Date post: | 29-Aug-2014 |
Category: |
Technology |
Upload: | marketing-matters-inbound |
View: | 127 times |
Download: | 2 times |
Building a Better Website
Firing Up a Conversion Machine
@Tuxmiller
Building a Better Website
Scott Miller is an Inbound Marketing Author, Strategist and Consultant.
He founded Marketing Matters in 1996 and leads a team of Inbound Marketers.
He invented the Einstein Inbound Assessment & AGI Pyramid.
His clients realize unusually high, measurable ROI.
Scott A. Miller
Scott A. MillerFollow him on Twitter
@tuxmiller
Conversion MachinesBuilding a Better Website
@Tuxmiller
Building a Better Website
Why?
Do You Need a New Website?
Building a Conversion Machine
Start With Strategy
Choose a Platform
Create Great Content
Build Calls-to-Action
Assess With Analytics
Summary
TABLE OF CONTENTS
@Tuxmiller
5 - 12
13 - 19
20 – 21
22 - 26
27 - 29
30 - 35
36 - 42
43 - 44
45 - 47
Begin with this one question:
Why does my organization have a website?
@Tuxmiller 5
CHAPTER 1:
Why?
Building a Better Website
You have a website. Just about every organization does. But why?
Before you begin designing & building a new website, ask yourself this fundamental question:
“Why does my organization have a website?”Resist the urge to build your pretty new site before you can determine this:
“What is the purpose of my website?”
What function does your website perform today? What function should it serve for you in the future?
Write down your answers, then read on so we can form a plan for your website together…
Why do I have a website?”
@Tuxmiller 6
Building a Better Website
Your website can do great things.
But to realize unusually high performance from your website, you need to build more than a website. The most successful organizations build their website as part of a marketing system.
We call this powerful system a Conversion Machine.
In our online Conversion Machine model, the website is the engine that runs the machine. It is the power behind a marketing system that attracts, nurtures & converts customers, helping create loyal customers for life.
This eBook will help you stop the poor practice of maintaining a static brochure website designed for one way communication. You can then begin building a website based on a Conversion Architecture blueprint.
Conversion Architecture helps your website:
1. Create conversations with consumers, nurturing them down the purchase path.
2. Cause conversions, ultimately leading to new customers.
Build Something Bigger than a website. Build a Conversion Machine.
@Tuxmiller 7
Building a Better Website
The Law of Attraction states: “Like attracts Like.”
To maximize success (as measured by ROI) your website must be built under this law. It should be built to attract.
When designed on a blueprint of Conversion Architecture, your website actively and naturally attracts quality Visitors.
ATTRACT:
@Tuxmiller 8
An Attractive website goes beyond pleasing graphic design; it attracts customers.
The Attractive website powers brand/consumer relationships because it allows consumers to participate on their terms. Make it easy for Visitors to easily and quickly discover the information they came for in the first place.
Building a Better Website
Marketing 101: Find a need and fill it.
That used to be hard. Marketers relied on limited, suspect data and ‘hunches’. Sometimes we’d hit on a need and alignment between brand & consumer occurred. Luck.
When we as marketers and marketing firms collectively stop guessing and reacting and, instead, replace that mad method with a more scientific method, we become pro-active problem solvers for our customers.
Today, consumers tell us what their needs are every day. They’re called keywords.
Every day, prospective customers imply needs through their search terms . Smart marketers are able to infer the following:
1. Need for a Product or Service2. Geographic, Demographic & Psychographic info.3. Point in the Purchase Funnel4. Content Type sought.5. Much more…
Serving up relevant, timely and contextual Content pleases your website Visitor and Google. Easier said than done. This is where Content Strategy comes in handy.
Find a Need and Fill It.
@Tuxmiller 9
Building a Better Website
Are designed based on Visitors needs, not ours.
Are built to provide solutions based on the reason the Visitor came.
Serve up relevant, timely and contextual Content.
Are designed for quick, easy navigation.
Realize that a Visitor is only one click away from leaving your site.
Satisfy both the search engines and the Visitor.
Address the various reasons a Visitor has come: Research, Consideration, Purchase & Re-engagement.
