The marketing challenge of the Internet is, people go where they want. They’ll find you, thank you very much. That makes it hard to control the customer experience.
Or does it?
Too many companies use a scatter gun approach to the web experience they create, often driven by tactics instead of strategy. This month there’s an email blast, next month the VP finishes the blog, and the month after that the e-newsletter never goes out. This creates a customer experience guaranteed to have no impact.
It’s well worth taking a look at the bigger picture of web presence, and how to integrate all the elements to make a real difference in the marketplace. By web presence, we mean the customer experience you create through the strategic and consistent use of blogs, e-newsletters, webinars, fresh site content, and downloadable offers that advance the sales cycle.
1. The first keyword is strategic. Hold monthly sessions–by yourself if you have to–to decide what your strategy and topics should be for your web presence, or to set course corrections. Then make sure this is the focus of everything you do, in one way or another. This doesn’t mean you repeat the same content across blogs, emails and website. It does mean that all of these pieces of the puzzle should share a common theme and strategic goal. Also, always look for ways to reflect and leverage your larger branding and marketing programs. That creates synergy between your tactical programs and your largest corporate goals.
2. The second keyword is consistent. There’s a lot of noise out there, to put it mildly. To cut through it, you need consistency of presence as well as consistency of message. Blogs need to be updated on a regular basis, or don’t expect anyone to follow you. E-newsletters need to go out on time, month after month–on interesting topics that matter to your customers. Your home page should regularly have refreshed information and download offers. And, all of this should be driving people to contact you and maybe even share a little information about themselves.
For example, say green technology is a hot topic in your market space. You might blog that month about some of the leading technologies and issues on the horizon. Meanwhile, the case study could be about how your solution helped a specific customer reach their “green” goals. Your monthly e-newsletter could excerpt from these materials, adding any important company or product news. Your social media posts could be about interesting green news items that pop up that month. And on your home page, you could offer the case study for download, along with other relevant news.
When looked at individually, these elements of web presence can seem relatively minor and can easily fall through the cracks. You reminded the VP about the blog, but she didn’t have time to write down her thoughts. You called a meeting for the e-newsletter content, but a customer crisis got in the way. There’s always something more important to worry about.
On the other hand, when looked at together, what’s more important than your overall web presence? By making sure your efforts are both strategic and consistent, your web presence could well be your best channel for building brand and sustaining customer interest.
