So there you stand: somehow you’ve managed to convince the powers that be that your product needs to have its very own web site (or an upgrade to the one that it already has) in order to attract the masses of customers who would be buying it today if only they knew that it existed. Where to start: embedded flash? viral videos? There’s just too many choices! Here’s a wake-up call for you – your site’s success depends on four non-technical secrets.
Kodak Got It Right
Kodak got it right when they talked about people wanting to create a “Kodak Moment” – in other words, a memorable experience. Marc Levitt from the MSLK graphic design firm knows a thing or two about creating product web sites that work. He says that your customers need to be rewarded with something new every time they visit or click on something on your product’s web site.
This means that you need to spend some time planning what your customer’s experience on your product’s site is going to be. What’s the first thing that they will see? How will they navigate? Do you have great and informative content?
Call Now – Operators Are Standing By!
As with so many other things in life, the key to the ultimate success of your product’s web site lies in how you go about promoting it. Just turning up a new web site and hoping that the rest of the world finds it is not going to cut it. You are going to have to create a marketing plan that will drive people to your new web site. Argh – even more work for the product manager!
Join The Search Patrol
Search has two parts to it that you need to consider: internal and external. Internally, you need to have an easy-to-use way for your visitors to search your web site in order to find exactly what they are looking for. Externally you need to design your product’s web site in such a way as to maximize its Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Bring In The Pros
In every company there is somebody that is a wiz at setting up web sites. There may also be a PhotoShop master on board. However, because having a high quality web site for your product requires such a mix of technical, artistic, and marketing skills, this might be one time that you should reach out and bring in a pro.
Don’t think that you can just open the yellow pages (do those still exist?) and find the perfect firm for you. Instead, you’ll have to reach out to several design firms and have a talk with them. Review the sites that they’ve created in the past and determine which firm will do the best job for your product.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt that the Internet can play a key part in the success of any product. How you tell the world about your product on the web is almost as important as how you tell people about it face-to-face.
Taking the time to get the non-technical parts of your web site correct is just as important as picking and using the right web technologies. Do this right and you’ll make your product fantastically successful.
Questions For You
Is your product’s current web site memorable? Why or why not? What do you think would be the best way for you to promote a new web site for your product? Are you doing any SEO techniques for your current web site? Who created you last web site – was it done internally or did you hire a pro? Did that project go well? Leave me a comment and let me know what you are thinking.
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