By David Crary
We are in a high tech world and must embrace it. Many of you have invested in a
company website recently - according to our 2014 Green Industry Benchmark Report, 67% of respondents updated their website in the past year. If you haven’t taken this step already I highly suggest that you do. Not only will this service business marketing tactic help you pick up business through searches but you will also look legitimate to the people that were referred to you by friends and family.
It is always a good idea to view your website as a user once it is up and running. We use the following checklist for reviewing our website: www.Hindsitesoftware.com. We find these 5 components to be critical. If you get an “A” grade in each of these your site should be operating the way you need it to be.
1. Simple to Navigate: Does my site flow like most sites moving from left to right across the top or top to bottom on the left side? Are products and services named the way the consumer would think of them? Are all my lawn care services listed? Are all my snow removal services also listed?
2. Easy to Find Contact Information: Most of the customers or prospects that are on your site are going to be calling you for more information. This may be a quote for services or a technical question they need help with. Regardless, it is critical to have your phone number in clear view on the home page and preferably on every page. We like the upper right corner as it is very easy to see and probably the most important piece of information on the site.
3. Strong Content: Time to brag about who you are and why they should choose you for their service needs. Show pictures of work done across a spectrum from commercial to residential. What are some tips for keeping your lawn green or the ice dams from forming on your roof? You are the expert so let them know it. Let someone else brag about you and show off those testimonials on your website. Having the number of years you have been in business can build immediate trust and authority in the field.
4. A Call to Action: What you want to get from the visitor is a phone call or their contact information so you can reach out to them. The best way to get their information is to show a burst or bullet or rectangle that is an offer for the customer to click and that will take them to a form requesting more information. We often see “Free Estimate” or “10% off Services Booked by x-x-xx”. Anything to get them to click and provide some contact information is your goal. Engagement from your customers or prospects is key. Be sure to make it easy for them to do so!
5. Mobile Optimized Site: Your website needs to be readable with any mobile device. You don’t want the customer to get to your site and then get confused because they can’t easily navigate the information. They won’t stay long and you have lost a potential customer.
Now that you have reviewed these critical steps, take some time to go through your website and see how you grade yourself. This can be eye-opening and you may see some quality issues that need addressing. e.g. I saw “2013” on a few sites today which is a little unprofessional.
I took the time to review of our website and could honestly give us an “A” on all 5 critical components with the one exception: 4. Mobile optimized. Our site is readable on any mobile device but the links are not very user friendly for the demo feature. We will be working on improving this functionality.
Good luck with your review or with your first adventure in creating a website. Think of it as one of your "spring cleaning" tasks and embrace the opportunity. Less that 25 days to spring!
Wondering what other marketing tactics will make you stand out among your competition? Download our 2014 Green Industry Benchmark Report to find out what your peers are doing!
