Main Course
Ingredients:
1 x website (fresh not frozen, and not past its sell-by date)
1 x 12-month strategy plan
1 x in-house supporter
1 x external specialist
Instructions:
You will need to start with an in-house supporter who believes that online marketing is here to stay and that the company needs to be available online.
Find a good, no, find a great external specialist to put your ideas and objectives in to a (at the very least) 12-month strategy plan. Break this down in to quarters (not the American kind) and produce a three-monthly action and marketing plan.
You are now ready to review your website. Is it FRESH enough?
- Is it mobile friendly? (More than 60% of searches online are done on a smartphone!)
- Does it load in under three seconds? (People today just can’t wait; you know this!)
- Does the look and feel correspond with your current brand and service? (No excuse for it to be out-dated or just plain ugly)
- Does it work? (Impressive enough to convert prospects into buyers?)
OK, let’s say your website meets the straightforward key elements above, now you need to convert your visitors or prospects into buying customers, either today or in the future. Did you know around 60% of your website visitors will buy the same or similar products or service in the next 12 months? It may as well be from you!
Add more SALES today
To convert your visitors into buyers, you need good, clear calls to action: Call me or Email me or Buy now.
Seems simple, but you also need effective e-commerce processes that include things like “abandoned cart”, or “you want this how, about this as well?” and a very, very simple purchase process made easy. A range of payment options, such as PayPal, is a must, particularly if you are selling to an overseas market.
What about those who are just BROWSING (not ready to buy today)?
For those visitors who don’t buy today, then you must at least capture their details so you can slowly build a trusting relationship with them. Therefore when they are ready to buy you’ll hopefully be their first choice – because they’ll remember you and have confidence in you.
How to CONVERT these prospects by using a lead magnet and email nurture series
What is a lead magnet and prospect nurture process?
Offer something irresistible that they would be crazy to refuse, in return for only their first name and e-mail address. Then send the lead magnet to them.
Once they receive their lead magnet (whitepaper, Top 10 tips, five questions we hate to be asked) then you can set an automated e-mail series so no-one has to remember to send the follow up e-mails.
Generally around four e-mails with a tone of GIVE, GIVE, GIVE, GET means at the end of the series you’ve provided such useful stuff that when you ask a closing question they are happy to
provide key information, and you know where they are at and what you should do next to help them.
When you have completed your main course, it’s time to look at the dessert trolley.
DESSERT OPTIONS
We suggest a strong social media strategy and a team to help boost your brand and sales.
Paid advertising is not for the faint hearted! It’s crucial to know what you are doing in order to not waste money on clicks by people who were never going to buy from you.
Strategy, targeting, implementation and reporting.
In summary:
If you really believe the e-mail from the person in Turkbladistan who can build you a website (that works) for $500 or can get you on page one of Google tomorrow, then perhaps you need to do a bit more online research before making that decision.
On the other hand, if you are serious about getting more out of your online marketing, contact a respected, local company offering transparency and accountability.
