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Do you know what is the #1 requested headline I am asked to add to a website’s home page? I get this request so often that I am compelled to write this article in hopes to share just how critical that main headline is.

It could make or break the effectiveness of your website.

Firstly, it’s important to keep in mind that your website is your primary marketing piece, bar none. Even if you rarely update it (that will be another “must write” article coming up!) it’s tirelessly working on your behalf by telling everyone that visits it, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all about your business. None stop.

Why is this so important? Many times, it’s the first impression your potential clients will get of you and your business. This cannot be taken lightly in this highly competitive world we live in. Even if you believe your website is quite useless and you hardly pay any attention to it (oh, yet another “must write” article!), which, I promise you, it is far from useless.

When a prospect visits your website, their primary objective is to find out if you can solve their problem. If they didn’t have a problem to solve, they wouldn’t be looking for you. Period. Their problem could be something like needing to sell their home fast, or they need to find peace in their relationship, or perhaps they are looking for a solution to make them healthy again.

Whatever that problem is, they need to know right off the bat if you will be the one to solve it for them.

You have literally 3 seconds to transmit this solution and the only way it is going to happen is through that main headline on your website.

Now I ask you, is the following headline (the most requested one I’m asked to add to a website) going to convince anyone that their problem will be solved?

“Welcome to my website”

Nope.

At best, it’s going to give them the impression you’re a friendly person; how lovely. At worst, it’s going to tell them that you’re only interested in what you have to say, that your website is going to be all about you. Making their big question, “What’s in it for me?” remain a mystery.

So guess what happens? Neither scenario is going to grab their attention enough to make them go any further past that opening statement.

You can have the prettiest photos and the most well-written, compelling copy underneath that headline, but the opportunity is lost. Faster than you can say “back button,” they have moved on, resuming their search to find someone that will solve their problem.

I encourage you to take a look at your website and ask yourself if your primary home page headline is grabbing enough attention to make your prospective clients read further. Ask yourself if it is addressing their problem, telling them that you know exactly what they are going through?

If you are one of those, “Welcome to my Website” headline writers, I encourage you to take a critical look at how effective it is being and really give some thought to what problems you are solving for your clients. Write a list and from there decide what is the biggest / most common problem you come across. From there, compose a compelling headline that will get your prospective clients to read more to convince them that you are their ideal choice.

If this feels like a daunting task, some of your best spent money would be on a professional copywriter to help you with this. The success of your business could truly depend on it.

Share your comments below about website headlines – what has worked for you and how do you measure its effectiveness?

To your eMarketing success,
Sue

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Ah spring! The bounty of colours that erupt from the grey doldrums of winter that brings everything back to life again!

Spring is a time for rejuvenation and your business marketing efforts are perfect for revitalization. It’s time now to put more spring into your marketing and get more clients!

Here are five things you can start on today to get you started:

1)      Pick up the phone. Just as spring is a time of new beginnings for you, the same principle applies for your potential clients. People are in a hopeful, happy mood and are more amiable to making decisions, developing plans and moving forward. Pick up the phone and call your leads, past clients and those you met through your networking activities and introduce yourself, or remind them that you’re still around, and are here to help them.

2)      Conduct a promotion. Create a contest or some sort of promotion that’s tied in with Spring. If you’re in the cleaning or organizing industry, this is tailor made for you! However,  avoid discounting your services – instead, add in more of what you’ll give or do to the regular price. Discounting devalues your product or service but adding more value to an existing package is a win-win scenario for both of you!

