With a rapid fire of  sales genres being applied in attempt to win customers, the buyer is steadily becoming desensitized and blocking most of this crap out. The buyer knows they can just google a service / product  if they need to and become annoyed at the unwelcome sales contact. Obviously this leaves a bad taste in their mouth. In the end the buyer will be the one to approach a business should they decide to and only if the business is deemed worthy.

That’s why it’s super important that you have a professional web presence built and are positioned and ready to allow the buyer/searcher to find you first instead of you calling them. With most people starting their search for products or services on the web, they can do the research and check out places before they dive in and make contact.  Make sure your website is in good position out there delivering the information the searcher/buyer is looking to find.

When these buyers contact you via website, they  already know what you do and how you can help them.  By letting the prospect approach you, their perception of you is different. You will be a consultant to them, not a pesky peddler with unwanted goods that were not asked for.  That alone gives you a good chance at selling to them and gains you instant respect.

Think of  positioning your website vs. prospecting this way;  if you needed a doctor, you would research and choose one you felt comfortable with.  You probably wouldn’t choose the prospecting doctor who happen to call you at breakfast one week wondering if you had a migrane headache they could help with nor would you choose the prospecting doctor who sent you a flyer in the mail offering a significant new patient discount that expires in two weeks.

What it boils down to is the doctor doesn’t find the patient, the patient find them. This creates the patient confidence to accept the diagnosis and follow recommended orders no matter how inconvenient or painful.

Get competitive and make sure your website is out there and ready to be found when these potential customers start their research. Lastly, make sure your website is delivering information that will help the visitor get started, then want to contact you to learn more. That is website positioning, not prospecting.

Having the content also allows you convert text into graphics, punch out certain information which compliment the page layout and give visual interest.

In order to plan these things into the design, you must have all content up front before any design work can start else the usability of the site will be at stake.

Once you have the content in front of you, you can then plan the information architecture, which is how the website visitor will find their way around your site-navigation. Categories and sections will lay the ground work for the first phases of design.

Without having content upfront you risk the hazard of having to ‘jam’ things in, stick them where ever you can find room, well, you get the idea, it’s not ideal and does not help the usability of the site.

To have a professional website designed or an existing website assessed, visit Yellowfish Technologies.

I blame the companies that offer this do-it-yourself option as a business solution. Shame on them. They almost make you feel guilty that you should build your own site since they are giving you all these easy tools to do it. It amazes me how many companies offer a complete package of hosting, web design templates and an editor, then say your ready to go. They claim it’s so easy you can be up and running within hours. The real kicker is you probably could, but at a severe handicap.

The goal for these types of companies are to get a web page up quickly and easily, not how to attract and retain visitors to your website, or how to make certain you are coming across professionally and creating a good impression. There is much to creating and evolving a web presence. You must think long term. Most would literally need to switch jobs to keep up with their website and it’s industry.

I’d like to show you alittle about what’s under the hood of building a website that gets missed entirely by the D.Y.I’ers and why you should go with professional services, not your receptionist or son in high school as a computer class project.

Although there is a ton to this, to each area and sub-area, here is a basic outline of process:

1. Web Project Outline
2. Team selection
3. Information Gathering
4. Site Planning

• Purpose of site
• Goals of site
• Target Audience
• Content development – see SEO
• Optimization
• Reporting
• Interaction
• * etc…

5. Design

• Do you have existing graphics?
• Do you have a logo?
• etc…

6. Development
7. Testing and Delivery
8. Maintenance

Let’s talk about the existing websites. They must be assessed to learn where the flaws are and how start improving your website today. Yellowfish offers this service and many clients have been astounded by their assessments and quickly set about correcting the issues with the website. Here are is a link with a fun little test for your website and others: Can your website do it?