E-BRANDING: WHAT IS IT?

10 years ago, if you asked someone what marketing was they would answer selling and advertising. Marketing guru, Al Ries, says, “Today most products are bought, not sold. As a profession and as a function, selling is slowly sinking like the Titanic.”

What does this mean to your business – how can you put this piece of information to use on your website?

E-Branding is the answer – branding pre-sells a product or service and is simply a more efficient way to sell things. And the ultimate in brand-centered buying is happening on the Internet.

So what is e-branding and can it help you to expand? It’s associating a word or name in the mind of your customers with what you do. It conjures up images and qualities. E-branding is more important than e-commerce
You may be after the e-commerce, but you wont get very far unless you do e-branding first. Why? Brands influence buying behavior.

Why buy Hagen Daz? Or Mercedes? They have a certain image. We associate certain qualities with the name. That’s a successful brand.

As an entrepreneur you are a brand. Your company is a brand. Your customers have an image of you, whether you think so or not. Take control of it and position your brand in the minds of your potential customers.

And make sure that they have you in mind when they go online to look for something in your category. When they think of your product or your service, your name should pop right into their heads.

Think Chevy, Ford, BMW. Each one has a distinct set of images and qualities that come right to mind. You need to differentiate yourself this way.

You can’t please all the people all the time, my mother used to tell me. How right she was. Broadening your base is not the answer. Focus, focus, focus are the key words. Many successful companies got that way by narrowing their focus, concentrating on one area and making that stick in the minds of their customers.

When you know who you’re trying to sell your product or service to, devise a branding strategy for that audience. How do you find them? Figure out who has the greatest need for your product or service. Then decide how you want to be perceived by that group. And repeat it again and again and again.

E-BRANDING: WHAT IS IT?

10 years ago, if you asked someone what marketing was they would answer selling and advertising. Marketing guru, Al Ries, says, “Today most products are bought, not sold. As a profession and as a function, selling is slowly sinking like the Titanic.”

What does this mean to your business – how can you put this piece of information to use on your website?

E-Branding is the answer – branding pre-sells a product or service and is simply a more efficient way to sell things. And the ultimate in brand-centered buying is happening on the Internet.

So what is e-branding and can it help you to expand? It’s associating a word or name in the mind of your customers with what you do. It conjures up images and qualities. E-branding is more important than e-commerce, says Annette Hamilton of ZD Net.

You may be after the e-commerce, but you wont get very far unless you do e-branding first. Why? Brands influence buying behavior.

Why buy Hagen Daz? Or Mercedes? They have a certain image. We associate certain qualities with the name. That’s a successful brand.

As an entrepreneur you are a brand. Your company is a brand. Your customers have an image of you, whether you think so or not. Take control of it and position your brand in the minds of your potential customers.

And make sure that they have you in mind when they go online to look for something in your category. When they think of your product or your service, your name should pop right into their heads.

Think Chevy, Ford, BMW. Each one has a distinct set of images and qualities that come right to mind. You need to differentiate yourself this way.

You can’t please all the people all the time, my mother used to tell me. How right she was. Broadening your base is not the answer. Focus, focus, focus are the key words. Many successful companies got that way by narrowing their focus, concentrating on one area and making that stick in the minds of their customers.

When you know who you are and what you do you can find those you want to target your product or service at. Devise a branding strategy for that audience.

How do you find them? Figure out who has the greatest need for your product or service. Then decide how you want to be perceived by that group.

Use your website and other Internet outlets to forward this message to your audience.

And repeat it again and again and again.

The Ten Top Mistakes on Websites

Statistics show that over 80 percent of websites are frustrating to use and that over 90 percent of corporate websites have technology on them that prevents them from being seen by search engines.

Bill Gates said that soon there will be only two kinds of businesses – those with an effective website and those with no business at all!

There is real marketing power in a website – use these insights to tap into that power.

1. No clear strategy when building the website

We’ve all heard the adage “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Without a clear strategy of what you want your website to do, and why you are creating it, it can only be effective by accident.

Too many business owners say their strategy was “to have a website.” Or it was thrown together to meet some deadline occurring for the company - a trade show or acquisition.

As with any other marketing or communication action – it is “know before you go.” A good strategic plan will make all the difference.

At the very least you have to have answers to these questions:

· What is the major business objective we hope to achieve with this site?
· Who is the primary audience we want to attract?
· How Web savvy are they?
· What is our core message?
· What do we want them to do on the site?
· What will they want to do on the site?
· What information will they be looking for on the site?
· How can we fulfill their needs in a way that also achieves our objectives?

