Getting Started

Whether you have a new business or an established business that you want to expand; before your online sales team (OST) can “sell” to your customers, it must know information about your customer. The way you collect this information is by including website analytics in your website to gain an idea of their demographics and their buying behavior. But before you can collect information from your analytics you need to draw visitors to your website.

Is Your Current Website Working for you?

Even if you have website that you’re happy with, are you using it to your advantage? Ask yourself…
1. Does it draw visitors?
2. Does it lead visitors through the sales process or is just an online brochure?
3. Does it enable the visitor to ask questions?
4. Does it provide downloadable content for your visitors?
5. Does it help your visitors become part of a community?
6. If you offer a service, does it allow a visitor to set up an appointment or consultation and pay for the consultation online?
7. If you have a retail operation is it such that you also set up products on your website for visitors to purchase online?

Consider how your website can bring in additional revenue for you and then begin a campaign to launch your new website or re-designed website.

Promote. Promote. Promote!

The first task is to create awareness of your new website or your newly revised website before you actually launch it.
To begin this process, starting a blog is a great place to start. In your blog you would begin to create buzz about the changes you are making to your website and how these changes will benefit your current customers or new customers. Your blog is like a mini website to be used while you’re making the changes on your current website. You don’t want them to see these changes until you are ready to launch.

1. Start to Build a mailing list. A blog provides a place to send current or potential customers where they can find out
· news about your upcoming website
· news about a new business
· news about new products or services
· how to sign up to receive coupons
· how to sign up for free resources that might interest them

2. Your blog should be a preview of what’s coming once the website is ready to launch. It should be
· Appealing in design; setting the tone and building your brand here to translate over to your new website or re-designed website
· Have impressive content to continually draw new visitors or developing a following
· Offer interesting information or resources for visitors to download that relates to what your business or website is about
· Perhaps offer a registration form for a contest that will be developed further on your new or re-designed website

3. Drive people to your blog where they will learn more about your business and new ways to interact with you such as:
· Questionnaires
· Surveys
· Landing pages
· Email sign-up forms
· Social media activity
· Providing relatable content and personal stories
· Creating a value-added resource relating to your business or new product that people can identify with; for example if your business is landscaping, you could offer a seasonal gardening calendar.

Timing is Everything

This promotion process should begin 3-4 weeks before your launch while you are preparing your website and setting it up for your OST to begin working.
I’ll share more ideas about how to create your promotional blog next week in Part 6