By David Lecours, LecoursDesign
(This post is an
excerpt from a longer post
that originally appeared on LecoursDesign
on March 19, 2014.)
If you have this nagging sense that your AEC
firm website could be more than an online brochure, you’re right. The modern
website doesn’t sit idle waiting for the arrival of a visitor to simply
confirm what they’ve already heard about your firm. When combined with narrow
positioning and content/inbound marketing, a good website becomes a business
development tool.
Attract
If your firm is clearly and narrowly positioned to attract a specific audience, then your website can reach and engage the unaware. These visitors may be potential clients or employees. Both are important to the success of your firm.
If your firm is clearly and narrowly positioned to attract a specific audience, then your website can reach and engage the unaware. These visitors may be potential clients or employees. Both are important to the success of your firm.
A benefit of knowing your target audience
is knowing what keeps them up at night. Searchable and optimized content
on your website that soothes client pain points will increase your odds that
unaware prospects find you. Once they find you, they will devour your content
because it seems like it was written just for them.
“A main opportunity is
to attract the unaware: those who need your expertise but are unaware you
exist or not considering you.” –Mark O’Brien, Author of A Website That Works.
By regularly adding unique, expertise-based
content to your site, you will boost SEO. You begin to convey to Google who
you are, which helps Google send the right visitors. The visitors like your
content because it feels customized for them. Then visitors start linking
to your content. Google notices this and increases your search rankings.
Demonstrate
Expertise
A good website can allow someone to get to know (as described above) to like to trust your firm. This happens by demonstrating your expertise in writing. This can be blog posts, white papers or monthly newsletters. Make sure the content is indexable (not a PDF), so Google, and visitors, can find it.
A good website can allow someone to get to know (as described above) to like to trust your firm. This happens by demonstrating your expertise in writing. This can be blog posts, white papers or monthly newsletters. Make sure the content is indexable (not a PDF), so Google, and visitors, can find it.
A commitment to regularly adding valuable
and searchable content to your website demonstrates your expertise and works
to pre-position your firm as a leader before the RFP comes out. Content marketing
is so critical for professional services because we are “selling the
invisible.” Buyers can’t see, touch, or test our services before they buy.
Content marketing is a no pressure, non-sales manner for prospects to
understand how you think, what you believe, and how you’ve solved previous
problems.
Creating engaging content is hard to do.
Most will give up after a few months. This is an opportunity to
stand out.
I recommend starting
with writing a blog. Then graduate to:
• quarterly webinars
• white papers
• speaking where your clients gather
• videos & podcasts
• quarterly webinars
• white papers
• speaking where your clients gather
• videos & podcasts
Connect
The mantra I hear repeated is: A/E/C marketing is a relationship business. People do business with people they know. Yet, I’m shocked how many firms are unwilling to highlight firm leaders on their website out of fear that this talent will be poached. Guess what? Your competition already knows who your leaders are. If your leaders’ loyalty is so fragile that an email from a competitor will cause them to jump ship, then you’ve got bigger issues.
The mantra I hear repeated is: A/E/C marketing is a relationship business. People do business with people they know. Yet, I’m shocked how many firms are unwilling to highlight firm leaders on their website out of fear that this talent will be poached. Guess what? Your competition already knows who your leaders are. If your leaders’ loyalty is so fragile that an email from a competitor will cause them to jump ship, then you’ve got bigger issues.
For more, see the
original blog
post.
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