Specific, well thought-out content is important for a business website.
If you’re looking to attract new customers with your website then you need content that will work to achieve this goal. You know that putting minimal effort into your website content will yield minimal results yet for some reason content gets put out of mind when it comes time to actually do the writing.
We tend to focus on the design, which is important, but we don’t want to lose focus on the content. When it comes to attracting customers the design and the content need to work together.
When we talk about attracting customers it’s important to realize there are a few different types of customers that are using the Internet to find information. For your business there are a few points along the sales funnel where your target customer will be.
First, there are customers out there that don’t even realize they need something. They might have a problem or an inconvenience, but they aren’t actively looking for a solution.
Second, there are customers looking for a solution. These customers are researching the problem they have and they’re looking for any information that can help.
Third, there are customers that have found a solution or two and are looking at comparables to make sure they are making the right decision.
For this post we’ll focus on customers that are in the research stage of the funnel. These folks are looking for solutions.
Here is how you can attract their attention.
Attract Researching Customers with Website Content
You’ve probably done research online before. Most people look to Google when they are looking for something. For the person that is researching solutions they have come to realize that something in their life is really getting out of control. They want more convenience or they want to eliminate that nagging issue. They go to Google or they ask a friend for a referral for something that might work.
Your goal, as a business owner with a website, is to be there when your target customer is in this stage of making a purchase.
Here are three steps to being there when your customers are searching for solutions.
First, create long service pages. A few months ago we talked about long form content on websites. When creating your selling content think about the conversations you have with prospective customers in real life. Think about the questions they ask and use your answers for the content on the website. Usually this process makes it easier to write content and you’ll be surprised at how long the pages will actually get on your site and that’s okay. The people that read long web pages are the people that actually pay for things.
Second, write point of view articles about the latest news. When people hear about certain industries or certain solutions they start researching. Usually the industry is new to these folks so they’re looking for information on how they should interpret things. This is where you can come in and provide your point of view on specific topics. When people are searching for things they’ll find your articles and visit your site. These articles build trust and show how you position yourself as a company.
Third, write how-to articles. Some people call this evergreen content. Others call it informational content. Whatever you call it the basic idea is to write the kind of content that gives direction on the basics in your industry. Some people in this stage of research like to think they can do something themselves. They look for how-to information with the idea that they can do it, but as they read more information or as they try to fix things they realize they need help. That’s when they remember that you’ve provided great information. They trust you. They call you up and make a purchase. How-to articles are also great for sharing on social sites. When people discover something useful they tend to share it with peers. That means more referral and word of mouth for your company.
Those are three ways you can attract customers that are researching and looking for specific solutions. Focus on these types of content on your website and you should see your website getting more traffic from search engines and social sharing sites like Twitter and Facebook.