If You Build It They Will Come..

Filed Under: All Posts, Guest Bloggers on July 2, 2010

Written by GROW Member Jennifer Lundgren of Perfect 11 Solutions. Are you a GROW member who wants to write a guest blog? E-mail us at info@grownebraska.org.

Well not exactly. Yes, building a web site is a great step forward in your marketing strategy, and in this age of technology a must. Most customers begin their journey toward purchase with online research. Yet much like opening a new store or office does not guarantee customers, launching a new web site does not ensure customers will find it. With new web sites entering the online environment daily, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle and never be discovered by potential customers.

Ok, so what’s the solution you ask? I have invested in the creation of my new web site and I don’t want it to sit in cyberspace lonely and unvisited—it’s beautifully designed, pages unseen. Answer—the creation of your ‘Online Strategy’, which is essentially the portion of your marketing plan focused on getting visitors to your site and getting them to take whatever action your site is requesting of them. For example, sign-up for more information, buy my product or request a quote. This strategy is the plan you will use to tie all your online properties together and ensure they work seamlessly, ultimately driving traffic to your web site.

Your online strategy is the marriage of:

• Social media (Facebook, Twitter and other networking sites)
• Search Engine Optimization—SEO (the doors and pathways you are creating to organically lead search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing to your site)
• Paid Search Advertising—PPC (paid advertising done online including pay-per-click and the use of banner/display advertisements)
• In-site conversion (the success you see with various calls-to-action throughout your website, i.e. Buy Now, Sign-Up, etc.)
• Offline marketing and advertising—be sure to include your web site address in all your materials

It is the effective creation and ongoing finessing of this online strategy that ultimately determines when and if customers and potential customers will find your web site.

In building and launching your new web site, or even in the redesign or enhancement stage of your web site, be sure to ask your web partner about creating your online strategy and be aware of the decisions you make throughout the process. Everything should be working together—your web site functioning as the hub of activity that is generated through the use of all other online and offline activities. “If you build it” does not guarantee they will come.

Perfect 11 Solutions, Inc. is a full service marketing agency, specializing in building and creating websites and online strategies for customers throughout the world. Contact us today, www.whystopat10.com, for more information regarding how we can help your company grow. In the business of creating customers, why stop at 10?