Website Content — Provide the Facts or They’ll Leave

Provide useful information and your site will be successful in attracting visitors and converting them into customers.

Many business owners believe that you should control the information you provide to your customers. Divulge as little as possible. Then customers must contact you for the answers to their questions.

After all, the more product knowledge customers have, the more power they have as well. Just think back to how car dealerships used to operate. Getting the bottom line on a new vehicle or the Kelley Blue Book value of your trade-in was a closely guarded secret. The internet has changed all that.

Tell All to Sell All

Today, customers want information, and if your website doesn’t provide it, they move on to a site that will. Fast!

No longer can you build a successful business model on the web that requires keeping customers in the dark. If you won’t provide the information, someone else will. And customers know it. They have a myriad of resources available to them to find out what they want to know these days.

Offer the facts your website visitors seek or they’ll go elsewhere.

The best strategy is to treat the web customer as an intelligent stranger who is entitled to the facts, not just your sales pitch, so that he or she can then make an informed decision.

Case in Point

A local real estate agent selling condos would include one photo and only the most basic data on its website, such as total square footage and number of bedrooms and baths.  The agent reasoned that he was providing enough information to whet the buyer’s appetite.

Real estate buyers want all the relevant facts about a property before they’ll consider an in-person visit.

To get all the important details like location, amenities and price, the buyer would be forced to call. That call would give the agent an opportunity to establish a connection with the buyer and potentially talk him or her into using the agent’s services.

The problem was the website was getting a fair amount of traffic but most visitors clicked off in a hurry.  When they didn’t find the information they needed, they hit their back button.

Additionally, some of the realtor’s competitors chose to provide more detailed information in their real estate listings.  No doubt some of those competitors were benefiting from looking like authorities.

Eventually, the realtor’s marketing person convinced him to add all the relevant facts about a property to the website including price. Much to the realtor’s surprise, the office started getting more calls from buyers.

Buyers found the site and stuck around, reading all the data and calling once they felt this realtor was in the know. And, an added benefit, was that Google moved the site up in its search results because it was providing such comprehensive information, and that in turn generated more web traffic.

How Much Is Too Much?

How do you provide a wealth of information without overwhelming your site’s visitors? After all, people are in a hurry, and long, run-on pages with loads of detail can be daunting.

Make the information available but organize it on your website so that visitors can delve as deep has they want to go. Choose menu labels that make sense. Use headings, subheads and bulleted lists that allow visitors to quickly scan the copy.

You can even offer reports or case studies free for the asking that include your most specialized data. Not everyone will request them. But you’ll know that those who do are highly qualified leads. Your objective is to enable the visitor to easily be able to zero in on the information he seeks, no matter what it is.

Put yourself in the visitor’s shoes and answer their most burning questions.

Create an Explainer Video

One of the most popular marketing trends these days is to create create an explainer video. Use it to describe your company’s product or service and create brand awareness. Animated explainer videos have now become a staple for many businesses. These short online marketing videos can be placed on a landing page, your website’s home page, or a prominent product page.

They typically follow a similar structure:

• What — What is your customer’s problem?
• How — How will your product or service fix it?
• Why — Why should the customer choose your company over your competitor’s?

Your explainer video should have these characteristics:

Short in length: Explainer videos are typically one to three minutes in length.

Focused on solving a problem: Address a specific problem and explain why your product or service is the best solution.

Strong call to action (CTA): At the end of your explainer video, include a call to action in which you tell the viewer what to do next, i.e. call for more information, request an appointment, download our brochure, etc.

Match brand and target customer: Explainer videos are most effective when their style and tone match that of the brand and the customer they’re trying to reach.

High quality: You want your explainer video to reflect the quality of your company. Use a reputable explainer video production company to create this important marketing tool.

Answer Their Questions

When deciding what information to include on your website, think like your customers.

• What do they want to know?
• What concerns do they have?
• What questions do you most frequently get?
• What do you feel are key points that tip the scales in your favor?

Don’t hold back. Provide the information in an easy to find and understand format. Put the most important facts in the most prominent places of your site.

Don’t hold back. Tell your visitors what they want to know and watch your sales grow!

Create an FAQ page that gives more specifics. Continually update and add to the information.

Make it easy for your customer to get the answers they seek. In doing so, you’ll be positioning your business as the expert in the field and the leader in its industry, and sales are sure to follow.

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