Hello again.
I wanted to touch base with everyone and talk a bit more about design -vs- SEO.
I am amazed at the webmasters who know little to nothing about SEO (search engine optimization). They charge a few thousand dollars or $20,000+ for a flashy website with nothing more than a bit of glitz and glam. And yes, I actually know people that have spent that much on a website 🙂
We routinely take on new clients that already have a website developed. They’ve already dropped several grand on a sexy website, but have nothing to show for it except the pride of a flash animated header.
When clients come on board with us we talk reality. A flashy website may look good, but does it make your business money? Our websites are a blend of direct response marketing and SEO. Why invest money into anything that does not enhance your marketing efforts?
I love seeing the results our clients get with a great looking website that is designed to meet their fitness business needs while increasing their authority as THE fitness expert in their local town.
Just today I had the priviledge of emailing 2 newer clients (they signed up a month ago) and letting them know that they are now #1 in both Google and Yahoo for a MORE THAN 1 keyword.
How awesome is that? I love that part of my day. I love the clients that come on board with my company because they “get it”. They get that having a flashy website does little to nothing for their bottom line. But having a direct response inspired, SEO website as the hub of their marketing efforts not only increases leads, but it saves them money.
Here’s the thing… flashy websites need to be redesigned as trends come and go. You’ll spend more money on all of your website tweaks and redesigns than if you had 1 kick butt website that was built properly from the ground up. The only thing that needs to get tweaked with a properly built website are the things that get added as your business grows. Did you recently start a nutrition program? Add it to the website!
Keep this in mind, your website is a marketing tool. Use it as such. Flash is great for the ego. Direct Response and SEO are great for the bottom line.
Take care and keep learning! Be sure to leave any questions or comments below and include your domain name so you get SEO credit for an incoming link to your site!
Hi Lynn, any chance of setting a goal for number of leads to the website per month and then after this, what is a fair conversion rate, i.e. getting someone to either a contact the business or b fill in a form to get a report or free something or other? I look at my google analytics and can’t really tell if the number of leads is good or not. I do know that the conversion rate is not that good at the moment. I am pretty sure I know why but each iteration of the site takes cash and effort. I would be happy with 10 leads per week off the site but that may be asking a little much? I know the numbers will depend on the size of the local area we are talking about and competition etc. but a ball park would be good. It looks like I am getting around 800 hits on the website per month which seems pretty good but as I said the leads are not really happening yet although in the last month increasing a little. I am number 1, 3 and 4 for the key words personal trainer fortitude valley. My area by the way incorporates Brisbane which is a reasonable sized city of 1.5 million. I am very close to the CBD so my immediate surrounds is pretty densely populated and yes quite competitive when it comes to PT and fitness options. Any feedback appreciated. Thanks
Hi, Anthony.
I could write a response that would take days to read… so I’ll try to keep this brief but informative.
It’s impossible to determine how many leads you should be getting because it depends on things like size of your service area, your offline marketing, your online marketing, your offers, your search engine ranking, etc.
So for example, someone that is investing $700 per week in offline advertising should expect more leads than someone that is not doing any offline advertising that week.
Same goes for online advertising and any promotional stuff at all.
Search engine rankings are great, but they are “worthless” if your town is small or if you’re in an area/culture where people don’t rely for local search advertising. While this is very normal in small towns… larger cities tend to rely heavily on local search – and thus have more competition on the search listings.
They are also “worthless” if you rank well but don’t get leads.
But for you… you are ranking and you are getting visitors to your website. You’re just not getting opt ins. So that is a hint. Your web design is quite interesting. I’m going to shoot a video review of it next week because it illustrates the importance of great design.
Once you have the prospect pipeline and website trifecta working altogether… you are on a path of business growth. If you’re unsure of what I am referring to, sign up for the entire video series here: http://www.incontrolwebsites.com/free-video-series.html
I think you’ll have a ton of a-ha moments watching those videos. And again, I’ll shoot a video review of your site and get it out next week. It’s a great learning tool!