Firstly, why would you use a Marketing Consultant – in addition to a Web Developer – to create your website? Isn’t this just an additional cost?
By working with a web developer directly the job can look simpler, quicker and cheaper. In my experience web developers range in terms of their market expertise. Most have no formal marketing training, are technical experts in how to put your content on the web. Of course they will have built up some experience from working on other sites, but will they go that extra mile to help you say what you want to say?
At times clients don’t understand that if they use a platform a web developer suggests, they need to pay them every time they want to make changes to a site. Or they don’t realise they need to pay extra to have the site appear properly on mobiles. Or they enter unwittingly into lockdowns to that particular developer.
These days you don’t need to pay extra for mobile friendly sites. Either you or a future developer should be able to make changes to your site.
I’ve heard it time and time again from clients about fraught relations with developers. To be completely honest, I see a lot of the time that clients are not clear on what they want to say about their business and what they want from the developer. Their thinking evolves overtime. They can sometimes leave too much responsibility to the web developer or designer to create the content that will attract their punters, write the actual messages that draw in their prospects online. Depending on what’s been agreed, the web developer may be expecting finished content for price quoted. And so the friction begins.
There’s no point in getting to a finished website quickly if it’s not right for your business. I am not about getting the job done quickly for the sake of getting a box ticked. I am focused and passionate about getting it done properly and on getting results for my clients. When I work with clients on websites, I commit to the work below. (Ask yourself how many developers offer this service and how crucial this work might be to the end result?)
– I spend time really getting under the skin of your business, understanding your market, your competitors, your customers.
– I highlight options and motivate you to make difficult choices. Instead of letting you have a website that says you are all things to all men, serve all customers with all services, I challenge you to have a market position. Your content needs to be meaningful to the audience you actually want to convert.
– I work with you to shine a light on your strengths, knowhow in light of your competitive set so we can figure out how to best strategically position your business in the market in order to stand our from the crowd.
– I take the time to help you understand how Google searches work, what is SEO and how important keywords are.
– I have specific skills and 18 years of experience in designing messages that engage a target market. I can help you ’sell you better’.
– I have proven know-how in how to promote your website to your specific target market.
Package 2 – Building an effective website that generates sales enquires
Straight-forward advice for SMEs who find ‘all things digital’ intimidating or hard to understand
Training (in plain English) on how websites generate traffic – suitable for beginners. ‘Build it and they will come’ does not apply to websites.
- Situation Analysis – Quick understanding of your background, experience, what you are good at and your current target customers.
- An insight into your market specifically ; it’s customer segments, your current customer targets, closest competitors.
- Assessment of the market and recommendations of the messages that work best in driving sales enquiries.
- How to create content for your website that will drive traffic to it.
- Copywriting key messages that sell. Your prospects need to see themselves in your messages. They need to think that business is for me. This is the bit that can take the time. To be clear I will not be writing copy for your complete website for this fixed package, but I will give certain key messages that you should include and direction on what content you should have page by page.
- Recommendation on a Content Management System for your website so that you can do future updates easily, without being overly tech savvy or online literate.
- Recommendations for a great look, design and layout for your site – showing you great templates.
- Specific recommendations for page content – what to put on each page.
- Where to source free/strong imagery that suit your site
- Helping you choose the right developer to build your site, giving named recommendations of proven developers I’ve worked with, independent options based on what you are looking for, costs, expertise required and pitfalls to avoid from the varied experience I’ve had.
- Brand identity designers shortlisted. Briefing document written for you (if required.)
- Specific guidance w/r to how to write your ‘about us’ page – this is one of the most visited and most neglected page on a website.
- Specific advice re content and layout to get your website to generate enquiries.
Costing given based on more detailed briefing