In order for any professional to be able to identify, define and provide the best solutions and services for YOU and your business, they will need to know about you, your company, its philosophy, missions and goals, the products, services, or information you provide, who your current audience is, who is your target market is, what your timetable is, and of course—your budget.
If the person or persons who are providing web design and marketing solutions for you and your company don’t take the time to ask you the important questions, how will they be able to define an effective solution that is consistent with your company’s short and long term goals and best interests? The answer is very simple. They will not have the information they need to be able to do define and provide solutions in your best interest. So, getting the information is the first step in the process. Next, you need to have a clear understanding of what they are planning on doing—not a vague idea; because that always results in problems. You need to get a proposal that incorporates their research, their proposed solution(s), a timetable, defined costs, and checkpoints along the way to make sure that all parties know where they stand. Also, you need to have a written agreement that defines all of this; giving you an opportunity to make sure the job is done right before you sign off on it and finish paying for it. Those who are not professionals (a large percentage) will not be willing to do this. You may also want to ask if they have any formal education, or industry recognized certifications. It is noteworthy that there really are very few industry recognized certifications in this field. Someone who has invested in professional education that resulted in obtaining a bachelors degree, or masters, or beyond—in this field—will minimize your risk, to some extent. It is okay to ask them about their professional education.
If you are planning on growing your business and if you are planning on continuing to run your business five to ten years from now, then work with a professional that will help you prosper and stay in business. Don’t get fooled by those who are tall on promises and low on price. With that being said, I do understand and realize that price is always a consideration when developing a new business relationship. However, I also know that those who make decisions that have the greatest potential to positively impact both their company’s long-term and short-term goals, will value performance, availability, information, fulfillment and the service provided when they are establishing a new business relationship. Price then becomes secondary. If you have read this far, then it is very likely you do not currently have a professional that is providing you with the value or integrity you need or desire.
If you recall the older Western movies, you could always tell the good guys from the bad guys, because the good guys wore white hats and the bad guys wore black hats. When it comes to search engine marketing they still refer to white hat and black hat operations. The black hat operators are the ones who will advertise that they can get you a first page ranking for your company on Google or Yahoo. It may be that they tell you they have a special arrangement with Google, Yahoo, Live Search; or they know something that nobody else in the industry knows; or maybe they will generate phony traffic or results. They will probably also use methods that are not considered legal by the search engines; which may initially return good results. However, once the search engines find out, then it is your site that may get permanently banned from the search index. Obviously, it is great to have your site show up on the first page of Google or Yahoo searches. But, how did you get there and what keywords or keyword phrase was used in the search query to generate those results? Will those keywords be the right words for your company to generate new business? What will your conversion rates be? What will your ROI be? Ultimately, it is the quality of the content on your site that is going to be a key factor to your conversion rates; and the return on your marketing investment.
Have a well designed website that is compelling and provides great content and value for your customer and target audience and that will win out over gimmicks and quick-fix schemes.
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