it looks amateur, is difficult to use, or worse yet, doesn’t work properly. So make sure that you find the right person to develop your website.

As for content, whether you are developing and writing it yourself or handing over the task to a professional, it vital that the person in charge has a good understanding of your company and specifically the objectives of your website.

Why a Benefit-Driven website?
As I have mentioned before, having ‘just any’ website won’t do. A website that has a clear purpose is a website that will work hard. You need to set your site apart from the rest by focusing on benefits rather than products. The first step is getting inside your client’s heads.

Step One - Their Perspective
As with other forms of marketing, knowing exactly who your customers are and what they want is invaluable. The first step you should make in the website development process is getting to know your clients better. A little market research can go a very long way when it comes to putting together a more effective website.

If you have an existing website, an online survey can be a fantastic way to find out more about your online customers. What do they like about your current site? What don’t they like? How could your site be more helpful for them?

General questions about your clients can also be valuable. For example, “What is the biggest problem your company currently faces?” or similar questions can produce great insights.

If you don’t have an existing site, try a traditional survey. Contact your existing clients, or if you are a start up business, your potential clients. Find out what information they would want from your company’s website. Are there any features that would make their life easier?

For example, my friend David, the accountant, could learn a lot about what his client’s want by asking them questions about his existing site. He could ask questions about the sites’ current set up. (Is the navigation easy to understand? Is there any specific information you were unable to find?). He might also want to know what customers find valuable about the services he offers (What are the top three qualities you look for in an accountant?). Finally, he could also find out what additional services would be of value to his clients (Would you be interested in receiving an email newsletter on tax laws and other financial matters?).

Knowing what your clients want will enable you to modify your site to meet their needs. This will make the website more effective in converting visitors into customers, making your website more profitable for your business.

Step Two - Benefits, Benefits, Benefits!
So many websites make the mistake of being too inwardly focused. What I mean by this is they are focused on what they do, what products they have etc. They don't know that customers don’t really care about all that. Ultimately, the question the client is asking is not “what do you do?” but “what can you do for me?”

Simply put, your website shouldn't be about you, it should be about your clients. What are their needs? What do they want? How can you supply it for them?

Once you know what your clients need and you know that you can give it to them you need to learn how to communicate this through your website.

Many sites contain pages and pages of information on products and services, but little information on how these are of benefit to the customer. This is unfortunate because, as I have mentioned, “What can this company do for me?” is the first question your clients will ask.

Your website needs to demonstrate the value your products and services will offer your clients. For example, let’s use the case of David, the accountant again.

David’s main clients are small businesses in the industrial sector. These companies are very busy. They are too small to require an in-house accountant, however, the business owner and employees know little about bookkeeping or accounts. In general, they find the idea of dealing with this aspect of the business very daunting and even stressful. David, on the other hand, has been an accountant for 21 years. He is accomplished and well respected.

Therefore, two major benefits of David’s services would be - stress relief from not having to deal with the accounts in-house and peace of mind knowing that this accountant has excellent credentials.

An example of benefit-driven website text would then be:

Are your Accounts causing you Anxiety?
We know that keeping a handle on your accounts can be very difficult for small businesses. With so much on the go, when do you have time to sort it all out?

But it doesn't have to be this stressful.

Imagine being able to focus on what you do best while someone else deals with the numbers. Let us deal with your day to day bookkeeping and accounting. Our qualified professional accountants have over 20 years experience dealing with small business accounts. Our detailed monthly reports will help.

By focusing on the benefits to the customer David has suddenly made his services seem much more relevant. He has recognised their needs and told them how what he does can help them.

Step Three – Prove It
The copy I wrote for David in step two mentioned his years of experience. But, what is more, he is also accredited with several professional institutions. Make sure to include this type of information within the text on your website as it gives your company credibility. However, accreditations simply aren’t enough.

Once you have shown your customer the benefits of your product/service, you will need to prove that what you are offering will actually work.

Case studies and testimonials are essential components of a professional website. Consumers are smart and they won’t believe a claim without evidence. Make sure your site gives concrete examples about how you have achieved results for other, similar clients.

For example, David needs to prove he can reduce the stress levels of small business owners as his website has claimed. Adding a quote from a client who has benefited from David’s accounting services and has de-stressed as a result, will strengthen his credibility. The quote may sound something like this:

“Thank you for your continued help over the past 7 years. I have never been very good with the accounting side of things. It gave me so many headaches before I don’t know how I managed! Now your reports make me feel as if I am on top of our finances again.”

With his clients’ permission he could go one step further and develop a case study. Using a Problem, Solution, Results format he can demonstrate how his company was able to achieve results. For example:

The Problem for his client was that they did not have enough time or expertise to do the accounting.

The Solution for them was to have qualified experts take on the work for them. Here David should give specific examples of what solutions he offered this particular client.

Finally, the Result was that the problem was taken care of. The client now had more time to deal with other aspects of the business and was confident that the accounts were being handled by a qualified expert.

Putting it all together
Now that you are ready to start thinking in a benefit-driven way, you will need to take some time to organise your ideas on how to make this strategy work for you. So put aside some time to go over your market research questionnaires; jot down some of the benefits that your services offer and start pulling together material for case studies. Before long you will be well on your way to developing the content for a benefit-driven website that will work harder for your business.

In the next article we will have more information on working with your site development team to make a hard working Action-Oriented website.