There is a common misconception out there that states that the most important part of a website is to make sure a website “looks nice” to the viewer. When some of our clients first come to us they want to talk all about design and we always make sure we make it very clear that a “A pretty website is nice to have but what is the point of a pretty website if no one is going to see it. What this means is that when we talk to our clients about building a website we work with them to develop a “full circle” plan that will achieve the results they want.
When it comes to getting a site found, you need to have a marketing plan in place. It can be an online plan, an offline plan or a combination of the two. Here is a brief description of the options and few tips for each:
Offline: Uses traditional forms of advertising and word of mouth
- Choose a simple and/or familiar domain name
- Use a “.com” if possible (it is the most common)
- Make your website the focal point of your marketing efforts – Have all brochures, flyers, etc. point people to the website)
Online:
- Uses all or a combination of SEO (search engine optimization), PPC (pay-per-click) and social networking
SEO: Search Engine Optimization
- Uses video, article writing, keyword linking and press releases to drive your site up the page rankings in the search engines – the higher the ranking the more traffic you will get.
PPC: Pay-Per-Click
- This is paid advertising online and uses keywords, which allows you to find your niche market online
Social Networking:
- Building a contact list through media sites like youtube.com, facebook.com, twitter.com and digg.com
It is vitally important to have a complete plan to make sure your website gets seen so that you can get the results you need from your website. We can ensure that you get the website you want AND make sure it gets found. Sign-up for a FREE consultation at www.vinemultimedia.com.
Until next time – HAPPY WEB DESIGNING AND MARKETING!!!!!!