If You Build It – They Will Come, Won’t They?

I recently had a client who already had a website, but was puzzled, and wanted my help, because she rarely got any hits, let alone sales from it.

Which explains the title this month – just because you have built a website, doesn’t mean customers will come pouring in. You MUST be proactive and market your website!

There are lots of great ways to market your site.

Newsletters – send out a newsletter to your old clients, new prospects and friends and family – make sure you have their permission and give them an option to unsubscribe from your mailing list (and that you follow through and delete them if they ask) and it is perfectly legal. And whenever you ask someone for their telephone number so you can contact them later, get their email address, too.

Print media – all of your signs, business cards, brochures, postcards, letters, letterhead, billboards, direct mail, and any other print media has your website address on it.
Blog – your blog (if you’ve kept one up) is a great way to get your website address out there and in front of people.
Your email signature – you can set up your email program to automatically add your signature at the bottom of every email you send out. Include your name, phone number and website address on that signature.
Write articles and post them in article banks with your website prominently displayed.
Guerilla marketing techniques. If you’ve never read Guerrilla Marketing, by Jay Conrad Levinson, you should. He says that you shouldn’t have to spend tons of money to get your name out there – what you really need to spend is time, energy and imagination to make potential customers aware of your service or product.
These are just some ways to market your web site – but the most important thing to remember is that just because you have spent a lot of time, money and effort on building a website – doesn’t mean they will come. Ya gotta let ‘em know you’re there!
 
Give me a call if you have any email or SPAM questions – I just received the Constant Contact All Star Award for excellence in email marketing. I can help you with a custom template to match your website or show you how to get articles that you don’t have to write. Give me a call if you need help with your website cleanup. Ask for a FREE evaluation.

Don’t Forget the Basics

As I surf the web, I constantly come across great looking and technically cool web sites that have all the bells and whistles and totally FORGET the basics! Look at your website with your customer’s eyes. See if there is any important information missing!

Little things like:

Contact information, phone number, mailing address, email address.

What it is that you are selling! It is amazing to me that sometimes you literally have to dig for this basic information! It is so buried in “say nothing” rhetoric, that it is literally impossible to tell what is for sale! Don’t be afraid, say it up front!

Navigation. Believe it or not, this is really common. The navigation bar should include access to all the main sections of the website. Not just the home page, and NEVER expect them to “just use the back button.”

Company name. Sometimes, this is also difficult to find. I like to see some kind of company branding/logo on every page.

Go back to your web site and look carefully. If you don’t see these basics on EVERY PAGE, it is time to go back to the drawing board.

Giving Thanks for a Difficult Year

What doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger!

It has been a very difficult year, but I’m starting to pull out of it and I’m really counting my blessings!

I was out sick for about 3 months this summer and because I’m a sole proprietor, I’ve had to just about rebuild my business from scratch. At least I knew what I needed to do to start getting clients again. And I was healthy enough to go out and do it.

My blessings – my husband, a saint in disguise. My family – my sister was a rock, although I think she was more worried than I was. My friends – Harriott – thanks for the Friday night wine – sometimes I really needed to talk, and Jackie – your garden is almost as big as your heart. The Graham community – everyone who asked how I was doing and sent me referrals – you are all great!

And while I still have a ways to go, things are looking up. I also have some new things to try and new directions to go. Pouncy Designs is stronger than ever! What a Blessing!

Pick Three Things

I’m working hard and things are happening. I’m going to a lot of networking events. If you see me there, say hi – and tell me you’ve read my blog… I’m having a hard time keeping up with it, so I need some encouragement!

I’ve got so many things going on that I’m running in circles a bit. My husband reminds me to always take a deep breath and “pick three things you can do right now”. Which always works. I sometimes get in these “log jams” when I’m overwhelmed with tasks and they all seem to interconnect. In other words, I can’t do task A because it is waiting on task B, which is waiting on task C and D… and on and on.

