In previous posts, I’ve talked about why content is so important to draw traffic to your small business website or blog. It’s just not enough to write about your products and services. You need to provide your prospects and customers with information that will warm them up, get them to trust you and gently lead them to buy.

However, most small business owners wear a lot of hats. You’re a buyer or sometimes even a manufacturer. You’re trying to get sales, keep books, market your business and plan strategically for the future. Where do you find time to brainstorm and write content ideas for your website?

You could hire a writer to do it for you, but that can get expensive. Or you can take a page out of my book, and peruse some of the Private Label Rights (PLR) article sites for information you can turn into content for your small business website.

What if your business is moving families to their new home or apartment? EasyPLR.com offers a set of PLR articles called “Moving on the Cheap,” for only $9.50. You could take that article pack, rewrite them to suit your customer base and have enough ideas for your website, email newsletter and even a physical newsletter you use to motivate sales.

Realtors could take advantage of the site’s “Home Buyer’s Guide for only $10, while retailers might benefit from an article collection on Wine tasting and Wine purchasing. These are just some of the article titles available for less than $20.

You may be wondering just what are private label rights content sites.  They are a little like your grocery store which sells its own store products on the shelf right next to name brands. These PLR providers hire writers to create articles, or special reports and other content which they sell in small quantities – 150 in the case of EasyPLR.com to blogs and websites for them to use as content. There is no reason you couldn’t solve your content needs in the same way.

There are a number of companies on the internet providing PLR content. You’re bound to find something to meet your needs by googling PLR and your business niche. The big challenge is finding providers that provide good quality consistently.

Fortunately for you, a number of work-at-home Moms write or offer PLR on the Net. Some of my favorites include EasyPLR.com, DIYPLR.com, YummyPLR.com and PLR.me.  I also receive a collection of newsletter PLR content from PLRNewsletters.com. Shhh! My secret is out. Now my clients will know where I get some of the ideas I use for their websites.

Well, I wanted to let you know about this now because Nicole Dean is offering a 50 percent discount to anyone who buys PLR from her EasyPLR site this month. Just use the coupon code:  LIFEISGOOD.

Some of these article packs are very limited, so GO NOW to grab your copy before they are all gone. Here’s that link again.

EasyPLR.com

You should know that Ming Communications, owner of Savvy Marketing Secrets.com,  has an affiliate relationship with some of the websites mentioned in this blog post.

If you’re reading this blog post you’re probably knee deep in planning for a new website for your small business. You’ve heard that “content is king” on the Internet. And you may be wondering – What content? Where do I get it? What will help my business?

Your Website Content Needs to Help Your Customer

Keep your customer or site visitor in mind when you plan your content.  Whether your site visitors are looking for the solution to a problem, or just surfing for information, your site needs to be all about them. With the exception of the About page, you should not focus on you or your company.

To focus on your site visitors, you need to know what they want. So how do you find out?

1. Visit forums and social media sites where your target customers hang out.
2. Ask them – Use a survey to determine their interests or ask them to suggest topics they would like to know more about.
3. Visit the sites of competitors.
4. Track your links in emails and or website, to see what content gets clicked.
5. Don’t just track what people buy. If you have articles and other content on your site, pay attention to what articles they read and the videos watched to get a sense of interests outside your present offerings.
6.  Of course, you want to give them a taste of your product or service, but whatever you share should be what they NEED or WANT. That’s why a lot of people place articles, videos and other content on their websites.

The type of content you include will depend on your business:

If you are a coach, trainer or consultant, you want them to experience your style and what it would be like to work with you. But you need to do that carefully by sharing a sample of what you would provide them as clients. You want them to get a sense of the value you would bring to their business or their life if your customer is a consumer. You can do that with your website’s content or the freebie you give away to encourage them to join your list.

Writers, photographers and graphic designers typically showcase their work, to let the prospect determine if their work is a good fit.

If you plan to develop an ecommerce site, you’re going to want ad copy that will sell your product or service. You’ll also want the prospect to see, hear and experience your product with a photo or video and maybe even a demo.  You’ll want them to hear a sample of your talks or speeches if you are a speaker.

Whatever you do, don’t talk about your company.