Attractive Websites
@Tuxmiller 10
Building a Better Website
As part of a Conversion Machine, your website is no longer passive.
At peak performance, your new website provides interactivity with Visitors at multiple levels.
IMAGE CAPTION
Convert:
In the case of e-commerce, customer conversions may occur onsite. For B2B websites Leads will become Market Qualified Leads (MQLs) and may then be handed over from Marketing to Sales.
@Tuxmiller11
When properly designed & built, your new website will cause conversions.
Visitors become Leads.
Leads become Customers.
Customers become Loyal Customers for Life.
Building a Better Website
Provide a core hub of navigation.
Use Landing Pages to cause conversions.
Use Calls-to-Action to Engage with Visitors, collecting data in exchange for something of value.
Are not too aggressive in their approach to Engagement. (MoFU)
Provide appropriate actions for Visitors, based on where they are in the purchase funnel.
Do not flaunt aggressive sales offers on every single page.
Provide measurable, track-able behavior analytics.
Improve the Visitor experience by combining good visual design with frictionless navigation.
Generate a higher Return-on-Investment than traditional websites.
Conversion Websites
@Tuxmiller 12
Well, that’s a simple question and we bet you know the simple answer:
Yes.
@Tuxmiller 13
CHAPTER 2:Do you need a new website?
Building a Better Website
These are the three common reasons for building a new website:
Poor Site Organization
Poor Connections
Poor Conversions
reasons to build a new website
@Tuxmiller 14
Building a Better Website
Most websites, especially those built before August, 2012, are not designed to convert. They were built under faulty criteria including these 4 Common Problems With Websites:
1. Main site approval determinant is good graphic design.2. Built around our products, rather than customers’ needs.3. Information Architecture rather than Conversion
Architecture.4. Static, closed platforms.
You can change all that by designing a customer-centric website that allows freedom of customer navigation while fulfilling customer needs on many levels.
Your website is the engine that powers a Conversion Machine.”
@Tuxmiller 15
Building a Better Website
HubSpot has measured results for each of these. The pages that follow are individual stats by component. Just think what happens when you get all components working in synchronicity!
Attraction websites perform better than traditional websites.Here are some website metrics:
• Call-to-Action click-thru rate
• Visitor to Lead conversion rate
• Lead to Customer conversion rate
• Visitor to Customer conversion rate
• Customer Acquisition Cost
• Lifetime Value of Customer
• Payback After Acquisition
Website ROI
@Tuxmiller 16
“42.2% of companies using inbound marketing increase their lead-to-sale conversion rate.” Source: HubSpot, 2013
Building a Better Website
Most developers equate proper website organization with onsite SEO. Sure, that’s important.
Conversion Websites are designed and built with both Google and the Visitor in mind.
SEO is important. Very important. But satisfying customers is even more important.
Poor Organization
User experience should be customer-centric, appearing natural & logical to the Visitor while nurturing them closer to a Conversion.
@Tuxmiller 17
A Conversion Website is organized to SEO best practices while providing easy Visitor navigation.
Organize your website to Best Practices
Building a Better Website
We’re not talking about technical connectivity here. Nope. We’re talking about connecting people, not wires.
Brand & ConsumerOld websites are disconnected from the Visitor. Look at me! Buy now! Read my stuff and leave!
Marketing & Sales“We provide all kinds of leads,” says Marketing.“The leads are weak,” says Sales.
Connect & Communicate
Poor Connections
@Tuxmiller 18
Poor connectivity is usually based on poor communication. Conversion websites are designed to improve communication on many levels.
Content Strategy creates consumer connections. Shared Conversion goals through Brand Alignment bridge the gap between marketing and sales.
Building a Better Website
Who cares how many “hits” your website got last month?
Conversion websites are built on a platform designed for metrics & reporting.
Measure Only What Is Important
So now you can measure:
• Visitors• Visitors to Leads• Leads to Customers• Customers to Repeat Loyal
Customers• Return-on-Investment
A website should be designed to convert.
Poor Conversions
You can now measure your online marketing efforts and correlate with Sales. Focusing on these metrics help improve efficiency and close ratios. Conversions are caused by Calls-to-Action.
