Using Your Web Site to Inform Customers
By Angela Baca
When you think about your customer-focused messages on your business web site, have you ever chosen to focus on how these messages benefit customers? This blog entry encourages you to consider the potential benefits of using a different approach for your web site copy, the opposite of what some business strategies recommend. Use these four ideas to build copy that is more customer-oriented by evaluating your messages from the customer’s perspective.
1. When your web site gives customers the truth about products and services, you present a different image. You also attract a new type of customer loyalty. For instance, your new web site copy may attract customers that value truth. When people find information they can trust, they will come back for more. Your honesty does not guarantee more sales, but it also portrays integrity and transparency (similar to how governments use public information to build citizen confidence).
2. Your experiment is to develop copy that is not written to persuade customers to buy. Your new goal is to write copy that informs customers without an agenda. You can print out the web content on your site and take a red editing pen to information that feels too much like persuasion. You can rewrite this copy to be more informative.
3. Communicating clearly about special promotions is another good strategy. For example, if you offer bulk discounts, you can explain in detail how customers save by ordering in bulk. If you are running a promotion for a limited time, you need to clearly explain the dates of the promotion and the terms and conditions of buying products or services under the promotion.
As a business owner, your web site is an important reflection of your business image. Striving to provide the best information to customers in a visually appealing web site will help you to build your reputation.
Designing content with the customer’s interest always at the forefront will set your copy apart from competitor web sites. Finally, remember that the online presence of your business always benefits directly from your personal attention to continuously improving web site content.