2. Not using the site as an integral part of your business and marketing plans

Your website is a communication tool. It is part of your marketing and PR activity. It is not just something you “have to have.” It is something that can and should be used as an integral part of you marketing strategy.

The Website offers incredible information and insights – if you know where to look. You can use it to track trends, see where visitors are going, what content interests them and how these patterns change over time.

A website is a powerful tool – use it. You can pretest products and offers, qualify sales leads, gather new leads and survey your current customers. If all you have is a static brochure you’re not using your website to its full potential. Make it part of your marketing and brand strategy or you’re missing out on one of the most effective business platforms of our time.


3. Not focusing on your Users

Any basic marketing course will teach you that all your marketing efforts will be wasted if you do not start with your customer. The same applies to your website. First and foremost, find out who your likely visitors to the site will be.

Invest in some research – who are they, what do they do, where else do they go on the Net, what are they looking for?

A website is all about starting a conversation with your customers. If you have not yet read The Cluetrain Manifesto, do so. Create a human face and talk with your customers – don’t speak at them.

Build the site for them, test how they use it and make it easy to find what they want.

4. Designing for the wrong audience

Once you have done your research and have your prospective users firmly in your sights, don’t get off track. This site is not for you and your managers.

Too many CEO’s and business owners look inward when building a site. Realize that you will never use the site. Keep those users in sight. Ask not what this site can do for you, but what it can do for your users.

By all means get input from your employees – but take it with a grain of salt. Invest in usability studies and make sure you are making the best site possible for your ideal customer. Find out what they think of your designs and your navigation system.


5. Spending the budget on design and programming

The number one reason someone goes to a website is content. Not graphics, not programming – content. Yet content is the last item on the list in the budget, if it is there at all.

You have just eight seconds to attract and interest your visitor when they land on your home page. Will the graphics do it? Maybe, if they are crafted around your core message. Will the programming? No.

It’s the content that tells them your site is relevant, credible and worth their time to look into.

Invest in an experienced writer who understands the difference between writing for print and writing for a webpage - why web copy needs to be based on keywords and what keyword density to use for the search engines.

6. Dazzling with bleeding edge technology

Designers love to use the very latest in cutting edge technology – so far on the cutting edge you often leave your visitors bleeding. A Flash intro was hot - now it’s not. Companies are realizing people get annoyed.

Flash has its place – use it to enhance a page or to explain and demonstrate product or service.

Too much motion and animation “just because you can” has a negative effect on your user.

7. Not thinking about the media

If you’re not, you should be. Third party endorsement through media is the fastest way to start a fire. Marketing and advertising will fan the flames, but publicity builds credibility.

A news section on your site can be used to impress future customers and employees, but you must also make it useful for journalists.

Journalists have deadlines. They often use your site after hours and can’t contact anyone. Usually their first action is to visit your website. Post a complete media kit in the news room:

Contact details for your media spokesperson
Bios of the Execs with high resolution photographs
Corporate background information
Good illustrations/photographs of your main products
Logo in multiple formats that can be downloaded
Press releases

8. Build it and they will come

Unfortunately not. Even if we do invent that better mousetrap no one will be beating a path to our door unless they know about it, and they know where the door is.

People do not magically appear on your website. You have to put it where people are looking and make it easy to find. Then you have to beat the drum and make sure they know about you. All standard marketing actions.

We tend to forget our marketing basics when it comes to the Internet. It is just another communication medium. Research has shown that a surprisingly large number of corporate web users use search engines to access a website – even when they know the URL. Many companies have increased their traffic, conversion rates and income from simple search engine optimization strategies.

9. Building a maze

Ever been to a website and couldn’t find what you were looking for? Couldn’t complete your task or get through the buying process? The majority of websites are like a maze and finding the good stuff is buried deep in the site.

Why make it a marathon of frustration for your users? Build your site with clear signposts to the major content your users will be after. Be clear – no “mystery meat navigation” and cutesy advertising type links that don’t give you a clue as to what content it links to.

Be simple. Get a good information architect to help you plan the site based on user research.

10. No future plans and support

Getting the site up is not the end of the road; it’s the beginning of your online marketing program. You need a great designer. You need a proficient programmer. But you also need a marketing team.

Online marketing is evolving at a dizzying pace – nowhere do the rules change so fast. It takes dedication to keep up with the changes just in the search engines, let alone all the other aspects.theh recent changes at google taught some e-commerce marekters this lesson. They woke up one monring and found their traffic has gone away.

To design and implement an effective customer relationship online takes a full team of experts, but the rewards are great.

