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By Matt Nickols
Founder and CEO, Cirrus ABS Corporation
Published in the May 2004 issue of Business People Magazine.
Most businesses in today’s economy understand the need for a corporate web site, but how important is your business web site? According to a recent report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, nearly two-thirds of Americans are online. 52% of Internet users say they have done research for their job online and more that eight out of ten Internet users have researched products and services online. The statistics are increasingly pointing to the fact that businesses and consumers are using the Internet as their primary research tool when making purchasing decisions.
Because of the widespread use of the Internet as a research tool, many of your prospective clients will form their first impressions of your business based upon your corporate web site. Once you have spent precious sales and marketing resources to get prospects to your site, how are you converting them to buyers? Regardless of your industry, budget, or target market, there are six key factors that are critical to long term success on the web.
Creating Measurable Success Criteria
The foundation of any successful web initiative is to determine the key metrics that will define success and track the performance of these metrics over time. Creating measurable success criteria will drive the design, functionality, marketing, and other business decisions relevant to your site.
Data Collection and Analysis
Once your goals have been established you will need to harness one of the most powerful aspects of the web: data collection and analysis. By implementing tools to collect and analyze data, you will understand what is happening on your site and why. Having the right data instantly available to you turns critical decisions from a wild shot in the dark, to a systematic process of decision making based on solid information. This allows you to continuously hone your site to most effectively meet your business objectives. Without this capability you are flying blind.
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| “The statistics are increasingly pointing to the fact that businesses and consumers are using the Internet as their primary research tool when making purchasing decisions.” |
| - Matt Nickols, Founder & CEO |
Promotion and Marketing Integration
To make prospects and clients aware of the site, it is critical to implement a promotion and marketing integration strategy. Your web promotion strategy should be an integrated part of every marketing effort for your business. Not only will this build awareness and drive traffic to the site, it will also help you gauge the effectiveness of other marketing channels.
Branding and Usability
The branding and usability aspects of your web site play a critical role in the overall success of your site. Right or wrong, companies are judged by the look of their site and how easy it is to use. A Stafford University study revealed that web site design and information design/structure were the top factors determining web site credibility among Internet users. Remember, your corporate web site is a visual representation of your value to the consumer.
Content and Functionality
A site’s content and functionality is the single most import factor in generating repeat site usage and referrals. The more thorough, timely, and relevant your site content the more valuable it is. Providing meaningful business functionality through the web site can save you significant amounts of money while providing a valuable service to customers.
Business Process Integration
For the content and functionality of your site to have maximum impact, it must integrate with existing business processes. Through business process integration you can decentralize site management, allowing your web site to become a tool that empowers employees to communicate with customers and transact business as part of the overall business process flow.
Building on the six pillars of success, companies can implement a strategy that will serve as a catalyst for overall company growth.
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