Our first article of this series discussed the challenges a local small business faces when dealing with internet marketing. We suggest you check out that article before this one.
Hopefully you now realize that juggling many hats may have left you open leaving money on the table. We also hope that you have now established your brand. We will now continue and use this information to develop a full internet marketing strategy.
Review the website content and language
Although a lot of small businesses have websites, it is necessary for owners to take a step back and review the website through the eyes of a consumer. (If you don’t even have a website, we of course can help with this as well.) We often find that owners assume that website visitors have a certain level of knowledge about the company or their product, or that they understand their industries jargon. This of course is not always the case. We often complete the following checklist with clients to determine if their website content matches their brand and goals.
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Does the website have information my target audience needs?
Just like having a website designed with proper call to actions, a website without information the audience is looking for is useless. On the most basic of level your website should include what your company does, in-depth information on the service or product that you offer, prices for those offerings, and contact information.
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Am I using the language my target audience would use?
As local business owners you often get so wrapped up in your industry that you forget others, specifically customers, don’t necessarily use the same terms. By using terms that are different from those you target, your organic SEO traffic will suffer, and your website won’t be nearly as effective. When you complete the branding exercise, take note of the terms they use. These are the terms and areas that should be highlighted within your website.
Remember that your brand position is at the heart of this language and content. You want to talk about your core competencies in a language that’s accessible, but through the lens of what makes you different. The content and language need to be there for your audience, but use the defining aspects of your brand to spice it up. At Build Your Online we offer services during our web design/redesign phase to produce content for your target audiences.
We will continue next week with the third and final portion of our internet marketing checklist that we preform on new clients. Sign up below so you don’t miss it!