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Building a Small Business Website for Your Specific Customers
by Kristie Stangeland
Design
Published on this site: March 14th, 2011 - See
more articles from this month
Have you ever been to a website that made you feel as if you were
an outsider looking in? The images, the design elements and even
the copy were all about the company. It wasn't welcoming or
inviting and it didn't help you see how these particular products
and/or services could help you. Those are sites I refer to as "company-oriented."
Then there are the web pages you click to that seem to read your
mind. The navigation makes sense to you, the layout is clean and
the text speaks your language. These are "customer-oriented"
websites and their tendency to outperform company-focused sites
is tremendous.
Truthfully, every organization should have a customer-oriented
website. But most don't give the client much thought. Chalk it
up to lack of experience or bad advice from others. Once you
understand a few basics, developing a website that attracts and
converts people specific to your target audience is easier than
you might think.
It's All About Them. It's Not All About You
This is a tough fact for many people to swallow. Hard as they
try, they can't get past the fact that their website should be
all about them. And right there you see where this line of
thinking originates. It's not really "their" website.
You build a website FOR your customers, not ABOUT your company.
Think of it this way: pretend you want to buy a gift for your
cousin's birthday. He's an avid reader so you believe a book
would be the perfect gift. Do you browse the titles looking for
something that catches *your* eye. something intriguing to *you*
or do you scan the list in search of a book about his favorite
hobbies and interests? Of course, it's all about him. This same
mentality applies to building a small business website.
Change Your Shoes & Get a New Perspective
Step back from your normal viewpoint. Hang up your company hat
and put yourself in your customer's shoes. These are folks that
don't travel the back roads of your industry. They aren't
familiar with the jargon, the latest technology or the structure
or your business. Neither should they be. So why confuse your
site visitors with language, images, navigation and other design
elements that are foreign to them?
Instead, approach the new design or redesign of your website from
your customer's point of view. Ask existing clients what
language they might use to describe some of the products,
services or processes your company offers. Get their feedback on
which order web pages should be provided and what they feel is a
logical way to approach the delivery of information.
If your company deals primarily with women (perhaps a daycare
center or a ladies-only gym) choose pictures and colors
appropriate to that audience. Most parents wouldn't feel
comfortable with a daycare site draped in dark colors, accented
with vibrant orange and flashy graphics. Even if those are your
favorite colors, they might cost you some business by making your
target market wary.
It's all about them. It's not about you.
The bottom line when you build a small business website for your
specific customers is this: With every decision, with every
choice, ask the question, "How will this benefit my target
customers?" If the answer is, "It won't," choose something else.
© 2011 Kristie Stangeland
Kristie Stangeland: Have a website that's not working? Need one that can help your
business grow? Before you build a small business website, get
Kristie's book "Effective Websites for Small Businesses" at
http://www.EffectiveWebsitesForSmallBusinesses.com today.
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