now would be a good time to include
them as part of the package. Statistics
reveal that consumers tend to stay
longer on sites with videos and are most
likely to return. This content can include
engaging product videos, how-to
tutorials, ask-us-anything conversations,
client testimonials and even work space
and behind-the-scenes tours. The
advantage of video content is that you
don't necessarily have to spend money
(unless they really want to). Videos can
be shot by anyone in the office using
smartphones with good picture quality
and you are good to go. Obviously using
a professional will increase the quality
standard.
3
Have a blog
A blog is a good way of getting
more traffic to your website. We live
in an age where people need readily
available useful information right at their
fingertips, and if your website provides
that you are likely to win with clients.
The trick is to make sure you only post
relevant and useful information that can
make your clients lives easier.
4
Be available
We operate on different schedules
and sometimes, time-frames. Assuming
that consumers only access your website
during working hours is a mistake. Your
website should be open 24/7 so your
clients can interact with your business
when it suits them. It will mean a lot
to them to know that they can access
your services at any given time without
actually having to call or contact anyone
directly. Being available therefore means
that your top priority is to make sure
that there are no down-times on your
website. It has to be working perfectly
at all times. Imagine the frustration of
being up at two in the morning trying
to access a website that gives you
problems. Consumers should be able to
'walk in' to your website without hassles.5
Use Google AdWords
Google AdWords helps you to attract
more customers, reach the right people
at the right time and advertise locally
or globally. What are Google AdWords,
you may ask. Google Adwords is the
online advertising platform owned
and operated by Google. AdWords
works mainly through the use of
keywords. Keywords are words or
phrases that users enter into Google
when performing a search to find the
information they need. What happens
with Google Adwords is that advertisers
(that's you) bid on keywords that are
relevant to their business and get the
chance to display their advertisements
to users who enter those keywords into
Google. Before you can start advertising
on Google AdWords, you first need
to set up an account. This is a simple
process. You can either set it up using
an existing Google account or you can
create a new one specifically for this
purpose. Then you specify some basics
for your account, such as your location
and time zone before finally setting upyour billing details, so that Google can bill
you every month.6
Use Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO is not as complicated as it sounds.
In fact, it's one of the most effective
ways of advertising on your website. SEO
is a marketing tool focused on growing
visibility in free search engine results. All
major search engines such as Google, Bing
and Yahoo have primary search results,
where web pages and other content such
as videos or local listings are shown and
ranked based on what the search engine
considers most relevant to users. In order
for your website to rank higher, you have
to make changes to your website that make
it easier for search engines to understand
your content. This is where SEO comes in.
SEO helps to ensure that a site can be
accessed by a search engine. Webmasters
and web content producers use SEO
practices to help them achieve a better
ranking in search engine results.Keeping your website presence up to
date and well-maintained takes time and
investment. But don't fall into the trap of
thinking it's a 'nice-to-have' – in today's
digital age it is an absolute necessity!Trust Gumise is the CEO & Founder
of infinIT Technology Solutions, an
IT company that helps small business
achieve more using IT based tools
and products. Email Trust on trust@
infinittech.co.za, call 010 534 6469
or visit http://www.infinittech.co.za for
more information.