ENGAGE VISITORS AND GET RESPONSE

We work with you to create websites and run web campaigns. This may be to sell a product, test a concept, gauge satisfaction, promote a cause, build a reputation or conduct research.

Web and mobile marketing that improves your odds. For startups, small business and enterprises.

Getting started: Don't try to design the site before you have figured out the actions you want from visitors. Who do you want to attract, what are they looking for and how can you engage them? Only when aims and targets are set should structure and creative be considered.

1
Why are you creating the site? Is it, for example, to generate sales leads, or sell products direct or build your corporate or personal image? What's of primary importance?


2
Who are the target visitors? What is their profile (demographic, job function), how many of them are there, where are they located and how will you attract them?

3
When they arrive, how will you quickly gain their attention and encourage them to stay? How will you engage them?


4
What exactly do you want these visitors to do? Not just the obvious 'buy' or 'contact us'; what are the other (secondary or proxy) indicators of interest?

5
Who else (competitors & others) is targeting these people? What are they doing well? What is missing and how can you exploit the gaps?


6
What are the words and phrases (keywords) that reflect the needs of your prospects and how can you attract traffic from searches and social networks?

7
What is the best structure for the site? Which components are essential, which are desirable and what is optional?


Ready to consider the 3 P's? (Planning, Process and Pitfalls). It's time to start your plan

Improving your Website: Do you have an online presence, or just an online brochure? Organisations that punch above their weight have websites that are living, interactive and evolving; that interface with the current and future 'internet of things', through cellphones and tablets and via social networks.

1
Start with the ROI: By considering the desired returns from the outset, your plan can be based upon quantified benchmarks such as real improvements in marketing.


2
Serve the target audience(s): If people like your website, Google will too. Search engines give ranking and thus visibility to sites that provide relevant and timely information.

3
You have milliseconds to engage people: We favour sites that get to the point quickly. Long form text is out; Headline, synopsis and drill down is in.


4
Call for action: There is little point in creating a site that does not yield an action. What you want visitors to do has to be built into the fabric of the site, and not be an afterthought.

5
No website is an island: Your fabulous creation is of no value unless it seamlessly connects to the social networks where people hang out. Referral is perhaps the single biggest source of new business.


6
Keep content fresh: Not only will being 'stale' put off visitors, it will mean that the site will rank lower in search engines.

7
The internet is everywhere: Dynamic, content-rich websites are syndicating content to serve the tiniest of niches, on all manner of devices, worldwide.


Ready to consider the 3 P's? (Planning, Process and Pitfalls). It's time to start your plan

Planning to succeed: "Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning", said Thomas Edison. Our philosophy exactly. A designer will provide elegant design. A code geek will serve up cool functions. But will you get a Return on Investment?






"A goal without a plan is just a wish"
- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Content and engagement:As with all marketing, a site has to meet the user's wants and aspirations and provide a beneficial experience. Getting the visitor to act Is the aim, and timely and relevant video, audio and text content is the means of doing this.

1
Speak only to your target: If you try to be all things to all people you will be of little interest to anyone; be the best in your niche. Use plain English, avoid jargon and tell a story.


2
No keywords no traffic: Don't stray from your keyword theme or you will not rank on Google. Think of keywords as expressions of interests, in short phrases.

3
Be where your prospects hang out: Your carefully crafted blog is of no value unless it is read and passed on. Not all social networks are equally valuable; be selective.


4
Headline, synopsis, drill-down: Avoid long form copy since it rarely gets read. Invest time in the summary copy that will entice people to want to read more or to take action.

5
Ask for the action: Limit your content to the minimum required to secure the desired action. Don't pad your content with self-serving sales statements.


6
Write, rewrite and re-purpose: Spin your copy into new articles, posts and tweets. Create white papers and e-books from your best work and use this to drive conversions.

7
Optimise the media mix: Have the mix of text, video, images and audio that best conveys your message. Have a plan to get this content viewed before you create it.


Design: Will your website win a design award or win you customers? "Creative without strategy is art", said Jef I. Richards. Plan to convert visits to actions. Creative must support this, not compete with it.

1
No templates: The structure of the site should be built around the keyword theme that reflects the needs of your prospects: what they want to hear, not what you want to say.


2
Lean content: Your content should be the minimum needed to get an action. Visitors will not wade through copy to discover what you want them to do.

3
Guide visitors to act: It should be implicit what you want visitors to do. If you offer too many choices, they may do nothing. Make it easy and painless for them to act.


4
Don't overdo the decoration: What works good is better than what looks good. The decoration (creative) should support your proposition and not overwhelm it.

5
Be better, not necessarily different: "It’s very easy to be different, but very difficult to be better", said Jonathan Ive. Make your site more relevant, more useful and easier to use.


6
Be part of the conversation: Integrate with social networks in thoughtful ways. Don't send visitors away to your facebook page shortly after they arrive.

7
Watch page load times: Use video and image decoration sparingly. You know how this plays out: You try to visit a site; the page load seems like an eternity; you give up.


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Thursday
Jul032014

Web sites in the nude. We recommend it.

Often people come to us with a folder of designs and content. They've been to a graphic designer and they have a 'design'.

As we've often said, if the first thing a web designer offers you is a creative treatment then you have a problem.

In a crowded market (and none are more crowded than the internet) it's essential to develop your website in a 'strategic' way. I loathe clichés too, but in this case it's true. Research first, then strategy followed by structure and THEN (and only then) creative. Also remember that 'creative' is not about award winning graphics. It's about engaging the audience and getting them to act.

If as much time was spent on Call For Action as is spent on needless moving graphics then more websites would yield a ROI.

Websites stripped bare

A great way to progress in a 'strategic' way is to create a wireframe of the site. This is the site 'in the nude' with no creative treatment in place.

You can start this in an analogue way, with a pen and paper.

Time should be spent refining the user experience and figuring out the Call For Action points (what you want visitors to do) before the emotional and subjective part of the process has the project skewing off strategy.

By following this process, the value of the user experience is greatly enhanced, and the relative worthlessness of 'wow factor' graphics and features is easily demonstrated.

Website wireframe defined

Wikipedia

A website wireframe (also "web wire frame", "web wireframe", "web wireframing") is a basic visual guide used in web design to suggest the layout of fundamental elements in the interface. Because of this they are often completed before any artwork is developed. When completed correctly they will provide a visual reference upon which to structure each page. Wireframes also allow for the development of variations of a layout to maintain design consistency throughout the site. This is an important part of the initial development stage because it creates user expectations and helps to develop an awareness of and familiarity with the site.

DateThu, July 3, 2014 at 04:17PM | AuthorEditor
in
Web and mobile marketing that improves your odds. For startups, small business and enterprises.

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