This sampling of what you have to offer and how it will benefit the buyer is much more important than all the details about your company. You do want to establish a relationship with your site visitor by giving them a sense of your company’s personality – but trust me, they won’t care until they have decided that they’re interested in what you’re selling.

Website content can take many forms.

 Be creative. You should offer a variety of formats to suit different learning styles and preferences. Some people prefer to read information while others are more visual. Some people need to hear your material or touch it before they can really make a decision. The more varied your website content, the better.

Let your imagination go. Consider anything that enhances the quality of your prospect’s site visit. In our next post, we’ll talk about how to create great content and where to look for ideas.

Small business owners who worry more about how their website looks than what it says are making a critical error. That’s because site visitors and search engines pay more attention to a website’s content than they do looks.

In fact some elements often found on small business sites such as flash doorways are more likely to prevent a site from being found by humans and search engine robots.

So why is the content of a small business website so important?

One reason is that consumers don’t venture onto the web looking for information about your business. They often aren’t looking to buy something. They want information to solve a problem. Even when they are searching for information about a product or service, they are trying to get the facts that will help them make the best possible choice.

So if you’re creating a website as part of your marketing arsenal, the site needs to work for consumers. It needs to provide the information they are looking for before you can begin to prove that you’re the best company to do business with.

Small Business Websites Need to Speak the Consumer’s Language – Meaning they need to use the keyword phrases consumers are searching for.

Most consumers begin their web exploration by putting keywords and keyword phrases, also known as tags into search boxes – probably on Google.com, although other search engines get a fair amount of searches too.

All of those search engines uses robots to crawl millions of sites using complicated algorithms designed to return the best possible results. If the robots see that the individual is using a computer in Kentucky, based on the IP address from which they are accessing the internet, they are likely to serve up any available local resources when you are looking for a dentist or chiropractor.

On the other hand if geography is not a factor, the search engine robots will look for the most reputable sites with lots of smaller sites linking to them. It’s a good bet that there are a great number of websites all vying for the same keyword phrases. So your first challenge is to identify keyword phrases or tags that give your business a chance to get on the first page of the search results.

That’s not going to be easy unless you have an older domain and lots of sites linking in but that’s a different lesson. It’s important for you to understand the challenge.

Now let’s talk about content.

Search engines robots can’t see your pictures or your site’s design. They prefer sites with lots of relevant content. The site visitor also will respond well to strong content that relates well to their search. You know yourself, that when you perform a search, you will move past entries that don’t appear to offer the information you are looking for.

It’s only after the searcher has determined that you have the right information that they are likely to pay attention to the site’s aesthetics. So you do care about how the site looks but that is only a small part of your strategy in building a website to market your business.

In tomorrow’s post, we’ll talk more about what content really is. A lot of things you may not see as content could be just what your visitors are looking for.

SERPS - Search Engine Result Pages

By now your head may be spinning, but hang on. You can master this stuff if you don’t try to rush the process. By learning proper SEM techniques, you can succeed in gaining more website traffic. 

The first key to SEM is to learn how to correctly reach your intended audience. When searching for products and services on the web, consumers input specific search terms into search engines to find what they are looking for. 

To ensure that they find your site, you will want to use keyword phrases on your web pages that match the search terms your target audience is using. 

SEM and Keyword Research 

You need to use keyword lists and keyword tracker tools to determine the best keyword phrases to use on your website.  Keep in mind that SEM involves balancing the needs of people who will visit your website with the demands of the search engines themselves. 

This is done through SEO or Search engine optimization. Search Engines use specific criteria to determine how relevant a web page is to a specific search term. To do this, search engines use software called spiders to search the pages of a website to categorize its information. SEO is so important to the success of your website that you should consider it while you are building your website. It takes a lot less time and effort than having to change your site later. 

Submitting your Site to Search engines 

Now it’s time to submit your optimized site to search engines. The whole idea behind SEM is to have a good presence on search engines, so they connect you with your target audience. 

There are three different ways for search engines to find your website. 

1. You can directly submit the website to the search engine by filling out a submit form.
2. You can choose to simply let the search engine gain access to your website by having links to your site on other website directories.
3. You can pay for the search engine to categorize and index the site.

