Let’s say that reading your town’s Sunday paper is one of your favorite things to do. Let’s also assume that it’s one of the best newspapers in the country, and reading it is truly a rewarding and enlightening experience. But, no matter how much you enjoy the paper, you throw it away or recycle it once you’ve read it. You don’t store the paper in the garage with the intent of reading it again six weeks later. Why? Because you’ve already seen it; it holds no more value for you.
The same truth applies to websites. Potential customers may visit your site once or twice while checking out your company initially, and they may find it to be a good-looking, well-organized, informative website. But will they come back six weeks later – or a year from now – to use it again? Whether visitors buy or not during that first visit, a primary goal of your online marketing should be to keep them coming back to your site again and again. After all, you want long-term relationships with your customers, right?
The best way to encourage repeat visitors is to give them valuable, up-to-date content. Why do so many people use news websites as a homepage? Because they know they’ll get the latest headlines and stories – updated around the clock – as soon as they jump online. If your site doesn’t change and grow and meet the needs of today’s visitors, it gives current and prospective customers no reason to return and, to them, it becomes as irrelevant as that six week-old newspaper.
The Internet Is Alive. Treat Your Website Like It Is Too.
Your website is not a brochure or business card. It’s not something you create then forget about. If you treat your website like a living, breathing member of your sales and marketing team, you’re more likely to be successful online.
But – I know – you don’t have the time to update your website, and – I know – you thought you already wrote everything there is to write about your company when you built the site. I’ve heard those comments many times over the last decade or so, and they’re just a couple of the reasons it’s often best to leave the creation and updating of your site to web and marketing pros. But, in case you can find the time to manage your own site, consider the following ideas to generate return traffic.
Blogs and Rewrites
One tool that can draw new and repeat visitors to your site is a good blog. While it requires a regular commitment of time and thought, a blog is virtually free. And if it’s written creatively, or provides consistent value to clients, or serves as an effective 2-way communication channel between your company and its customers, it can be very effective at bringing people back to your site.
Another thought: change how the copy on your site is presented. Regular rewrites can help your visitors see your products or services in different lights and, ideally, make it easier for them to recognize their value. Also, try rewriting the copy from a different angle. For example, focus on how your service eases a specific pain your audience has, rather than how inexpensive it is. Use another angle for the next rewrite. (Customer feedback can give you other angles that you may not have considered.)
You might also re-work the copy based on the current season and how your customers’ needs or their use of your product change. During the month of December, for instance, your customers’ interest in quick order fulfillment and 24-hour shipping may be at a peak. Make sure your website copy reflects your awareness of that need. Remember to update the headlines, sub-heads and images too so visitors can quickly see that changes have been made.
A Few More Ideas
Here are a few of the ways we’ve updated our website recently. You can apply some of these changes to your site as well.
1) We add new press releases, marketing tips and marketing articles several times per year. You, too, could build a library of tips and articles that could serve as a valuable resource for your customers.
2) A few weeks ago we added a new page about a service we never actively promoted before. Does your site provide information on everything you sell? Who knows, a customer’s purchase of what you consider a minor product or service may lead to a profitable, long-term relationship.
3) We add new client testimonials throughout our site now and then, and we’re preparing even more mini-case studies. The more you can show prospects how actual customers are benefiting from what you do, the easier the selling process becomes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_Greggory
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