@Tuxmiller19
Conversion Machines Connect Dots:
Between online marketing components.
Between consumer and brand.
Between Sales & Marketing.
View a video on Conversion Machines.
@Tuxmiller 20
CHAPTER 3:Building a Conversion Machine
Building a Better Website
How?Seven Steps
1. Start with Strategy.
2. Think Broader. Think Holistic.
3. Grade & Assess Website and Inbound Marketing.
4. Set Goals & Objectives
5. Create Assets Inventory/Needs
6. Design & Build
7. Analyze & Improve
@Tuxmiller 21
1.Marketing Strategy2.Online Strategy3.Website Strategy4.Content Strategy5.CTA Maps
@Tuxmiller 22
CHAPTER 4:Start with Strategy
Good strategy answers the “Why?”
Strategy is bigger than your website. First ask, “How does my website connect with a consumer?” Then ask, “How does my website connect with the rest of my marketing?”
Here’s a strategy hierarchy for reference:
Building a Better Website
Strategy involves crafting an overview map of a desired outcome based on pre-established goals & objectives.
Many times there is an internal, vertical strategic disconnect, forcing fragmented tactical execution across marketing, sales & operations.
To be impactful, go as high as you can up the Strategy Chain.
Business Strategy
Product Strategy
Sales Strategy
Marketing Strategy
Online Strategy
Website Strategy
Ideally, the Business Strategy would obviously be integrated into the website strategy, but rarely is this the case.
Even if you only start at “website strategy” make sure you start with Strategy…
@Tuxmiller 23
Building a Better Website
Website Goals: Answering the “Why?”
@Tuxmiller 24
Earlier we asked, why do you have a website?
3 common answers Why?:
1) To attract & inform Visitors.
2) To generate Leads.
3) Convert Leads into Customers
Design broad‐based SMART Goals based on your
answers to why you have a website. Then create
measurable, specific objectives.
Building a Better Website
S.M.A.R.T. Goals
@Tuxmiller 25
An intelligently designed website begins with SMART Goals.What’s a SMART Goal?
S‐ Specific
M‐Measurable
A‐ Action‐oriented
R‐ Realistic
T‐ Time‐bound
SMART Goals will help you establish benchmarks
and milestones to measure your progress and
success.
EXAMPLE GOAL:
We want to build an Attorney website by July 1
that is an educational legal resource for auto
accident victims while providing easy methods of
contacting the legal firm & data collection.
Building a Better Website
Website Objectives
@Tuxmiller 26
Specific, measurable actions.
Sample Objectives
• Attract 5,000 website Visitors/month.
• Create 50 downloads/month for an eBook.
• Generate 150 leads/month.
• Hand over 50 Market Qualified Leads from
Marketing to Sales per month.
• Create 5 new Customers/month.
• Increase Conversions from 1.5% to 2% in Q3.
• Blog 3X/week for the next 52 weeks.
• Perform one webinar per quarter this year.
The platform you choose for a conversion website must be open-source and dynamic. Requirements include:
•Internal access•Ease of internal updating•Analytics & CRM Integration
We choose WordPress and HubSpot/SalesForce, but there are other options out there.
@Tuxmiller 27
CHAPTER 5:Choosing a Platform
Building a Better Website
Automation Software:
1. HubSpot2. Marketo3. Pardot4. Eloqua
@Tuxmiller 28
“29.8 of companies using HubSpot have increased the traffic to their site more than 100%”
Source: HubSpot, 2013
Platforms
CMS Website Platforms:
1. WordPress2. Drupal3. Joomla4. Proprietary
Building a Better Website
@Tuxmiller 29
Our CMS of choice is WordPress because of its broad appeal, universal acceptance and ease of use. There are certain types of sites, specifically pure e-commerce sites and other specialized industry sites, that will require a different platform.
HubSpot is our choice for connecting Inbound Marketing dots. That’s not necessarily because the other software can’t do the job. We’ve found that HubSpot is quick and easy (relatively speaking) to get up and running. And, it’s intuitive for logical marketing.
