The whole point of having a website is to attract clients, right?  It’s the whole reason we spend time and money in having it created to begin with.  Creating websites is not rocket science, there are many website developers, graphic designers, and do~it~yourself programs available.  Unfortunately, far too often entrepreneurs spend thousands of dollars on their website only to find that it gets little traffic and no clients.

The reason for this is because there is a big difference between having a website, and having a website that gets you a return on your investment.  If your website isn’t producing clients and revenue on a regular basis, it’s not worth its hosting and domain fees.  What separates the internet marketing professionals and the amateurs, is in knowing how to integrate strategic sales and marketing strategy into their online marketing plan.

Too many people spend too much time on the aesthetics for their site.  They spend weeks and months making the site look “perfect”. But the main focus needs to be on the strategy.  Graphics don’t turn visitors into clients. There are many components that need to be included in order to leverage and maximize revenue opportunities, but here are the main features an efficient and profitable website should include:

1. Traffic: Obviously, one of the first marketing strategies to consider is how to attract traffic to your website.  Unfortunately, it’s much more complicated than, “build it and they will come”.  The truth is that they won’t come without a marketing plan.

The key part of getting traffic is in making sure that its targeted traffic, meaning comprised of mainly your ideal clients.  In order to do that, it’s important to have a niche, to stake a claim as a specialist, and engage in keyword and competition research so that your peeps are able to find you.

Once you have a keyword strategy, and you understand where the holes are regarding your competitors, you can optimize your site and content for the search engines, which will attract the traffic which is most likely to be interested in your services.

2. Irresistible offer:  The number one job of your website is to build your list.  Some clients will find your website and be ready to hire you at first glance, but according to the Rule of Seven in marketing, many people need to hear from you at least seven times before they know, like and trust you enough to invest in your services.  The truth is, for most websites, the revenue comes from a consistent and effective email marketing campaign.

The bigger and more targeted your list is, the more clients you will have in your pipeline now and in the future.  This all starts by getting your website visitors to subscribe to your juicy incentive that they find too irresistible to refuse.  However, your incentive will only be juicy if it is targeted to your ideal clients and provides a solution to their burning needs.  This is where having a target marketed and understanding their needs becomes necessary in order to offer the perfect opt-in gift.

Showcase your compelling opt-in gift with attention~getting graphics, calls to action, a price value, and the word “free”.  Your opt in form should be on every page of your website, with eye~catching graphics that correspond with the offer.  People judge a book by it’s cover online as well as off, so make sure your graphic design is professional and corresponds to your offer.  For instance, have an ecover for your guide, or a cd graphic for an audio gift, etc.

3. Connective Copy:  The content you put on your site can make or break conversions.  How you title your opt in, what you say on your home page, the way you describe your services and write your blog posts will either attract or detract visitors.  Copy writing for a website is much different than writing for offline venues.  The goal to provide information that visitors will find valuable enough to read, engage with, and ultimately feel connected to who you are and what you offer.

You can accomplish this by talking directly to your ideal client.  Imagine your favorite previous client, and write directly to them in a conversational tone.  Use result oriented and benefit driven copy writing which is written in first person.  Remember, website visitors care little about you and your services until they believe that you understand them and their concerns.

The right type of copy writing can generate traffic, attract links, increase subscribers, and grow your business with clients, revenue and profits.

4. Contact form:  Be sure to have an easy to find contact form that customers can easily contact you.  Offer a variety of ways to get in touch, including a contact form, an email address, phone number, address, and skype.  Clients have a variety of preferred ways to get in touch, so try to appeal to everyone’s preference and make it easy to find.

If your website is missing any of these features, get them on your website as soon as possible and start building your list more efficiently.   Your list is a gold mine of targeted clients who will be excited to hear from you, work with you, and ultimately buy from you.

Which of these website elements do you need to put in place, and are there any other website marketing strategies that are helping you build your list and attract clients?  Leave me a comment, I’d love to hear from you.