Getting a web page to rank well in Google using SEO is one thing - and getting the visitor to stick around - with the potential to convert to a sale - is another thing altogether. First comes love, then comes marriage: first you get the search engines to love ya; then you get your prospects to hook up with your wares!
Don’t get swept away by the SEO after-party (popping the cork for all those Page 1 and 2 rankings!) without watching to see who sticks around your site and what they do.
Keep your eye on the (sticky) prize
Remember the goals: visitor loyalty, and a good conversion rate (whether that’s sales leads and/or online commerce).
Never take your eye off the importance of site “stickiness,” i.e. length of time spent on a site, number of page views, number of return visitors. Search engine optimization services will get you the traffic, but it’s up to your brilliant marketing mind to keep the (right) traffic.
All web readers - even B2B - like to do stuff
Good ole CTA (call to action) should be front-of-mind in the writing and design of each web page. Simply put, web users like to do stuff. Are your website visitors…
- Emailing for more information (via automated form that’s pipelined to your sales reps)?
- Downloading a PDF of your product’s specifications, or a case study of a customer application?
- Playing a demo video of your service?
- Clicking through to your distributors’ sites?
- Popping something into their shopping cart?
- Adding a comment to a corporate blog?
- Joining your company’s Facebook page/group?
- Using the Search function to locate items and/or brands?
- Subscribing to your e-newsletter?
- Other actionable items (and there are lots)
There’s a reason that social media - networking sites like Facebook, voting sites like Digg, the “blogosphere” in general - is so popular and growing every day. Because people rule the roost. They get to review, comment, share, collaborate, socialize, vote, promote, demote, update, fly around in virtual worlds, and much more.
Not all customers - especially B2B - are going to be into the whole “friending” movement the way some demographics are, granted. But everyone still wants to DO STUFF online.
So let them. Build it (with SEO) and they will come… Fill it with great, sticky features and they will stay, participate, contact you, and buy.
3 comments ↓
Well said. There’s no point getting a lot of qualified traffic to your site if they don’t stick around. I guess the key is to get people to really engage with you, by offering content that closely meets their needs. I’m a big fan of collecting email addresses so you can stay in contact. A well-crafted “bait” - information perhaps that really serves prospects’ needs - will encourage them to sign up, thereby starting on the path towards building a long-term relationship.
Yup, as new-age as it may sound, the Web is all about “relationships” now. So get engaged with your readers - hell, marry them! Permission-based email marketing is a good way to stay connected with clients and prospects - especially in B2B where RSS feeds aren’t catching on (yet).
[...] content is the single best way to increase website visibility and increase the time folks stick around your site and DO stuff - read, share, vote, download, comment, inquire… [...]
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