This blog post is part of our series on how to create a successful business website.

Earlier we spoke about how to find a web designer. Design is an important part of creating trust in your brand. Today, we are going to discuss another important strategy to create trust in your brand: content creation.

When creating content, many website owners fail to recognize that content is an important element of your marketing strategy.

Whenever somebody lands on your website, your content and imagery are effectively your sales people. The content needs to be convincing, persuasive and give incentives to the reader to contact you and buy your product and service.

But how do you get your content to do that? We’ll, that’s what we are here to explain:

Website Content That Sells

The first thing to do when creating content is to define:

1. Who your ideal customer is and what their defining attributes are;
2. Understand the problems they face;
3. How you can offer them solutions that solve their problem.

Now understand the mindset of your customer. He or she is trying to solve a problem related to your product. In our case, our customers try to find a website. Since our ideal customers are business owners, we know they are looking for a professional website that can generate leads and converts customers. As a result, our content reflects that.

If you understand the NEED of your customer, and you can immediately show him or her that you can address this need in a professional manner, than the battle is already half won.

To better understand the needs of your customers, read our blog post on defining your target audience.

Caveat: The Best Sales People Are Mentors

Once you start trying to sell to someone, you activate the ’sales wall’. Many sellers approach a sales man with their guard up, the erect a wall of suspicion. And that is the correct attitude: after all, sales people could have their bottom line in mind more than the customer’s need.

To avoid skepticism, structure your content so that it becomes a guide or a mentor in the customer’s quest to solve his or her problem. You want to have a conversation with your prospect that is free of pitching and selling. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a call to action, but it does mean that you should focus on the problem, not the sale. At least, not just yet.

Add a Call to Action

There is a term that was coined in the late 90’s to describe the average surfer: ‘wandering drunk’. This seems a bit harsh, but on the Internet, everyone seems to have ADD. Content is scanned, people stare at pages an average of 10 seconds before they decide whether they like your site or not, and you get very little time to sell your proposition.

You already know that your content needs to be targeted. It also needs to be short, to the point, and visual where possible.

But you don’t just want your visitors to understand that you can solve their problem. You want them to CONTACT you.

‘That’s what the contact’ button on my site is for’, you say. We say: ‘on the net, you have to be more obvious.’

Numerous studies have shown that if you end your copy with a way to contact you, either by calling or via email, you will dramatically increase the amount of people who contact you.

On your website, it is important to tell people what you want them to do: ‘you found your solution, now contact us’.

Content and SEO

The more content you create, the more your website can be found for important keywords in your industry.

Just like in real estate, on the web, websites thrive based on three rules: location, location, location. In case of your website, you should be prominently featured on the first page of google when somebody looks for your product, service or brand.

How to do this is part of a longer discussion, and we’ll discuss how to attract visitors to your site via social media and SEO in the two coming months.

For now, it is important that you know what people type into the Google search box when they are looking for a company like yours.

How to do this is demonstrated in this video:

Now that you know what your audience is searching for, make sure that you include these keywords in your copy. This will help your users find your website. Don’t force it though, keep your site sounding natural.

Mention your keyword once in your contents title, once in the first paragraph and once in the closing paragraph.

There is much more to this – including coding of your website (talk to your web designer) and some advanced strategies. Stick with us, because we will be discussing how to get your website to rank well in search engines in the coming months. You can also get help in our SEO Forum, where our community is quick to respond to questions.

The Beauty of Content Marketing

Television ads work because of their wide reach, but they convert less. Websites convert more visitors to customers than TV ads (in general) and with the help of SEO can attract a large number of visitors month by month.

Why do websites convert better than TV ads?

Because TV ads interrupt. You are watching a program and all of the sudden your are told of a solution when you really rather be relaxing. It works, because with enough exposure, you start feeling that the brand is somehow ‘familiar’. But it takes a lot of repeated exposure, and that is why mobile phone companies for instance advertise so often on TV and elsewhere.

Websites are different. When you get a visitor, it is because he or she did a search on Google or another search engine and landed on your site. They have a problem and are actively looking for a solution. So if you can convince them that you have a solution right there and then, your chances of having the visitor contact you are dramatically higher than a TV ad.

And that is why you should pay attention to your content. It is a powerful marketing tool, but often misused. Follow the guidelines in this article, and you should see a rise in the amount of people who contact you after visiting your website.

If you need someone to design your corporate site, take a look at our web design services, or contact us here.

Any thoughts, any questions. Feel free to leave us a comment or see advice about building your website in our forum.