When many businesses launch their first website, it's usually little more than a company brochure in web form. In fact, that's where the term, "brochure site" originates from. While this strategy may have been sufficient a decade ago, marketing on the web is grown to be much more complex. These days, users expect a rich, dynamic, and interactive experience when they visit your website.
It's critical in B2B search engine marketing to treat your website as if it were a salesperson. What we mean by this is that you need to arm your site with the tools necessary to function as a successful sales channel for you, just like you would invest in and train a new salesperson who is earning a salary.
To that end, the following are a couple of suggestions for your website in order to successfully compete in the B2B search marketing arena. Remember, even if you're not implementing these measures, your competition is.
Offers to Capture Business Prospects' Information:
In order to for your site to work as a sales tool, it must have a way to interact with users and collect their information. Your site should serve as a way to begin building a relationship with potential customers. How can you build a relationship if you don't capture some type of contact information?
Have something on your site (eg, sign up for a free gift, register for a newsletter, etc.) that can capture contact information. That information can then be passed into your customer relationship management system or database and serve as a starting point for future marketing communications.
Capturing Contact Information Tip:
Ask for as little info up front as possible. B2B search engine marketing statistics show that the more info you ask for initially, the less likely prospects are to sign up (subscribe). So create a form that asks for basics like a name and email address.
Engage with B2B Prospects through Multimedia:
Prospects are accustomed to being engaged when they come to a website. Some like to view virtual tours, others like to view interesting graphics or videos, and still others prefer downloadable reports.
Give your information to prospects in as many ways as possible. It demonstrates that you care about how they like to receive information, because you give it to them in various forms.
A side benefit of doing this is that it makes your website search engine rich with content across many mediums. This means you'll show up higher in search results.
B2B Search Engine Marketing: On Converting Leads into Prospects
Converting leads into prospects is a process, not a one-time event. You have to woo users to turn a lead into a purchasing customer. If you arm your website with the tools it needs to perform like a sales channel, it will be reflected in your bottom line.
This is B2B search engine marketing at its best!
