Many B2B and B2C firms think that their website is all about their company. But, in reality, it’s not. This is the main reason why a business’ website fails.
Let me explain what I mean by this. Your business’ website should not focus on your company; rather, it should focus on what value your company offers to the customer or client. Everything about your company’s website should focus on what matters to the customer.
Many of the clients I work with are very knowledgeable about their ideal customer, so we can help them build a website that suits the needs of their customers. Let’s take a quick look at how you can create a successful website by simply keeping your customer at the center of the process.
Determine What Matters to the Customer
Start by determining what really matters to your customer. Is it cost, capabilities, scheduling, quantity, or design? It’s helpful to build an ideal client profile that includes the pain points of your customer. Do customers choose you over your competitors because you have a just-in-time supply chain? Or do they appreciate your additional level of customer service that includes a 24-hour response time via email or on all support tickets?
Create a list of 3-5 very specific pain points to keep in mind when creating your website. The pain points should inform everything from the website structure to the copy to the imagery on the site.
Create Content the Customer Wants to Consume
When building out your B2C or B2B website, you want to ensure the content is useful for your customer. It should help educate them about your products or services, communicate why they should care about your products or services, let them know what separates you from the competitor, and/or teach them how to best utilize your products or services.
Content can include (but is not limited to):
• Web pages that break down the benefits of your products or services
• Blog posts that provide tips for maximizing your service or product
• Ebooks on how to complete a particular task
• Case studies about how customers have benefited from your products and services
• Customer testimonials that share what it’s like to work with your company
• Videos showing how a product or service works
By creating content that customers care about and are looking for, you are in-turn building trust and credibility for your company.
Make Sure Every Aspect of Your Website Accounts for the Customer or User Experience (CX or UX)
Knowing and understanding your ideal customer helps you to determine how they are going to interact with or use your new website.
If your ideal customer is pressed for time and needs to make a decision quickly, make sure all the information they need is near the top of the page or can be accessed in 1 – 2 clicks on the website.
If your ideal client needs to speak with a sales person to get more details, place your phone number high up and on several different spots on the website.
If your ideal client or customer wants to learn more about your services and how they work, put those content pieces front and center on your website to ensure they can get to that information fast.
Takeaway
In the end, you know your customer and what drives them. Take that information and harness it to create a successful website that meets their needs by anticipating what they are looking for on the website.
