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If you’re starting a new business and you’re like me when I started mine 10 years ago, you’ve probably got the same “butterflies in the stomach” feelings. You’ve got tons of decisions to make about things that can make you or break you!
Starting with setting up your first website, there’s lots to learn about a new business. Where can you get the best answers? You can search the Internet and find help on blogs and websites. You can scan Amazon and find dozens of great books about starting a business. Ask your friends for advice. Attend webinars and seminars. You’ll probably want to do all of these.
Without a Website, You Don’t Exist
Most likely, at the top of your list is setting up your first website. Your website is one of the most important pillars for your new business. You might be asking yourself, “Okay, so what does ‘content planning‘ have to do with this?” The quick answer is “everything”. If you follow along with this series of posts, you’ll understand why.
Let’s start at the beginning. You have many more affordable and easy to use website tools to choose from than I did.
All in all, selecting the type of web software, your domain name (www.yourcompanyname.com), and a web developer for your first website is still a big job. Even with the recent technology advances in website software, open source (free or non-proprietary) software and other “user-friendly web building tools” used to create and manage a site.
Content First, Then Colors
I’ve seen so many new business owners rush to hire a web developer, pick out site colors, and agonize over a logo design—all before writing one word of content for their first website! To quote an overused phrase, “content really is king”. (Okay, right after cash is king.)
Your prospective customers will decide about working with you or buying your products based on how well your website “speaks” to them. Because millions of websites are just a click away, customers make decisions within seconds of landing on a website. They ask themselves and determine in seconds:
Can this website content help me solve my problem?Does this site’s information help me fix my blue widget problem?Does it show me how to accomplish my ____ goal?
What initially differentiates one site from another? It’s how much value the prospective customer finds in the site’s content. You might think it’s your products, services or pricing. However, if your customer doesn’t like what you have to say in your content, she will never stay on your site long enough to learn about your products and services!
Why Website Content is King
It’s widely accepted that the vast majority of buyers research product and service purchases online. A December 2010 survey conducted by AOL and Nielsen found that people spend up to 50 percent of their time online “consuming content”. Consuming content in this case means reading, scanning a website’s text, viewing online video, etc. See the chart below. Here is a link to the study.
As a new business, you’ll get a head start on establishing trust and credibility as an expert by creating and publishing valuable, customer-friendly information (content) on your website.
Source: AOL Nielsen Study, June 2010
So, keeping in mind that it’s crucial what your website content says about your experience and knowledge, I’m going to share some (hard) lessons I’ve learned.
Your Content Planning
If you follow the website content planning steps I’m about to show you when creating your first website, you’ll avoid wasting time and cash. You’ll save yourself from putting time and effort into a static, boring, looks-like-everyone else first website.
By taking the planning and execution steps I am going to outline you’ll have a website filled with information that is valuable to your prospective customers. You’ll have unique website information (content) that causes your prospective customers to spend time on your website getting to know you and the products and services you offer.
If you use these content planning techniques to put together your first website, the information will say instantly to your prospective customers:
“I understand the problems you face!”“I am an expert at solving problems like yours.”“Hire me!”
First Website Content Steps
- Documenting a profile of your ideal customer.
- Giving your first website a job description.
- Doing your homework before choosing the best website software for your business, your resources and your technical skills.
- Determining how much you want to be in control of updating your website content without waiting for a programmer’s help.
- Researching and choosing your ideal customers’ preferred keywords.
- Deciding how you will use your content to demonstrate your expertise.
- Developing your customer “calls to action” based on the steps you’d like prospective customers to take.
- Outlining your first website content plan.
- Creating your ongoing content update execution plan.
In this series of posts, I’ll be sharing more information about the above 9 steps to content planning for your first website. If you’d like to be sure you don’t miss any of my upcoming posts, click here to sign up for email updates of my posts.
For now, it’s time for you to take immediate action to be sure that your first website has content that says to your prospective customers “I understand your problems” and “I can help you” and “hire me!”.
So, right now do this:
1. Open a fresh word processing page on your PC or grab a pad of paper.
2. Starting listing all of the ways you can demonstrate your expertise and show how well you understand your prospective customers’ problems.
3. Keep adding to your list the kinds of information you can share until you have several pages of information.
Image: iStock
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