Your website is like the window of a shop. Visitors rush by and the first impression decides whether they stop or keep walking. If you want to capture a prospect’s interest with your website, you have exactly 6 seconds. So you have to be brief to draw attention quickly.
In reality, most visitors only skim the headlines of a website during their first visit. This means: your website must be so clear that customers immediately understand your message and the solution you offer. Many companies invest a lot of time, money and resources in a highly-designed website, but they neglect the most important thing: The content.
At Demodia, we work with many websites and have seen these mistakes time and time again. So we'll start with what you shouldn't do.
Tip 1: Mistakes you should avoid at all costs
- Use as little text as necessary on your website (less can more).
- Avoid insider language
- Place a call-to-action in a prominent place and repeat it after each paragraph
- Choose photos that show customers what their lives look like after you have solved their problems
We also often see that the website has no structure or storyline.
We work with a storytelling method that allows you to identify all the important sections of your website. This storytelling method is 100% customer-centric. In this structure, the customer is the main actor of the marketing storyline. Your product/service solves their problem.
In summary:
- Find out what your customer wants.
- Define the problem you can solve for your customer.
- Position yourself as a guide
- Present a plan to solve your client's problem
- Call your customer to action (Call-To-Action)
- Create a vision of what the customer's situation will look like after you have solved their problem
- Be clear about what the client's situation would be like if they did not work with you
With the answers to these questions, we create a brand script that serves as a common thread for your website. This way, we guarantee that the sections are coordinated, that there is no repetition and that the visitor to your website is guided organically through your offer.
Tip 2: Focus on the header
The header is your doorway to your website. Every word you use in this section needs to sit. This is where you should explain what you do or how you can make your customers' lives better. Imagine a newsstand, the newspapers folded in a pile, the headline jumping out at you in thick black letters. If the title interests you, you will buy the newspaper or not.
Your statement within the header is your headline: so say clearly what you do. For example: "We offer IT security solutions for online banking" or "We help you have a warm house in winter." Then in the subheading, talk about the value you offer and how you can improve your customers' lives.
We recommend: Use the section where you talk about success (section 6 from the Brand Script), to show how your solution improves the customer's life.
And definitely don't forget: The Call-To-Action. Many websites don't have a Call-To-Action in their header.
Pro tip: Place two Call-To-Actions on your header. One Call-To-Action under the subheading and one in the upper right corner of your website. You can change the wording slightly. For example: "Book a no-obligation strategy meeting" and "Make an appointment".
Tip 3: A perfect storytelling structure for content sections
After the header, you can add the sections of your brand script to the content sections in any order.
Failure: Don't be afraid to show what will happen if the customer doesn't work with you. People are more likely to be motivated to make buying decisions by negative consequences than by positive prospects (section 7 from the Brand Script).
Promise of success: Clearly demonstrate the value of your product to your customer. List the benefits you offer. For example, that you save time or budget or that your product collects data more efficiently (section 6 from the Brand Script).
Pro Tip: Don't confuse by adding product features and specifications
Guide section: Two aspects are crucial to gaining your customer's trust. Empathy and Authority. Empathy shows that you understand your customer and their problems. This creates closeness and trust.
To prove your authority, you have many possibilities: Awards, quality standards, satisfied customers, well-known customers... (section 3 from the Brand Script).
Pro tip: Decide on a maximum of 3 selected pieces of information that prove your authority.
The plan: In the plan section, describe the solution your product provides to its customer's problem. Be precise and make sure you provide a custom-fit solution to the problem. (section 4)
Call-to-action: Describe in 3 concrete steps how the customer can do business with you. Even if you make it several detailed steps, summarise it into three big steps. For example:
- Download demo version
- Try for 30 days
- Purchase the full version.
Pro tip: You can use an additional transitional call-to-action. This is used to get contact info from prospects who are still not quite ready to buy, using a lead generator.
In other sections, you can place your pricing, your brand script or even videos. In the footer, we recommend putting all the information your website visitors might be looking for.
Of course, we would also be happy to advise you on how to create your website with inviting storytelling marketing. Make an appointment with one of our storytelling experts right here.
