With nearly a billion websites out there, what sets you apart? For that matter, what sets Amazon or Google apart? Ah, they’re household names, and your small business isn’t yet. To get it to the “household name” level is going to take some work. In 1994 there was no Amazon. There was no Google. They worked to get recognized and build their brand, and that’s something you have to do as well. So when you come to me and say you’re not getting any website traffic, the light bulb goes off.
You haven’t tried to get website traffic.
A website isn’t a fix all marketing guarantee. There’s no such thing. That’s one of many reasons I believe small to medium businesses don’t recognize the value of a good website. They stuck one up, put no effort into it at all, added no content whatsoever, and expected something to happen. The guy hanging out at the Wal-Mart entrance with a sign saying, “Will work for food,” has actually put in more effort to get recognized then many people who popped up a quickie website in the vast desert that is the Internet.
This takes a little work folks. A few sentences and a single photo on an automated site builder from 1and1.com buys you nothing but a billboard in the Antarctic in front of a few lonely penguins.
I’m not getting any website traffic….
Today I was approached by another RV’er about issues with his website. He’s a dog trainer trying to get noticed in the world. And he does great work with aggressive dogs. His work is so good that local ASPCA locations invite him to come work with dogs that have been left with them. And he’s looking to get his name out there, and get recognized by dog owners as the guy to go to when you have aggression issues with your 4 legged friends.
Last month he signed up to 1and1.com for a simple website. He used their website builder. He created 3 pages about his business. 1 photo on each page. A few short sentences on each page. And he signed up for Google Analytics to see how his site is doing. And the results?
No visitors. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch.
Google wants him to buy some Google Ad Words. 1and1 has a service to get you found. There are a million services out there that say they’ll get you on page 1 of Google in your local area. One of those services called me the other day guaranteeing me page 1 Google. I asked them what search term they were guaranteeing me. And you know what happened? The telemarketer hung up on me, even though I was playing along so well……guess I scared him with that question.
You know what gets you found? Content. Meaningful content. Pictures help. Even better, a story helps. What does your business do? Where does your business operate. What are the results of what you do? Oh yeah, and make it super easy for me to find all this information because I’m an impatient Internet shopper who is only going to give you about 15 seconds of my time to sell me.
Wow, that’s a lot of work.
Nothing has changed but your reach
The Internet, like all other forms of marketing, requires attention to detail, actual information, and an investment of time and energy. A single page website will buy you nothing. A content rich website with relevant information, SEO, mobile friendly capabilities, and simplicity of design will buy you something. In the end to do it right it’s going to be an investment of your time, or the time of someone you hire to do it right.
That is no different than marketing to the world previously. Large companies spent hundreds of man hours getting brands recognized. Darrin from Bewitched made his sweet sweet living, and martini budget, in the advertising world. People paid him bank to get them known, and to become a household brand. It wasn’t Samantha’s magic that kept the infinite martini machine running. It was an advertising executive’s salary that did.
Now we have the Internet. And anyone can post an online business card for pennies. And if you’re lucky you might get those pennies back. But if you want more return on your investment? Well, you’re going to have to make a real investment. You don’t have to hire me. You can spend months and months learning what I know. And while you’re doing that? You’re not working in your own profession. So that will probably end badly on the financial front.
We’ll get you website traffic
RLC Design Services exists to help you build an effective, easy to use, informative website. That’s what we do. We’re not guaranteeing you Google Page 1 within a week of working with you. That’s insane. Your competitors made an investment in their sites, and it will take a little time for you to catch up. But we will get you there. And you’re going to have to do a little work too. We work with you to get your site the attention and recognition it deserves. And when we’re done you will see the difference. Your customers will see the difference. And it will impact your business in a way you never expected. It will grow your business…..making more work for you.