Content fuels your website engine. You’ll want to fuel your engine with high octane content. And you’ll want to re-fuel it with quality content often.
Great content begins with great Content Strategy, including:
•Use a 3-D approach in content delivery•Prioritization for Product Focus•Understand 4 “E’s” of Content•Content conversion paths integrated with CTA Map
@Tuxmiller 30
CHAPTER 6:Create Great Content.
Building a Better Website
Our intent is to communicate effectively with human beings.
We must, therefore, operate dynamically. Our content connects with consumer when it has depth and dimension.
3-D Content
1. Product2. Persona3. Place in Purchase Cycle
Product Pyramids help you prioritize which bottom-line products/services to build website Content around.
Personas are your target customer profiles. Develop Content around Persona preferences. Create content form & language that “speaks” to each Persona in a meaningful, connective way.
Place in purchase cycle includes matching Content type, language and offerings based on how close any given Persona is to a purchase.
3‐D Content
@Tuxmiller 31
Building a Better Website
Product Pyramids help you prioritize which products/services to build online Content around.
First list all your bottom-line offerings. These are the products or services you offer.
Product Pyramids help you prioritize which products/services to build online Content around.
First, list all your bottom-line offerings. These are the products or services that result in a sales transaction.
Then rank them in 2 ways:
1) Revenue Contribution-Priority to overall revenues.
2) Ease of Sale (measured in time or volume).
Product Pyramids
@Tuxmiller 32
Building a Better Website
Personas
@Tuxmiller 33
When identifying your target customer personas, it’s imperative to first segment your target audience into smaller, and more specific groups of people.
These individual groups will each consist of people with shared demographics, motivations, concerns and online behavior according to real data reports.W.I.I.F.M.
“What’s In It For Me?” That’s the question in the back of every Visitor’s mind.
By specifically identifying Personas and creating content on their individual needs, you answer “What’s In It For Me?”
Things to Consider when Identifying Persona’s
Demographics of the most common buyers of your product. Common needs and/or problems they’re trying to solve. Customer behaviors on social networks, the information they
choose to obtain, the search terms they use and the products they research most.
Building a Better Website
Effective content is relevant, timely and contextual.
To nurture and convert, content language and delivery must address the customer’s current state in the purchase funnel.
Source: Econsultancy and Outbrain, 2013
Is the prospect researching? Are they shopping? Are they ready to purchase? Are they looking to re-purchase? The Four E’s of Content address each of these stages.
4 E’s of Content
@Tuxmiller 34
EducateEngageEncourageEmbrace
38%
62%
Companies with Content Strategies
With
Without
Building a Better Website
@Tuxmiller 35
CTAs are oil for your Conversion Machine. A CTA map diagrams website user flow in order to create a friction-less User experience (UX).
Just as you monitor and change oil for your car, so must you monitor and change your CTAs.
A CTA may be a button, a form, or a link, but all CTAs are designed to do the following:
CTAs create Convenient Conversion Paths
@Tuxmiller 36
CHAPTER 7:Build Calls-to-Action
Building a Better Website
CTAs are the most overlooked part in website builds, but in a Conversion Machinethey are a priorety.
Individual CTAs should be served up most frequently at the middle-of-funnel Engage stage of consumer purchase.Yet, most of the website we’ve examined are anemic at this most critical stage. Some websites don’t even offer middle-of-the funnel offers.
Resist the temptation to always go straight bottom-of-funnel offers. Create valuable middle-of-the funnel offers. By nurturing rather than hammering, you’ll build consumer trust and confidence.
By integrating a CTA map that naturally guides Visitors closer toward a Conversion, you’ll build brand Value. Visitors will become Leads. Leads will become Customers.
Calls‐to‐Action
@Tuxmiller 37
“Calls to action promoting eBooks
get almost 2X the click through rate as emails promoting webinars.” Source: HubSpot, 2013
Building a Better Website
Website Calls‐to‐Action
@Tuxmiller 38
CTAs capture customer data by offering an exchange of perceived value.
CTA Maps link individual CTAs. The result creates a frictionless navigation experience, causing conversions.