3)      Spruce up your website.  If you haven’t updated your website in the past month or so, it’s time to give it a freshen-up. Just like you wouldn’t be reading the Friday newspaper to find out what happened on Monday, your prospects also don’t want to see old news on your website. Spruce it up to bring back some life to it! Here are some suggestions:

1. Freshen up the  copy (text and images), especially on the home page, in a way that your prospects will find enticing.  Copy is King in the on-line world so don’t neglect this critical component of your website. If your copy isn’t well written, it’s not going to elicit much  trust from your potential clients nor compel them into action so be sure it’s written in a way that achieves your website goals.
2. Give it an updated look. If your site was created more than 3 years ago, it’s time to bring it up to date. An old and tired looking website is not going to attract your ideal client.  The more enticing your site looks to your prospects, the more effective it will be at drawing them in and hiring you.
3. Add a blog (or don’t forget about your blog!) A blog is a perfect way to keep your website copy fresh and new. Post an article once a week and not only will your prospects see that you are actively participating in your business (and seeing how much you know) but the search engines will reward you by bringing you up higher in the search engine rankings.
4. Add an eNewsletter (or don’t forget about your eNewsletter!) A perfect way to keep in touch with your tribe (your eNewsletter subscribers) is to write to them at least once a month. This is a critical component to your marketing efforts and you will get results from it. It doesn’t have to be elabourate like mine, but it’s essential for you to showcase your knowledge and skill by writing short articles that will inspire, inform and educate your followers.

   Hint: Integrate this with your blog to cut down on writing so many articles!) By the way, if you’re having trouble getting people to sign up for your existing eNewsletter, you might want to consider hiring Dan to do some SEO for you – he’s brilliant at driving targeted traffic to your website!

5. Add Social Media features to your site. If you’re participating in any of the social media channels, then it’s important you have those buttons and links on your website so you can send people to your accounts to follow you. Additionally, you can add social media sharing features to your site, especially your blog, so people can share your articles to their followers.

4)      Get active in Social Media.  There’s no avoiding it, social media is becoming more and more prominent, and expected, in today’s marketing efforts.  Incredibly,  I am hearing from some clients that they are not being considered for hire due to having a lack of followers on Facebook! Whether right or wrong, potential clients could judge you on your lack of participation in this arena so it’s worth taking a look at.  I know for some, it seems like a waste of time and honestly, I felt that way for a long time too. In the past year I’ve been doing more studying and working at social media and have found there are some key strategies that need to be in play in order for your efforts to not go to waste.

For those who are brand new to Facebook or did get started and didn’t do anything with it, check out my beginner’s guide to Facebook here. For those who are already active but are not seeing any kind of results yet, I suggest participating in the upcoming online Social Media Summit where you will learn tons from many top social media experts.

5)      Get out and network.  No amount of online efforts will ever replace the benefits of in-person networking. The key is to find the right networking events to participate in and there, you will gain a huge boost in building relationships and credibility. One of my mentoring clients, Janice Porter (Janice@janiceporter.com)  is a Networking master and I highly recommend you hire her as your personal mentor for networking – she will help prevent you from wasting your time and will teach you how to network effectively in order to build your client base .

If the above list seems overwhelming to you or you don’t know where, or how, to begin. One of my mentoring packages might be a good fit for you where I can walk you through each of these marketing channels and guide you to having a successful business this spring!

Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 10 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Contact Susan today for a free 30 minute consultation on helping you build your website presence to be the effective marketing tool is can be. susan@evisionmedia.ca or visit www.evisionmedia.ca.

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Have you ever wondered, “now that I’ve got a website, what do I do?”

Is having a website stressing you out because it isn’t giving you the return on your investment you were hoping for? Are you worried because it isn’t producing the results you thought it should?

The old adage, “if you build it, they will come” simply doesn’t happen in the World Wide Web. In order to get visitors to come to your web site, you need to make a concerted effort to attract them.

Here’s a checklist of basic things you could be doing now to start promoting your website and getting those desired results:

1. Use your domain name for your email address in all of your email correspondence. This way, with each email you send out, you are advertising your website URL. For example: if your website domain is www.mywebsite.com, then you should ensure you use an email address that uses “mywebsite.com” like susan@mywebsite.com or info@mywebsite.com. This technique also promotes you as a professional; often seeing a Hotmail or Gmail address can appear to others as “amateurish”.

2. Create a signature that goes on the bottom of all your emails that you send out. In your signature, put whatever caption you like – such as, “Contact me to find out how you can [fill in the blank]” along with your contact information and of course, your website URL!