So my brilliant and very calm husband (who says he can tell how overwhelmed I am by how loud I yell) just says “Pick three things, Kim”. And it always works. I do those three things and all of a sudden the log jam breaks and things fall in line.

So I have – and the blog is one of the three! And now, I’m off to do the other two…

It’s Been A While

It’s been a while since I last posted. I always have the best intentions, but it never seems to work out that way.

I’ve been working very hard at figuring out a new product. I’d like to offer a very inexpensive web site package (trying to get it to $99) and still make a profit. Not easy! My thinking is that even in this economy, people still need to advertise their businesses – they still need a web presence, but I need to pitch to what they can afford at this time. So anyway, that’s the goal.

I am also working on some online classes I’m taking. Learning more about what’s out there for my customers. Another goal.

Graham Business Association “Blog School” Great Success!

Tuesday night’s Blog School was a great success for the GBA members who attended. About 20 people attended, several brought their laptops and we all worked on setting up our blogs right there. Kieran Murry, www.kieranslist.com, who led the class, was  clear, patient and easy to follow.

Dennis Endres of Keller Williams was there to talk about his blog, Puyallup Undressed, how successful it was and what it has done for his business. He does it all with photos!

Amici’s donated wonderful appetizers (enough for dinner!) and Pat and Kim talked about how their blog saved them when their website crashed.

All in all, the Blog School was a great success – we’re even talking about doing it again!

Rock On, Patrick!

This week I had coffee with a charming gentleman and sales and marketing wizard, Patrick Williams. He is the owner and head guru of You Rock Communications and writer of the Selling Sherpa Blog. Although slightly obsessed with rock music, he had some great insights and I learned a lot. He is from our area and I really look forward to working with him, what an education!

Patrick is amazingly knowledgeable about blogging. He is very proud, and rightfully so, to be awarded the 2008 Top Ten Sales Blog just last week. I learned some very important stuff that I will pass on to many of my clients. He said, “to get your blog to really work for you, that is, drive traffic to your web site and people to your business, you need three things – Activity, Connectivity and Volume.”

Well Patrick, I’m working on it. I’m learning to enjoy writing these little entries, and remembering to add them to my to do list every day. Thanks, and ROCK ON!

If Business is Slow this Month…

Now is the perfect time to work on your business! All your customers are on vacation this month, so take this “quiet time” to work on your business. Check over your marketing pieces – brochure, web site, business card, etc. Make sure they are still great pieces, or do they need a little refurbishing? Do they still say what you want said about your business? Businesses change all the time, I know mine does. Make sure your marketing reflects those changes.

This month I’m trying to redesign my own web site – I’ve added a new product – Web Site Tonight, a Do It Yourself web site product for those who want to keep total control of their web site (and I know you’re out there!) For a very low monthly charge, which includes web hosting charges, use our new software to produce your own web site. What’s the difference between this product and Yahoo’s? Well, you get the expert advice of a seasoned web professional – Me!

I’ll let you all know when the new web site is up and ready… meanwhile, check out your own marketing materials.

Gathering Dust?

Don't let your web site end up in the "ether landfill".

Is your web site just hanging out there gathering dust? Have you looked at it lately? Have you looked at it in the past 3 years? Yes, you should check it over, make sure everything is correct and all the links work, at least every 6 months. Keep it looking great and representing your business! Call me and clean up your web site!

I am NOT a FLAKE

I’ve been talking to a lot of people lately, who have had trouble with their web designers. These supposedly good businesspeople up and quit and don’t tell their clients, they won’t return phone calls, and they miss appointments and don’t tell anyone. They even pack up their computers and move to Peru!

Kim Pouncy, left, networking with friends

What is it about the web? Is it an open invitation to be flakey? I am appalled by their bad behavior (sometimes even criminal!) and worst of all, they make ME look bad because I have to work through the bad reputation left behind. I have heard some pretty bad stories – anyone else?