Translated from our Japanese archive. Dates, product names and examples reflect the original article; this is not an updated product or service recommendation.
Following the previous post, I would like to look at a few points in more detail.
A way to think about your website
Everyone has a different view of websites. I think of a website as a salesperson working online.
Imagine that this salesperson came to your office or home. What if they:
- Looked untidy?
- Knew very little?
- Had a limited network?
- Could not explain what they wanted to say?
- Never turned up at all?
Would you buy from that person? I would not. These points apply equally well to a website.
How to improve
- Appearance: improve the design.
- Knowledge: provide useful information.
- A limited network: use social media.
- An unclear message: improve navigation and usability.
- Not turning up: improve SEO.
If any of these apply to your site, take a closer look. Growing sales means earning confidence in your trustworthiness, price and quality.
Developing your online salesperson
As in the real world, developing an effective salesperson takes time and money.
I often hear of businesses leaving everything to their web production company. Professionals can do excellent work on appearance and functionality, but ongoing maintenance and marketing can involve substantial additional costs.
Ultimately, you are the one who develops the website into an effective salesperson. There are countless possible answers to what works and how to attract visitors. Discuss a clear objective and the methods for reaching it.
From outbound to inbound marketing
You may have spent a great deal on advertising, but how effective has it been? Attracting a large audience means little if few visitors buy.
This article describes attracting customers through advertising as outbound marketing, and steadily improving an existing website to attract visitors as inbound marketing. I believe inbound marketing will become increasingly effective. Think carefully about what information is genuinely useful to your visitors and publish it on your site.
