Recoveries don’t always go in a straight line, but the general trend in retailing is up. Are there still concerns? You bet there are, but profit margins are stronger than they were a year ago, and retailers in general (independents, department stores and discounters) have raised their earnings forecasts. Consumers are spending, and even though the curve is up and down, it’s definitely showing an upward trend.
I believe now is a good time to ask yourself the question: “Is my Web site working to its full potential? The holiday shopping season will be here in the blink of an eye and now is the right time to assess your Web site (if you don’t have one now is a good time to consider one). I’m going to ask you some questions to help you with the process.
1. What are your Web site marketing objectives?
- Keep in touch with customers
- Promotion and offers
- Registration for events
- Get customers to your store
- Acquire new customers
- Online sales/or lead generation
2. How effective would you say your Web site marketing efforts are in achieving your objectives?
3. How frequently do you update your Web site content?
4. What metrics do you use to evaluate your Web site performance?
- Visitors
- Unique visitors
- Abandons
- Search engine ranking
- Leads
- Sales
- Return on investment
- Not able to measure
5. What challenges do you face with managing your Web site?
- Updating content
- Creating new content
- Measuring results
- Knowing what to measure
- Making it show up in the search engines
How did you answer? Where can you go to obtain the helpful tools and services you need to improve your Web site like hosting and design services, domain registration, and email marketing services? You can outsource these services, or you can become a guerrilla marketer and use the Internet to find the information you need. Simply start with Google and test a few key words like: cookware, gourmet cooking, pots and pans, culinary tools, marketing, Internet marketing plan, email marketing, marketing white papers, marketing articles, marketing campaigns, retail marketing, marketing tools, developing Web copy, successful marketing, promoting your Web site, managing your Web site.
I’m going to give you a head start and list the basics:
Choose the right domain name. Make it something easy to remember, and it should tell the visitor something about your company.
Web site objectives. Decide what you want to achieve, then design your site to be: * An online brochure * A store front to sell your products * A showcase for your expertise * An interactive resource for customers to share information.
Must-Haves. Every Web site must include the following: * Contact information: phone numbers, e-mail addresses, physical location. * In-depth information on your products, including prices. * FAQ Frequently Asked Questions and answers to them. * Simple e-commerce shopping. * Some background information about the business. * Testimonials * Press releases and new product enhancements. * Employment opportunities.
Marketing your Web Site. Set specific goals and objectives, like: * Increase newsletter subscribers by 10 percent each quarter. * Generate $25,000 in online sales by a set date. * Increase the number of unique visitors per day by 100 by a set date.
Newsletter Marketing. A newsletter is a very effective way to keep in touch with prospects and customers. Offering incentives such as “how-to” guides, free downloads, or discount coupons can encourage subscriptions.
Search Engine Optimization. Search engines have penetrated our everyday lives so much that Google is now a verb. People plus words and phrases into the search engine and receive a list of Web sites that use these words. The objective is to optimize your Web site so that it shows higher on the list for key words and phrases specific to your business. You could use a SEO (search engine optimization) expert to help you. When designing your Web site: * Identify key word phrases (KWP). Use phrases that you think people will plug into search engines to find companies like yours. * Write great titles for your Web pages that include KWPs. Submit your Web site to search engines like: * Google.com/addurl/ * searh.yahoo.com/info/submit.html
Develop your own blog. A blog is a simple website you create to discuss topics and issues relevant to your business. It’s a great tool to communicate with people on the move because it can be updated online anytime and anywhere. Blogs can also be interactive. Not only are you posting thoughts, but readers can leave comments with their own views and opinions. The value of blogs? You can communicate with customers globally, get their feedback and learn about their concerns, build buzz around your business, position yourself as an expert, and search engine optimize blog entries to attract traffic.
Check out these sources:
www.wordpress.com, or www.businessblogbasics.com
Other marketing tools: * Use Facebook, Linkedln, and MySpace to develop your own online community. Regularly visit other online forums to communicate with other people.
Press releases and articles. Send press releases regularly to www.prweb.com Include a link to your site in the release and post the release on your own site. Write articles and submit them to online article directories, like www.articlesonlinedirectory.com Post these on your site. List your products on shopping comparison sites: www.froogle.com, www.bizrate.com
Tips to keep people clicking: Keep updating your site, ask your customers what they think of your site, keep improving your site, use a professional to design your site, run a contest to draw traffic, ask visitors to bookmark your site, develop special offers you can send to your database.
You’ll soon discover how fast, easy and affordable getting your business online can be, and always remember to monitor your site. Promoting your site is the best Christmas gift you can give yourself.
Marshall Marcovitz is the founder and former CEO of the CHEF’S CATALOG, a leading Internet shopping site. Currently, he is a lecturer, a university professor and a marketing consultant. He may be contacted at mmmellow9@yahoo.com.