• Forms
• Downloadables
• Contests
• Free trial
• Coupon
• Newsletter
• Blog
• Product
Registration/
Notifications
Some Types of CTAs
@Tuxmiller 39
Conversion Websites align CTAs & Content with the sales funnel.
Download a copy of this Conversion Strategy diagram here.
Building a Better Website
“Landing pages and calls-to-action – are the #1 reason marketers attribute to their increase in sales”
The consumer’s place in the purchase funnel is important.
Identify 2 points: the place a consumer enters the funnel and the desired place for them to end.
The end place is what we call a Conversion, though that’s not always a sale.
Source: HubSpot, 2013
Conversions occur through a series of calls-to-action. A CTA map plans fluid website conversions. Content creates conversations with consumers. CTAs encourage content consumption toward a purchase.
CTA Rules
1-3 CTAs per page. Horizontal or downward purchase
funnel movement is preferred. Offer a fair exchange when asking for
data.
Content and CTAs
@Tuxmiller 40
Building a Better Website
Landing Pages Increase Leads
@Tuxmiller 41
Companies see a 55% increase in leads when increasing their number of landing pages from just 10 to 15”
“Source: HubSpot, 2013
Landing pages are an essential part of lead generation. Factors from page design to the quality of the offer behind the form can all influence how well these critical pages work.
HubSpot landing page analyticshelp you measure your landing pages and optimize them for success.
Building a Better Website
Landing Page Tips• Use a clear title, description, and layout to instantly convey
the value of your offer and create a strong incentive for your visitors to download or sign up for it.
• Keep your visitors focused on filling out your form by removing all navigation links from the landing page.
• Include social sharing links to encourage your visitors to spread the word about your offer.
• Design your forms to capture the information that you need to in order to follow up with and qualify the lead.
• Structure the forms with the user in mind so they’re not too long or invasive.
• After they have filled out your form, follow up with your new leads by directing them to a “thank-you” page or sending them an auto-response email. Keep them engaged by suggesting other offers they might be interested in or next steps they can take.
• Track your conversion rates closely, and keep testing to find areas for improvement. Use your metrics and test results to optimize your landing pages so they continue to generate an increasing number of leads.
@Tuxmiller 42
Do I need...
Google Analytics? Of course.
SEOMoz, Raventools or SalesForce? Probably.
Omniture? Quite possible.
HubSpot? Yes, if you’re a Conversion Marketer.
@Tuxmiller 43
CHAPTER 8:Assess with Analytics
Building a Better Website
Involve both Sales & Marketing.
Google rules the internet. Understand Google and subscribe to their suite of tools.
Because Google rules, access to Google Analytics is mandatory. Give access to those important to the process, including key consultants and marketing partners.
Don’t allow IT to be a bottleneck for progress. If you ARE IT, don’t make yourself the bottleneck.
Establish conversion metrics.
Monitor daily (or real-time). Establish weekly and monthly reporting.
Do consider the following when implementing Analytics:
Establish ROI metrics.
Measure the Important
@Tuxmiller 44
Resist the temptation to measure everything. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
Instead measure what is important. Determine this from your Goals & Objective.
Design a conversion blueprint. Build a Conversion Machine.
Attract. Nurture. Convert. Repeat.
Just remember, a Conversion Machine is not just a website. A traditional website is static. A Conversion Machine website is an engine that needs to be maintained and fueled for powerful growth.
Your website launch isn’t the end. It’s the beginning.
@Tuxmiller 45
CHAPTER 9:Firing up the machine!
Building a Better Website
Digital IQ matters, especially now that the online marketing rules have changed.
Those who stake their claim on important digital real estate today will be ahead of the game. Tomorrow, the laggards, meanwhile, will be playing catch up.
The online competitive environment is not going to become easier so now is the time for change.
On the contrary, increased competition for digital real estate will surely increase the cost, effectiveness and ROI metrics. And not for the better.
You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.”
@Tuxmiller 46
‐ Albert Einstein
• Learn more about Conversion Machines.• Get pricing on website builds.• Request a strategic business conversation.
Action Points
Take an Inbound Marketing Assessment
(314) 442. 4444.
@Tuxmiller47