An excellent checklist for usability on e-commerce websites is available at

Ring the bell at cre8pc.com

Copyright 2002 All Rights Reserved Falkoweb

TOP TEN ERRORS ON A HOMEPAGE FOR 2003

Jakob Nielsen has just released his top ten errors on a homepage for 2003. As these mistakes are seen on major corporate websites, it's a good bet you may have some on your website too.

Nielsen calls your homepage the most valuable piece of real estate you own. As the New Year approaches, it's time to re-evaluate what your website is doing for your business. Do you have an effective marketing tool or a cobweb site?

In this issue

Nielsen's Home Page Guidelines
Top Ten Errors in 2003
What can you do about it?
Free Home Page Usability Analysis

Nielsen's Home Page Guidelines

Your home page is your face to the world. Studies show that people go to the Web for information more than any other source - when someone wants to find out about you, they do a search online. This applies to those looking for employment, vendors, prospective clients and even the media .

Your Home Page is the starting point for most user visits. Improving your homepage multiplies the entire website's business value, so following Nielsen's guidelines for homepage usability is well worth the investment.

Guidelines for Home Page usability »


Top Ten Errors in 2003

Although sites are getting better at designing for usability reports Nielsen, there are still some glaring errors that are annoying and frustrating users.
One that has been on the list for many years - and now ranks top of the list - is not being clear about the purpose of your site.

When a user comes to your site they need to know right away who you are, what you do and why they should be on your site rather than any other.

When your content is not clear and the purpose and unique offer of the site is not well wriiten and claer to the user, it is harder for them to fit all the other facts into a framework or context they can understand. Confusing your visitors means you are losing visitors. Studies show 66% of all potential clients are lost right off the home page. A little research and well written content makes all the difference to a home page

Read Nielsen's article »


What can you do about it?

Making your website user focused and spending the time and money to research your potential users and their needs will go a long way to fixing these problems.
Getting a simple and easy to understand stats (metrics) tool on the website will give you the insight you need to make intelligent content and marketing decisions about the site. Find out what your users are doing once they are on the site.

This allows you to focus on the areas that need to be user tested. It tells you where the problem areas are. Tweaking the content so it addresses your users needs will improve your bottom line.

Find out more about metrics »


Free Home Page Usability Analysis

Get your home page analyzed. Find out which of the guidelines are missing and get your usability score
Free Home Page Analysis »

WEB METRICS
Getting the most from your website

Your website ought to be an integral part of your marketing strategy - and you should be applying all the basics of marketing to the site. Just as with any marketing tool, your website requires research and planning.

User on the Web are impatient - they want immediacy. You have just five seconds to get their attention when they land on your home page. To successfully convert them into customers, your homepage has to focus their atteniton and fulfil their needs. You have to draw them into your site to that all important revenue-producing click.

If your home page doesn't immediately answer their question - 'why am I here and can they solve my problem' - they leave. Your competition is one click away. 66% of all sales are lost right on the home page.

The Web has moved from being a new information medium to a sales channel. Studies show that lead generation has overtaken e-commerce as the main reason to have a website. Your marketing department should be intimately involved with your website and they need to know exactly who is coming to the site and why.

The measurements you keep have to fit your business and your audience. The days of just getting a website up and counting eyeballs and hits is long gone. You need to know where they come from, what they came for, how long they stay, which pages they visit, what their click path is and if they ever reach your "goal page." And you should know which page they leave from.

As the New Year approaches many businesses will be re-evaluating their web presence - before you invest in costly redesigns, update your Web measurement strategy with new metrics and tools that can help analyze customer behavior and improve your site's business success.

ROI from your website
There is no one metric that a company can rely on for its website," said Randy Souza, an analyst at Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research, in an interview with CIO magazine. "Metrics will be different from company to company."

Your metrics will depend on what you are trying to do with your site. Before you do a revamp of your site, do your research and formulate a strategy for the site. If you have an e-commerce site you should be focused on conversion ratio (number of visitors to buyers), while a business-to-business site might be measuring visitor response to information. The number of reaches into the company as a result of the website will be of prime importance.

One mid-size, family-owned company in California revamped their website recently and started to keep track of their visitors. Analyzing user behavior led to website tweaks and they just got their first million dollar deal as a direct result of their website.

Usability guru Jakob Nielsen reports that user testing and analysis of traffic on your site can increase your ROI by an average of 135%.

