Over the past three days we’ve explored some things that might be keeping you from gaining clients from your website/blogsite.   All of the possible reasons we’ve addressed so far have been related to your content and copy.  Today we’re going to start looking at other possible problems spots.

I would list Reason #4 as making it difficult for people to contact you.

It may sound silly, but make sure you have made getting in contact with you as easy as possible.  As hard as it may be to believe, I still occasionally come across sites with no contact information.  But don’t think you’re off the hook just because you have a contact page.
The thing about people is that everyone is different; and as such they all prefer different ways of contacting someone when inquiring about services.  Where one person might be ok with a contact form, another might prefer direct e-mail and yet another might be most comfortable with a phone call. For this reason it’s wise to include as many methods of contact as possible.

For those of you who don’t like to post an e-mail address due to SPAM concerns there are several ways to do so and lessen the chance of SPAM.  You can write the address out like : thilton at clericaladvantage.com.  Someone reading the information is going to know that the symbol needs to be inserted instead of the word ‘at’.  This keeps address harvesting ‘bots from picking up your address.  The second thing you can do is create a separate address just for website contacts such as ‘ info@yourdomainname.com’.  This will keep any possible SPAM from landing in your own e-mail inbox.
Your contact page (and yes, you should definitely have a contact page) should include a contact form, e-mail address, phone number, and fax number if you have it.  You should also include social media connections like Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.  Let your visitors know they can feel free to contact you via any of the methods listed there. If you’re comfortable with it you can even add your mailing address for anyone that might be more comfortable with snail mail.

And don’t stop at your contact page.

Make sure there is some sort of contact information on your landing/main page too. And if you can, putting a contact form in your sidebar so that it appears on every page a visitor is on is a great idea too.
Make it easy for anyone to contact you from anywhere on your site in whatever manner that they might be most comfortable with.

Yesterday, in our quest to find out why your website isn’t bringing you clients, we examined whether we were talking to or at our target market. We learned that showing potential clients how we can help is better than telling them how great we are. So what’s next?

The third reason you may not be getting clients from your website?

Reason #3-You aren’t doing anything to bring your visitors back.

This one often accompanies reason #2.   Just as many businesses believe that visitors to their website want to see an impressive list of accomplishments, awards and experience, they also fail to understand something very important. The majority of people aren’t going to be ready to buy what you’re offering the first time they visit your website.

The first time they visit they tend to be researching and comparing. You may think that those impressive credentials are enought to make them add you to their bookmarks to come back when they’re ready to buy, but it won’t. So how do you get them to remember you and bring them back?

Give them a reason to come back. At this point you should have an idea of what your target market needs, so offer it to them through useful and informative content. That may be a FAQ page where their most common questions are answered or giving useful advice through blog content or informational pages.

Your site visitors have come to you looking for answers. If all you do is talk about what you can do or how you can answer their questions it’s much less likely they will return. But if you actively provide the answers right there on your site, it becomes a resource.

People return repeatedly to a resource. They trust a resource. And when they are ready to buy? Through your helpful information you’ve proven that your knowledgeable enough to provide what they need.

Today, look at your site and ask yourself if you’re providing answers to questions and informative content for your visitors. If not, think of the reasons they may be coming to your site and what kind of help they’re looking for. Use that information to make your site a resource for your target market.

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As I mentioned last week, the number one complaint I hear from business people is…

“I’m not getting any clients from my website/blog.”

And just in case you missed Friday’s post, I mentioned that when I take a look at these websites, the reason they are having this problem tends to be caused by one or more of 6 common issues.  Today we’re focusing on #1.

So just what is reason #1?

You’re speaking to the wrong audience.

The first thing I do when I visit someone’s site is to see if I can tell from the content, who their target market is.  Sounds easy doesn’t it? Think again.

It’s not always easy to figure out.
Why? Well, sometimes it’s because they themselves don’t have a clear idea of exactly whom they are trying to attract. If they haven’t determined their target market and/or niche, it’s going to be pretty hard to speak to them through their content.

Take for example,  a real estate attorney whose blog posts are related to the legal technicalities, laws and rulings regarding the real estate business.  It’s great information but they’re not likely to draw in sellers and buyers.

Check your site to see if you’re writing for your industry or your market. Writing for your industry is fine if that’s what your goal is. But if your goal is to draw potential clients to your site and turn them into clients, then you should be writing for them.  If it’s all legal or technical jargon, they’re going to bounce right off your website, and probably never return.

Can you see why it’s important to understand who you want to draw to your site before you decide on your content?

Take the time today to read your content with an objective eye.  Make sure you know who you’re speaking to and that it’s the audience you want it to be.

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Remember, if you don’t want to miss any of the posts in this series, be sure you sign up for the newsletter.   When you sign up you’ll get each reason delivered to your inbox and no matter when you decide to sign up, it will start with #1.