When I meet a client the first time I’m always looking to answer a few questions to get a better sense of their current business or service and one of the questions I will always ask is “What is your goal for your website?”.
This might sound like some cliché marketing logic but it usually catches most clients by surprise and they can’t identify the problem.
Know your problem:
What is the problem your business is currently facing? I’m a firm believer that web designers & developers are problem solvers. We are generally faced with some pretty unique scenarios and have to come up with custom solutions. With the popularity of website builders for small businesses, website design has become primarily focused around offering better value, results and unique solutions.
But back to the point, what is the actual problem you are facing with your business that a website will solve.
- Do you need more traffic?
- Do you need more sales?
- Are you setting a goal to transition your business to online-only?
- Do you feel pressured to go online?
Identifying the problem is the first step to creating a viable solution.
Know your market (especially locally)
It’s important to look at key demographics or analytics that may be available for any previous website, social media accounts and determine what results you may see in the near future.
Your competition may be one of the problems you are facing and it’s common to be in a position where you feel like you are lagging behind. What are they doing online? How can you do better and present your value to the customer?
More traffic can bring stronger clients
The idea of having traffic to your brand, website or social media accounts seems like a sure-fire way to generate more business right? It’s surprisingly common to come across a client who will say “I don’t need the business but I need an online presence”.
The statement may be correct and the business may genuinely not need any more business at its current size but more traffic can mean better business. For example, you can easily filter out jobs for your existing business by using your website to cater to a high value demographic (by age, location, income or commercial / residential).
It’s important to consider that more traffic can mean a different type of client, and the freedom to work on desirable projects.
Solving the problem
Once you have identified the problem you can look towards a solution. A Web Agency can put together a plan and give you the tools to measure your results. Our clients are given realistic timelines, analytics tools and full SEO reporting to show how valuable their investment is and will continue to grow in the future.
