Back in the day, many dotcom companies burned through cash like crazy when they advertised (typically offline) to drive visitors to their website. This tended to generate a short-lived "sugar rush" of visitors who never came back or bought anything. The thinking was, "you need to keep content fresh to keep visitors interested and coming back for more".
While for certain types of websites this is absolutely true (e.g. a news portal), many people still think that fresh content is essential for ongoing website success. That ain't necessarily so
A lot of the lead generation work we do on behalf of our clients involves building websites geared towards getting new clients for the business. Once a prospect becomes a paying customer, the need to have fresh content to net repeat visits is dramatically less; the website has already performed its function.
One of the adages often repeated in the marketing world is that it takes seven contacts to make a conversion; but in reality, this depends on the nature of the product or service on offer. The more complex (or expensive) the wares, the more visits it will usually take to make a conversion.
The best way to drive these initial "pre-conversion" repeat visits is to incorporate a "lead capture" mechanism into your site. This might be as simple as a newsletter signup form, or it could be an invitation to download more comprehensive materials (e.g. a free report or eGuide).
These methods work in two ways. Not only do your capture leads which you can they keep in contact with, but you also have an opportunity to educate them on your product or service. By keeping in contact with your prospects, you'll be able to bring them back for repeated visits to your site.
This is a strategy we use often; not only on client's websites but on our own as well. Whether a lead capture strategy is needed or not depends largely on how difficult it is for your website to convert visitors to customers.
Just to add another layer of confusion, I'm not saying that you shouldn't add new content to your site or perform updates. Just that it isn't a necessary condition of a successful website.
New content - especially articles and other informational content - can be a great asset to your site. Even better, if your website is tightly focussed around a certain topic, or you're seen as an "authority" in your area of expertise, then an "Articles" section can indeed attract visits from potential clients.
This is of course a desirable thing, but keep in mind that it won't come without effort. You'll have to write all of this content (or at least find someone to write it for you). Of course, it's also no guarantee of success.
Many business owners we talk to are eager to include a "latest news" section on their sites in order to bring in repeat traffic. There are two reasons why I don't generally recommend this.
1. If you aren't truly an authority in your field, then these news sections may not be all that well, newsworthy.
2. You'll need to keep these sites updated regularly. Most businesses don't keep up with this. Think about how many websites you see that have sections for "latest news" which haven't been updated for at least a year!
What I'm trying to tell you here is that it pays to plan ahead. If your website is going to need frequent updates, make sure that you have the resources to make this happen. If this is going to be problematic, then you may want to go with a more low maintenance kind of site.
While for certain types of websites this is absolutely true (e.g. a news portal), many people still think that fresh content is essential for ongoing website success. That ain't necessarily so
A lot of the lead generation work we do on behalf of our clients involves building websites geared towards getting new clients for the business. Once a prospect becomes a paying customer, the need to have fresh content to net repeat visits is dramatically less; the website has already performed its function.
One of the adages often repeated in the marketing world is that it takes seven contacts to make a conversion; but in reality, this depends on the nature of the product or service on offer. The more complex (or expensive) the wares, the more visits it will usually take to make a conversion.
The best way to drive these initial "pre-conversion" repeat visits is to incorporate a "lead capture" mechanism into your site. This might be as simple as a newsletter signup form, or it could be an invitation to download more comprehensive materials (e.g. a free report or eGuide).
These methods work in two ways. Not only do your capture leads which you can they keep in contact with, but you also have an opportunity to educate them on your product or service. By keeping in contact with your prospects, you'll be able to bring them back for repeated visits to your site.
This is a strategy we use often; not only on client's websites but on our own as well. Whether a lead capture strategy is needed or not depends largely on how difficult it is for your website to convert visitors to customers.
Just to add another layer of confusion, I'm not saying that you shouldn't add new content to your site or perform updates. Just that it isn't a necessary condition of a successful website.
New content - especially articles and other informational content - can be a great asset to your site. Even better, if your website is tightly focussed around a certain topic, or you're seen as an "authority" in your area of expertise, then an "Articles" section can indeed attract visits from potential clients.
This is of course a desirable thing, but keep in mind that it won't come without effort. You'll have to write all of this content (or at least find someone to write it for you). Of course, it's also no guarantee of success.
Many business owners we talk to are eager to include a "latest news" section on their sites in order to bring in repeat traffic. There are two reasons why I don't generally recommend this.
1. If you aren't truly an authority in your field, then these news sections may not be all that well, newsworthy.
2. You'll need to keep these sites updated regularly. Most businesses don't keep up with this. Think about how many websites you see that have sections for "latest news" which haven't been updated for at least a year!
What I'm trying to tell you here is that it pays to plan ahead. If your website is going to need frequent updates, make sure that you have the resources to make this happen. If this is going to be problematic, then you may want to go with a more low maintenance kind of site.
About the Author:
About the author: David B. Ascot's knowledge is in improving sales lead generation results and your company can benefit from his profitable methods of online lead generation.
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