3. Put your website address on all of your print/promotional material such as business cards, promo cards, letterhead etc. Often your website is the first point of contact for new and potential clients. Make it easy for them to find your website so they can find more information about you and your business and feel comfortable about contacting you directly.

4. Create reciprocal partnerships with complementary websites to do a website link exchange. The more high-traffic websites that link to you, the more the search engines will think you are a high-profile website and your search engine ranking has the potential to go up.

5. Send out regular e-newsletters or some form of written communication to your existing and potential customers. Have a prominent sign-up form on your site so people can receive your e-newsletters on a regular basis. The more people trust you and what services you have to offer, the more likely they will contact you or purchase your product!

6. Share the benefits of what you can do to help others; what need can you fulfill for them? Be sure to list those benefits on your website and use it as a reference point to send people to for more information.

7. Encourage referrals – your existing customers can be an amazing promotional tool for you. Offer a referral incentive program if you can.

8. Take advantage of any upcoming holidays – what contest can you run? What special can you put on? (Caution, try to avoid discounting your products or services, this devalues what you have to offer. Instead, offer gift with purchases or entries to a prize draw as an enticement to make a sale)

9. Bonus tip: Engage in Social Media such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Create a professional profile and have conversations with your followers. Engage with the intention of being helpful and offering useful information. This will build your credibility as an expert in your industry and start to create an important, “know, like and trust” factor that is needed to attract clients.

There are many things to consider before having a website created for you. You first need to have a thorough understanding of what you want it to achieve – and be reasonable about your expectations. Will it be a simple “brochureware” piece that is meant to provide visitors with a basic overview of your products and/or services, or is it going to actively sell for you? Hiring a professional website developer can help you sort through these questions, create a design to best achieve those goals, and produce an effective site that will deliver what you want.

Once built, be sure to follow the 8 9 simple steps outlined above and you will be well on your way to having a website that is working for you and your marketing efforts.

Susan Friesen
eBusiness Mentor and Developer

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You have my full permission to use this article on your website, blog or social media sites. Simply ensure this complete credit is found at the bottom of the article:

About the Author: Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 11 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Visit www.evisionmedia.ca to receive your free report, “10 Key Strategies You Need to Know Now to Prevent Your Website from Being a Marketing Disaster.”

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Over a year ago, we decided it was time to give eVision Media an updated look. The colours were getting old and tired, the website was definitely out of date, and none of our marketing materials were truly depicting the quality and scope of services we offer.

We were definitely suffering from the old Shoe Cobbler’s Son Syndrome! Well, our poor son finally graduated from wearing a pair of cheap thongs to having nice, new and shiny shoes!

In order to re-brand, we first needed to get clear on who our ideal target market was so we could make some changes to our brand positioning that would allow us to specifically attract new entrepreneurs as well as established business owners.

The first step to our re-branding was to update our logo. As much as we loved our old logo, it was time to make it more polished and professional looking. (Many thanks to Daniel’s mom for drawing that first penguin and her chick, it will be cherished as our first baby forever!)

During the logo design process, we also made changes to our brand colours. These new colours are not only fresh and more contemporary, but  were specifically chosen to appeal to our target market.

Many proofs and logo versions later, we finally decided on the one you see on the site today. Our new brand had been established!

Now it was time to get busy and re-design and develop our website along with all our other marketing materials.

It took our whole team to get involved in this process. Due to us being such a busy firm, it was hard finding the time to spend working on it! Many months later, we can now proudly send people to our site!

While you are here, please sign up for my brand new free report called, “10 Key Strategies You Need to Know Now to Prevent Your Website from Being a Marketing Disaster” over on the right hand side or click here.

I guarantee this report will enlighten you on important aspects to consider when developing your website and marketing your business.

Thanks goes to our whole eVision Media team for all the hard work and effort in getting our new brand and new website launched!

Sue

PS Along with this new launch, we have also added a new service offering. Well, it’s not really new but let’s just say it’s official now! Click here to find more information about my new mentoring packages!

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Let me start off by asking you a question…. How long has it been since your website’s home page has been updated with fresh new text and images? How about your blog? Has it been weeks… months even … since your last entry? What about the last time you sent out a newsletter?