Tracking Your Visitors
Measuring a website's success is becoming vital as e- business spending has to be defended. "Until the recession hit, there wasn't much urgency around Web metrics," says Forrester Research's Souza in the interview with CIO. The focus has shifted to getting business results, and quickly. Jupiter Research estimates that by 2006 annual spending on site analytics will reach $1 billion

Once your site has been researched and user tested install a reliable, simple to use traffic tracking system. Clicktracks is one that any entrepreneur can afford. In my opinion it is one of the best in terms of value and information. It is visual and interactive and can be put on any website

It allows you to tag different visitors and to see exactly where they click on your site. It will give you all the data you need to see where your visitors came from, where they are going and how they get there.

Marketing Departments and Information Technology Managers are starting to work together to take control of their website content and visitor click streams. With this valuable data on visitor behavior, it is possible to consistently improve results from your website.

Sally Falkow is a Web Content Strategist based in Pasadena, CA.
She is the author of WebSense – Effective website strategies for entrepreneurs. For a free evaluation of your home page visit www.falkoweb.com

FORGET THE BELLS AND WHISTLES
Simply Listen to Your Readers and
Invest in Good Writers

The perception that a Web site is a tech function not a communication function and marketing or PR-trained people should leave it alone, is a huge trap. I found this out the hard way: by falling into it.

Many web sites have been put up without too much thought about what the company would like to achieve with the site. Their strategy seems to be "We must have a web site," and a static electronic brochure goes up, designed entirely by a Web company. All the money is spent on tech functions and none on the content. Content is simply supplied by the company, usually taken from their marketing material that was written for print purposes.

When I was asked to promote the launch of a political site prior to the 200 Presidential election I had this perception. Trained in devising communication campaigns, I was an avid Internet user, but had never been involved in Web content. I created a campaign for the launch of the site, but the design and content of the site was left entirely to the Web designers.

When the site launched on the July 4th 2000, we were listed as "site of the day" on Yahoo and the CEO was interviewed on CNET on July 5th. We were mentioned, with links, on many other sites, and thousands of visitors came to the site... and then left in droves! Less than 20% clicked further into the site.

With those traffic stats during that first week, there could only be one explanation: something on the home page was turning the visitors off. They were coming, and they were our target audience, but whatever was on that first page did not keep their attention and pull them into the site.

So, taking the Internet as a communications medium, we approached it as a communications professional would: identify the target audience, survey them to know what they, design the message to "speak" to those needs and keep testing and tweaking to improve it.

We took ten people in our target audience, sat them down in front of the site, and just observed what they did. One by one they peered at the screen and looked confused, moved the cursor around the screen, and not one of them clicked on anything. A high percentage asked, "what am I supposed to do?" We certainly had a problem.

We also undertook an "emotional response" survey of 100 qualified people to find out exactly what would interest someone about Congress. The results of the survey were fascinating, and we changed the text to incorporate these "hot buttons." One of the items of desired information was the presidential candidates' stand on "Hot Issues."

A separate Candidates' page was created, and issues were researched and posted each week. E-mail was sent out to members to let them know what the Hot Issue of the Week was with a link to the Candidates' page. This drew lots of traffic to the site each week as members sent it on to like-minded friends.

The design of the page was simplified by using basic principles of design. Using Jakob Nielsen's usability method http://www.useit.com/ we tweaked the design until we had all the non-optimum reactions handled. Impression testing the graphics gave us the exact look that would instantly convey what the site was about and what it did. Visitors coming to the site could immediately get what it offered - it pushed their "buttons" - and they clicked right in.

When we re-launched the site, over 80% of the visitors clicked into the site. Currently, registration of members is increasing, and they use the site regularly.

effectivevideos.com used this same strategy to create a home page that really communicated to their exact target audience.

"The first surprise was finding out that the people I thought I should target were not actually my public-they were not interested in the services," said Anne Brady, CEO of ebusinessexpansion.com. "Once I found the right public I started doing the impression and usability testing. There was interest, but some aspects of the design or the text did not communicate. Just changing the content so that it really communicated my message made all the difference. We knew we had it right when one by one they got it right away and wanted the service."

Not having a content strategy for your site is a costly elephant trap. Forrester Research's study of 8600 Internet users showed that the number one reason people use a site and return to it is content.

ALong with good design and technology, companies should invest in good writers to create compelling and targeted content, said Jakob Nielsen at the Chicago leg of his User Experience Tour. "Users want relevant content, not bells and whistles," he said.

Web Content Report shows that Nielsen is not alone in his sentiments. WCR editors checked industry and content experts, and they suggest that the number one action to take is build up your site with original content and interactive tools. And in the light of the recent Google algorithm changes this seems more than ever to be the best approach.

Done with a well-thought-out content strategy based on intelligent metrics that give you insight into user behavior on your site, and surveys about their needs, you'll see the results in your bottom line.

Sally Falkow
http://www.falkoweb.com