Illusion Technologies: Web Development

A Website Design Strategy That Works For Local Businesses
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=G_Michael_Simmons]G Michael Simmons

The number of poorly designed websites, from a business standpoint, continues to be a problem especially when a local business is the focal point of the site. The unfortunate thing is that design flaws that lead to eventual web failure are totally avoidable. The problem is that most web designers take the aesthetic approach to web design; that is design and “the professional look” takes presence over business principles.


I review a number of local business web sites for their owners, to find out why they draw little if any traffic and business. Through the years I have developed a strategy that if followed in the planning stages of a site will greatly increase the chances of that sites success. I call it InterWeb Success Strategy. It is based on a simple three step process:


1. Identify: This is the most often overlooked part of developing a website, yet it certainly is the most crucial one to guarantee success. You must be able to identify the terms and things that your potential customers are searching for that relates to your business or service. I have seen many sites that are built upon the “billboard” principle, which is “highlight what you do and hope enough people see it that the message will stick”. Sometimes that will work in the offline world, but the online world is a different animal. Online, your prospects are the hunters-you are the hunted. They know what they are looking for, what solutions they need. It is up to you to provide them the information they seek. Tools such as Wordtracker™ and Google’s Keyword Suggestion Tool are great resources to dig out your prospective customers online searches and incorporate them into your website design strategy.


2. Strategize: Now that you know what your prospects are looking for, you have to develop a plan to both bring them to your site and get them to use your services. There are a number of ways to build traffic to your site, the problem with most local businesses is that they have a misguided belief that websites are self containing cash machines. Put it up and let it do it’s thing. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. Like anything worthwhile, work is involved. You must plan to continually update your site, adding relative content that provides searchers with valuable information. The more you solve their immediate problem, the more inclined they will be to use you and your products/services.


3. Optimize: Once you have developed a plan in regards to your prospects needs and your products or services, you must be able to optimize your presence on the web so that your site is found. One analogy that I keep referring to with my customers is “you can build a Ritz Carlton in the middle of the Mojave Desert, and nobody will visit or know it is there”. You must think out a plan to get your site ranked as high as possible for the major keywords on your site. There are numerous ways to achieve and maintain high search engine rankings. My suggestion would be to visit your local library and check out a book on Search Engine Optimization and at least have a working knowledge on what would be the best strategy for your particular situation.


By following this simple outline you will avoid many of the pitfalls that de-rail many a local businesses sites. And your website will become a central point of your marketing efforts to grow your business, both online and offline.

The author, Michael Simmons, owned his own business for 27 years before going into web marketing. He now specializes in optimizing the web presence for local businesses through website development. You can visit his website at http://www.gmsimmons.com He also utilizes video, developing web video ads thru http://www.proweb-video.com He can be emailed at [mailto:mike@gmsimmons.com]mike@gmsimmons.com

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