How your business CAN win online

There are lots of websites out there that do little to
encourage their customers to stick around or buy their
products from them. In this article i'm going to show you a
typical example of where a small company has gone wrong with
its website.

Company X is a small family run roofing company. They
repair, install and insulate roofs. They spend a lot of time
and money advertising in the press and exhibiting at
consumer shows and events to attract new customers. They are
visibly committed to their customers and their needs. They
do it well and reap the rewards. They are succeeding
offline.

A potential customer sees them at a show they are exhibiting
at. She has a brief but informative conversation about her
roof with a company representative and takes away some
literature to read. She leaves with a highly positive
impression of the company and its employees. When she reads
the literature she notices that the company has a web site
and visits it. Their site looks professional. She looks
deeper into the site by clicking a few links.

It only takes a few clicks for her to realise that the
website is very thin on content. There's little text and the
text that is present is incredibly dull and uninformative.
The site looks exactly like the brochure she took away. In
fact, thats exactly what the web site is - the brochure
online.

The site has a few basic features: you can contact the
company, request a quote visit or get their phone number.
There's little else of any interest for potential customers.
So would she stay and buy from the company? Probably not. At
this point she either has to contact the company by phone to
get more information or go somewhere else. She's been
abandoned by a company that has clearly made little
provision for her visit. At best its a dull visit. She
doesnt think very highly of the company now.

What went wrong? Why did the company, which made such a
positive impression offline, make such a poor impression
online?

Has the company put much effort into the site? No.
Is the web site poorly thought out? Yes.
Is there anything on the site to keep the customer
there/interested? No.
Did the web site meet the customers needs? No.
Did the customer have an overall positive impression of the
company? No.
Did they lose the customers business? Very likely, yes.

What can the company do to turn their website around and
present a positive impression?

*Spend some time researching their customers needs and
re-focus their site around them.
*Visibly apply their offline customer dedication online.

Its critical that their customers perceive some value from
visiting their site. Otherwise why would they stay around
long enough to even read about their products let alone buy
them?

What if they arrived at the web site again? This time the
text on the site sounds more interesting and descriptive.
The site doesnt look identical to the brochure anymore.
There's some real case study examples of how previous
customers have benefitted and saved money by using the
companies products. How they transformed a cold roof space
into a bright and warm usable room, or how they saved a
fortune on their heating bill after some roof work was done
by the company, etc.

There's also a new quote tool that lets you put in your
dimensions and get an immediate quote for the work. There's
also a button to get an expert to call you, a tool for
seeing what any project work would look like when finished,
a reminder tool which tells you when you are due for a roof
inspection, ideas for improving your roof space, etc.

The list doesnt necessarily stop here. They can add as
many features, tools and resources as the customer wants.
Starting with the customers most important ones first. On
the new site the company also state their dedication to the
customer - they make guarantees to respond quickly to any
question or comment and help the customer in any way they
can at all times.

The customers experience is very different now. She will be
happy with her visit and service and have a positive
experience of the company. She'll feel the company is very
attentive to her needs. Ultimately she'll buy more from the
company.

The companies end result is different now too. They'll have
more happy and loyal customers and ultimately therefore more
recommendations and sales.

Are you making the same mistakes on your website? What can
you do to improve your customers website experience?

Useful tips:

Respond to your users needs.
Adopt a creative approach.
Create some interest around your products.
Make your customer dedication visible.

Good luck!