Does Your Website Sell?

Most business advisers now days will you tell you that should have a website for your business because it can help bring in new customers. This is definitely true because a website can say so much more than a small Yellow Pages ad can. However, you can drive all the customers you want to your website but unless the website can sell, no one will be calling you. Here are some tips (which I use myself) to get more people calling you.

What are you all about?

I don’t know about you, but when I am searching for something on the internet, I open many websites at once, scan though them and close the ones that I don’t think are relevant to me. This whole process usually happens in under 40 seconds. I am not going to read a 500 word essay about the website only to find out that it isn’t what I want.

Experts say that if a visitor cannot tell what your website is about in less than 12 seconds, they will leave. This is why you need to have a short paragraph right at the top of your website saying what you are all about. Essentially, this your elevator pitch. For example:

Computer Help, Fast!
Joes Computer repair brings computer help to your home. Our experienced technicians are on all 7 days a week and we offer a “no fix, no fee” guarantee.

Short, sweet and to the point. It will definitely catch those people who spend less than 12 seconds on a website as it establishes exactly what you do, when you do it and put the client at ease with your “no fix, no fee” guarantee.

Get to the point

People don’t read webpages, they scan – especially when searching for something. As I mentioned before, I am not going to read a 500 word essay while I’m searching. If I believe the website has the information I want then I might read the 500 words extra, but you have to snag my attention first. This is why you should bullet point your content on your front page. Here is an example:

• Computer Crashes and Freezes
• Spyware and Popup removal
• Virus Removal
• Internet Setup
• Hardware Setup (printers, scanners, modems, routers, digital cameras etc.)
• Network Setup and Diagnosis (wireless and wired)
• New Computers
• Insurance Claims

….and more!

We charge $XX per Hour and are open 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.

This cuts out the word fluff, tells me what you do and for how much.

Don’t place external advertising on your website and rarely link to other websites

I see this all the time on computer businesses webpages and its very foolish. You may have paid 50 cents for a Google Adwords click or some other form of advertising to get the visitor to your website, only for them to click an external ad and leave. The worst type of external link is people placing Google Adsense ads on the business webpage because although they may have made 20 cents from that click, they just lost a client that would be worth at least $60.

The same thing happens with linking to external websites, you just send your client away. The only time its good to link to another site is if it helps build your profile. For example, if I had written some computer related articles for a large newspaper or something similar, I might link to the articles to help build up my credibility in my clients eyes. Otherwise, its not a good idea.

Have a call to action

Salesmen ask for the sale when they finish their pitch, and your website should do the same. If you have convinced your new client to use your services after they read your website copy, make it easy for them to start the process. This can be in the form of a phone number, an email address or if you are selling a product, a “Buy Now” button.

Try the above steps on your websites front page and I am sure you will see more calls or sales coming though your website. It works for me.