The buzz on blogs, wikis, social networking, and other user-driven interaction is deafening. News is awash with member and hits-per-day stats that blow conventional marketing strategies out of the water – or so it seems.

Online tools are often touted as the fast track to web success, so it isn’t surprising that companies are scrambling to uncover and implement the latest bells and whistles. But, not every company or customer is the right candidate for these technologies. Don’t let fear of becoming a technological dinosaur turn your company into an impulsive decision maker – when considering interactive web tools for your business’ website, ask two key questions:

1. Will this add value to my online strategy?
2. Are my customers even interested?

Before implementing new technologies and features on your website, assess the unique needs of both your business and your customer. For example, a knowledge-based industry, such as finance, might successfully meet a key customer need with a reputation-building blog offering up to the minute market data. Conversely, a food manufacturer may lack the customer profile or breadth of relevant data to draw from for a blog, but would benefit from surveys and polls to support research and development.

To get the most out of your web strategy, consider the web applications that have the business world dreaming big, but in the context of your business, and your customers:

Blogs
What: A site that includes individual entries on a particular subject or from a particular point of view, often an individual.
Why: Great way to connect with customers and establish authority in a specialized field.
Best Practice: Like all online content, relevancy is paramount. The challenge is frequency: blog posts need daily, or hourly, updates to be valuable and compelling.

Forums
What: Virtual meeting space for users to post comments and questions, and interact with each other.
Why: Leverage your most significant resource, satisfied customers, to speak for you. Constructive criticism boosts problem solving and business development planning.
Best Practice: Moderation is vital to ensure content is appropriate; a pre-screening process to weed out undesirable posts can be cumbersome.

Surveys/Polls
What: Forms that collect site visitor opinions and data.
Why: Pick the brains of visitors on any topic you choose with untraditional market research.
Best Practice: Topics must be timely and updated frequently. Any data generated must be directed to, and used by, the appropriate people to gain any value.

As with anything else, not every solution fits, so consider your online options carefully. With the right tools, you can drive traffic to your website, increase repeat visitor hits and page views, and gain the knowledge you need to propel your business into the future.

Like just about everyone else who’s forked over a fair sized chunk of their
year’s marketing budget to achieve a killer online presence, you’re looking
forward to a rush of new sales, right?

Bad news: it isn’t going to happen. And that doesn’t mean your website isn’t
good – it’s more likely because your website’s been left to go it alone.

The simple truth is that for most businesses, a website is a sales tool, not
a sales vehicle. So if you want to dramatically boost sales and see your website
as an ideal place to find new prospects, you need to incorporate the same
techniques used in face-to-face selling to make them convert. That, of course,
begins with prospect follow up.

About 80% of the sales initiated through website contact are made
after several contacts have been made. Why ? Because people
rarely visit a website and immediately buy (unless it’s an e-commerce site), so
if you don’t maintain ongoing contact you’ll miss out on a significant amount of
potential new business. Don’t let that happen – make the most of every selling
opportunity by offering your site visitors information of value so they will
tell you who they are in order to get it. Case studies, white papers, check
lists, guides and e-publications encourage visitors to come back regularly
looking for fresh content – ask them to identify themselves and you can actually
notify them when that new content becomes available, along with whatever else
you’d care to promote. Once you’ve established the contact, follow up with more
of the information they’re looking for and your chances of getting them to buy
will be far greater. Here’s how to begin:

• Credibility = Trust
  The more useful and relevant
  information you provide to prospects, the more belief they will have that your
  business can be trusted. By offering credible information that delivers value,
  you demonstrate that you know what you’re talking about. As a result, site
  visitors will be willing to provide you with their email addresses so you can
  give them even more – they may even fill out short surveys to tell you what they
  really want. Before you know it, Presto! A brand new prospect list is
  born.
• Playing With Emotions
  With every message you send to
  your new list, you should emphasize the “want” your product will satisfy. Saving
  money? Saving Time? Adding convenience? Remember that people buy first because
  they want and second because they need, so your messages need
  to address both the emotional and the tangible.
• Building Value
  Each time you contact your prospect the
  value of your “offer” should grow. It might be a limited time bonus, special
  discount or something else you know your prospect will appreciate. By limiting
  the time available to act, you work to push your prospect toward making a buying
  decision.
• Making it Real
  Once you’ve hit the emotional element of
  decision-making, be sure to focus just as pointedly on the practical. Give
  prospects sound, logical reasons to buy, based on facts. Pinpoint the results
  they will see, the savings they will realize or the efficiencies they’ll gain.
  Be specific and use examples – pie in the sky just isn’t credible.
• Positive Reinforcement
  Testimonials in the form of case
  studies work well to attract prospects with similar “pain” to your customers.
  Because, if you can eliminate your customers’ pain, it stands to reason you can
  do wonders for your prospects’, too.

Now – take a good hard look at your website. Does it offer value? Does it
give prospects an opportunity to ask you for more? Does it give you an
opportunity to learn about them? If it doesn’t, shouldn’t you be doing something
about it?