In the 1990s having a Web site was an afterthought. In the early 2000s, businesses realized the potential of the Web, but only looked at it as a supplement to traditional advertising and marketing. Today, wise companies realize having a rock-solid Web site not only can provide them with lead generation, but also provide them with instant client feedback that they can utilize to help them re-shape their business for future success. Web 2.0 and 3.0 is all about social interaction and instant access to information.
Jeff Jarvis, the author of the book “What Would Google Do?” suggests smart businesses should go beyond the basic use of the Web (i.e., to push a message) and instead pursue active collaboration. So, while previously businesses valued customers primarily for their deep pockets, technology now enables businesses to tap customers’ potential as sources for information, guidance and insight. Such value is incalculable — this information can help your business refine its offerings and add services and solutions that you may not have realized were important to your customers .
Web sites run by channel partners in the communications marketplace can benefit from this advice. In reviewing agent and VAR online presences for this article, I noticed the need for more lead generation and client social interaction functionality. Here is a list of items that were missing from most of the sites I reviewed:
1. Social Interaction. This includes blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn, online forms, forums, etc.
2. Surveys. Client surveys help generate leads, referrals and feedback from clients.
3. Client Areas. Help clients help themselves with self-service areas such as trouble-ticketing, proposal generation, service forums, incentive programs, billing, etc.
4. E-Commerce. Enable customers to place orders for services online.
5. Employee Intranets. These usually include training, satellite office interaction, employee incentive programs, current pricing/product info, etc.
6. Live Chat. Enables personnel to answer sales and customer service questions in a real-time setting.
7. E-Mail Marketing. Allow customers and prospects to opt-in to the company e-mail newsletter and special offers.
8. Professional Design. A Web site can be a first impression for prospects and should reflect the company’s image.
The most needed improvement among the agent and VAR Web sites I reviewed was search engine optimization (SEO). Most of the sites lacked the basic on-page SEO needed to tell the search engines how and where the site should show up in the search results. This data includes meta content, H1 and H2 title tags, Alt Tags for images and search-friendly text. If you don’t know what these are, seek out a promotional agency that has the knowledge to craft the content of each Web page so search engines will return your Web page under the search term clients and prospects most likely will use to find your company.
If you’re going to make a Web investment, make sure that it's designed to get the maximum return on your investment. You want a Web site that not only looks professional, but is designed to provide the maximum results for the free search engine listings. So, if you sell NEC phone systems in Central Florida, you want to be on the first page of the free results in Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc.