You can also draw traffic to your site by getting other similar websites to link to your site. The links can be from articles, other websites and blogs, or from online directories. This is another factor search engines consider when ranking your site: the quality and quantity of links that bring visitors back to your site. 

Your website needs to contain great content to entice other websites to link to your site. If the value of what you offer visitors is solid, owners of other websites will want to stay linked to your site. 

 Think of their link as a type of validation – word of mouth advertising — to their traffic that what you offer is useful to their site visitors. Keep these thoughts in mind as you plan the SEM for your website and you should drive quality traffic.

Some websites have very specific purposes that require pages specific to the purpose of the website. Here are two of the most common examples.

For example a squeeze page or optin page is designed for the purpose of generating leads for your business. It needs a compelling headline, brief copy to capture your visitor’s interest, benefits expressed in bullet points and an optin-form.

• Some squeeze pages might use audio or video to deliver its message.
• A squeeze page site would need a privacy statement – very important if you are asking people to give you their name and email address or other information.
• Thank you or download page where people can get the bonus – special report, free ebook, or email training – you are offering as an incentive.
• Your bonus will have to be uploaded to the site so customers receive it after optin-in to your list.
• Some marketers include promos for other products on the download page, so your site might include links to pages promoting the other offers.

web page mind map created for a squeeze or optin page

A Sales Page is similar to a squeeze page but it has more copy and buy buttons instead of an opt-in box. The length of the sales page can vary depending on the price and complexity of the product you’re promoting. A sales page website would also include such other pages as:

• Disclaimers and Terms of Service are critical on sales-page websites.
• In addition to copy and graphics, you’ll want to include testimonials, guarantees and other elements designed to convert site visitors into buyers. If you are using a long sales page, these elements might appear on one page, but in some cases it is possible to link to another page from the sales page.
• Typically, a sales page connects to PayPal or a shopping cart with a secure SSL certificate. For many small businesses, the buyer leaves the site temporarily to complete their transaction and returns to download their digital product.
• Help Desk – Your customer support center where people can go if they have a problem with their transaction.

That’s a lot to consider when planning your website, but take time to map it all out before building your site. Please leave a comment below to add pages I may have missed or to share how you plan the pages for your websites.

One great way to map out your website is to use mind-mapping software. To learn more read http://www.savvymarketingsecrets.com/Mind_Mapping.html.

Now go plan your small business website,

Marcia Ming

There are two answers to this question. Today we will explore the pages you find on general small business websites. Tomorrow, we’ll explore the pages you should include on special purpose websites.

Here is my checklist for general small business websites:

• Home page – the entry way to your site. I like to think of this page as your company’s lobby complete with a receptionist to direct your visitors to the appropriate department. The look and feel of your site and its navigation all play a role in establishing the right branding and mood for your company.
• A page about the company and its staff.
• A page that shows how site visitors can contact the company.
• Pages that explain and showcase your products or services.
• Demos, white papers, special reports, videos or podcasts that help your site visitors get to know your company and sample your expertise.
• Articles that relate to your business – For these topics, you should base the articles on your keyword research. I’ll talk more about keyword research in a future blog, so keep reading.

Topical web pages planned for Savvy Marketing Secrets using mind mapping software

• News – a section where you store company press releases, product introductions, your media kit, Bios about key staff members.
• Blog where site visitors can interact with your company.
• Forum – Where site visitors can interact with each other in addition to staff (This takes resources and puts demands on your servers, so you should only consider hosting a forum if you have the resources required.
• FAQs – where you answer questions that get asked a lot.
• Landing pages for each product where people can learn everything they need to know to make a buying decision – including the information a prospect needs to take the next step.
• Portfolios or galleries if you are an artist, photographer, graphic designer or other creative types.
• Legal pages – privacy policy, disclaimers, terms of service.

 As businesses grow they often develop two websites – the external site that serves their prospects and customers – and an internal site for their employees, board members and other insiders. Often, the internal site is enclosed behind a firewall. 

I use mind mapping software to plan my websites. You can learn more by reading http://www.savvymarketingsecrets.com/Mind_Mapping.html.

Now go plan your small business website, 

Marcia Ming