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How to make your website work smarter for you
You may have a business website, but to grow your business you need it to perform well, convert leads and work smart for you.
The question is: How do you use your website most effectively? (After all, you want people to find you.)
Here are some tips on how business owners can make their websites professionally designed, more appealing and user-friendly.
1. Be responsive: These days, visitors to your website have different browsing habits. Some view your site on a computer, while others see it using a tablet or smartphone. It’s important that your site doesn’t lead them to believe they need the wrong device to use it. If you’ve got separate websites for mobile and desktop users, then replace old links with responsive links (that lead to the right device) as you make updates. If your site isn’t responsive, then contact a web developer who can help you create a mobile-friendly version of your website.
2. Optimise your site: The more words on your pages, the fewer visitors you have. To boost traffic and lead generation, remove irrelevant content, information and images that don’t contribute to lead conversion. Keep it short and sweet!
3. Create a lead magnet: If you’re not getting enough leads from website visits or online ads, try a lead magnet. This is something of value that people can grab when they visit your site. If you’re looking for a lead magnet, consider free downloads, ebook excerpts or whitepapers.
4. Create landing pages: Landing pages are specific web pages with the sole purpose of getting users to act on a certain call to action. Usually, lead-gen landing pages lead to a lead magnet, or they lead directly to an online form. To build your landing page effectively, start with the end in mind. Outline what you want users to do when they get there. Also, make sure it’s clear how they benefit from giving you their contact information.
5. Optimise lead generation forms: If you’re using a lead-gen form on your site, make sure it’s easy for visitors to fill out and submit. That means no long pages, multi-step processes or complicated fields. Also, always provide incentives for interested leads to get in touch with you, such as free information that shows how they’ll benefit from it.
6. Create lead nurturing campaigns: After you’ve got leads, the job isn’t done yet. These days, lead management is a key part of lead generation success. That means keeping your leads warm and engaged until they’re ready to buy. Once you collect lead information through a lead gen form, lead nurturing campaigns help you nurture those leads into customers. The lead nurturing process focuses on building trust and communicating with leads over time by using lead-specific content, such as emails or phone calls. Marketers use lead management software to keep track of lead movements and the effectiveness of lead generation activities.
7. Post regularly: To build your online presence, post content that people will want to read. Post-lead-gen or lead management content at least a few times a week to keep leads engaged while nurturing them towards the next step in the lead generation process. That’s important! If you’re not posting regularly, then you might be missing out on potential customers who stop visiting your site and move on to competitors who are more proactive about lead generation.
8. Use social media strategically: Social networking is another great way to get more traffic from your website. However, it’s also helpful for lead generation. Use social media for lead generation by creating lead-gen posts and pages that people can share with others, like lead magnets or blog content. When posting lead gen on social media, tag key influencers in your industry as well to reach a wider audience.
Another approach is to create lead generation ads that target prospects who would likely be interested in what you have to offer. Also, try running lead-management ads targeted at specific keywords related to your industry and services so that interested leads are more likely to click through your ad to get more information.
9. Optimise your website for Google and other search engines using SEO: According to FIPP, up to 90% of buyers begin their purchase journey online when researching products or services before talking with salespeople. That means lead generation success depends on your website and its ability to perform well in search engine rankings. And there’s more to lead generation than just SEO. FIPP also recommends optimising your website for mobile users and using lead-management software to be able to track lead activity across multiple lead sources.
10: Convert leads into customers: Once you’ve got a lead, the hard work is over, right? Not quite. The best lead generators know that they have to convert those leads into sales if they want their efforts to pay off. To do that, use lead scoring tools and tags so you can keep track of what steps each lead took during the lead generation process and how ready he or she is likely to be at different stages before converting. In lead scoring, lead scores indicate lead interest over time. Also, lead tags show what a lead has done on your site so you can use them to retarget ads and better target prospects with follow-up emails or other lead generation activities.
11: Use lead generation software: Effective lead management tools help you track leads across multiple lead sources so you can consolidate information about each lead and get a complete view of their journey through the lead generation process. Properly used, this kind of technology helps marketers convert more leads into customers.
12: Pay attention to ROI: Remember that the best way to measure the effectiveness of your lead generation strategy is by tracking return on investment (ROI). By monitoring cost per acquisition (CPA) and lead conversion ratios, you can determine where marketing efforts are working best to produce the lead generation results you want.
There are loads of ways you can improve your lead generation, but making sure that you’re using lead generation tactics that work requires time and effort. So, do your research before deciding on a lead generation strategy. In addition to following these lead generation tips, also check out our lead generation checklist.
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