If you had a strong urge to click the delete button after reading the above due to the sudden guilt pangs that just hit you, hold off on the temptation and be assured you are not alone! There are many business entrepreneurs that have neglected their website for many different reasons and now they are left feeling the whole “website thing” has been a bust. But there’s hope yet! Don’t abandon ship until you read this article…

Before getting started, it’s important to remember that your website is NOT a brochure! Its purpose was never to just build it and forget about it and then expect it to provide any kind of return on your initial investment.

So before you abandon your website all together and end up losing business to your competition, let’s talk about the reasons why it is vitally important to keep your website updated with fresh material and some things you can do now to get it back on track:

1. Your website is your most primary marketing piece for your business. Period. This is due to it being accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. It never takes a holiday and is never not seen by anyone who visits it. Ask yourself what impression are others getting if they visited your site right now?  You want your site to give an accurate impression to not only your prospective client, but also your current clients so they can trust and believe that your business is in good shape too. No one ones to do business with a failing company.
2. Google and the other search engines will only love your site if it’s got something new to show its searchers.  If it detects that nothing has changed since the last time it indexed your site, then it will downgrade you in the search results. This is a critical point – you don’t want to get poor search result rankings!
3. Search engines are only going to display your site that matches a user’s search string if you have the right keywords placed within the text of your home page. Changing these keywords to match what your ideal client is looking for is very valuable so they will find your site easier when searching for products or services that match their needs.
4. Prospective clients can tell if a site has been stranded and will immediately get the impression you are either out of business or are not attentive enough to bother updating it. Either way, they have formed a negative impression on you and the credibility of your business.
5. If you have a newsletter signup box on your site but never or rarely send out a newsletter, this also gives the impression you are not on top of things and really don’t care about building your business. This topic is a whole ‘nother article to write on the importance of newsletters though….
6. Your website no longer accurately depicts your business direction anymore. Every business goes through the evolutionary process and it’s critical your website stays current with your product or service offerings. If you find yourself telling people, “oh sorry, my site doesn’t actually say anything about that particular service…” what kind of message is that person is getting about how well you run a business?
7. Your website looks like it was created in the 90′s. Yes, even sites I designed several years ago are looking old and outdated Avoid your site looking old by giving it a fresh redesign; otherwise, it looks like you don’t care enough about your business or about technological advances to keep it up to date. Keeping your website looking modern will improve your credibility and will give the impression you are attentive to the success of your business.
8. Your website looks “broken” in more recent versions of browsers. Have you ever looked at your site from a friend’s computer and wondered, “Why is it looking so funny?” This is a result of your site’s build being too old to be compatible with the newer browsers like IE 8 or Firefox 3.5. Back when your site was first built, it probably looked great across the more popular browsers but as browsers evolve, so must your website programming to ensure it continues to look good no matter what browser is used.
9. Along the same lines as the look of your site being old, so can the technology and coding used behind the scenes to build it. Old technology can create many problems including security threats and costly programming to work around the old scripts and code if new features need to be added. Often it is more cost effective to re-develop your site than to continually patch the security holes and do programming work-arounds that can be precariously unstable as soon as the next version of web browser comes along.

If you’re wondering if any of the above is applicable to you, then ask yourself if your site is performing the way it was intended. Are you getting sufficient leads? Are people finding your site and signing up for your newsletter to get them into your marketing funnel? Is your conversion rate where you want it to be?

If not, it’s a sure sign to take a close look at your “busting” website and have a talk with your web developer on ways to get it up-to-date so that it can provide you with the results you desire.

Your site can be a constantly evolving, powerful business tool if you treat it as such. It’s important to view it as your important, dynamic marketing collateral in your business and marketing plan. It can be as exciting, innovative and interactive as you want it to be, all you have to do is ask; the technology is available to create an amazing marketing piece for you like never before!

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About the Author: Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 10 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Contact Susan today for a free 30 minute consultation on helping you build your website presence to be the effective marketing tool is can be. susan@evisionmedia.ca or visit www.evisionmedia.ca.