7 Ways Your Website Can Grow Your Business
This is a guest post from Stacy Karacostas, one of the wonderful experts on the Passport to Business Program that launched January 1st 2011
One of the biggest complaints I hear from entrepreneurs is that they are so busy working in their business, they don’t have time to work on it. This worries me.
Because if you don’t devote time and energy to growing your business, it’s always going to be just like it is right now. So if you’re not satisfied with that, you need to take action.
Now, you’re probably thinking “Between taking care of clients, answering email and putting out fires, where do I find time work on my own business?”
The answer is simple…
Automate your marketing and sales campaigns so your business starts growing on its own.
And if you’ve got a Website, chances are you’re already halfway there.
I have to say, nothing beats opening your email to find your Website has sent you a hot lead. Or attracted a new customer, convinced them to buy, handled the transaction and sent out a thank you—all while you were sleeping, working out, or at the movies with your family.
Best of all, having your Website as your salesperson doesn’t cost more than about $100 a month—if that. And you can make that back in a heartbeat.
So when it comes to bang for the buck, your Website is the single best place to invest your time and marketing dollars.
Chances are good you just need to make a few tweaks and changes to turn your current site into a top-notch salesperson working for you 24/7. Once your Website has the right look, organization and content (and a bit of marketing behind it), it can do amazing things for your business.
Here are Seven Ways Your Website Can Grow Your Business for You:
1) Powerful Introductions
Let’s face it, people don’t buy from businesses. They buy from people they know, like and trust. Unless you are selling something really inexpensive, most folks are not going to pony up their hard-earned cash without learning a bit more first.
You could let people learn more by scheduling endless phone calls, coffee meetings and free consultations.
Or, you could just send them to your Website and let it do the job for you.
2) Draw in the Crowds
Once you get the word out about your Website—as long as you have something of value to offer—new clients will find it and refer others to it.
Then your site can introduce you, and your products or services, to a wider audience in a way that weeds out the tire kickers. All without ever paying for wasteful print brochures.
And it works whether your market is local, national or global.
3) Make Sales Without Selling
If you hate selling, why not let your Website do it for you?
When it’s written and organized right, your Website can:
- Explain the benefits of buying your products or doing business with you
- Answer your prospects questions
- Address their objections
- And get them to take action by calling, signing up, or whipping out their credit card and buying right now!
The result? If you actually end up talking to them personally, they’re seriously interested in buying from—or hiring—you. No selling needed. So you waste less time on folks who aren’t your ideal client anyway.
4) Give ‘Em a Taste
I love cheese, but I’m not one to spend more than a few bucks a pound to satisfy my dairy tooth—unless I happen to get a sampling of something really yummy. Then suddenly I can justify the higher price.
The same holds true with products and services…
Most people won’t buy something that costs more than about $75 on the Web (unless they feel they know and trust you already).
But let them sample the wares with a free report or download, and it’s a whole ‘nother story. If you give them something of value, and they like it, they’ll be way more inclined to actually buy.
And your Website can handle the whole process automatically.
5) Build Your List
The real value in any small business is in the client list. First, because it is about seven times easier and less expensive to keep your past clients than it is to find new ones.
Second, if you want to sell your business down the road, a long client list adds a ton of value for a prospective buyer.
And the easiest way to build this oh-so-valuable list is with your Website.
Think about it…You may only personally meet 100 or so prospects a year. But hundreds, or even thousands, can stop by your Website each month.
Over time, if you keep offering value—and capturing their email addresses—people will go from being prospects, to clients, to raving fans. You can’t beat that with a stick!
6) Deliver the Goods
How would you like to sell a product that requires minimal development costs, no packaging, no shipping, no distribution and no employees to manage?
Your Website can be a completely automated store for selling products and services 24/7—without you lifting a finger once it’s set up. Easy for you. Easy for your clients and customers. Good for everyone.
7) Following Up Forever
Someone can be interested in what you’re selling, but not quite ready to buy right now. Or a client may not need your products and services again for awhile.
But that doesn’t mean they won’t buy something eventually. And when they are ready, you want them to remember you. The easiest way to do that is with automated email autoresponders.
Write the emails once, then set them to go out in sequence whenever someone signs up or makes a purchase. Easy peasy!
Remember, you don’t have to learn how to set all this up yourself. You just have to know what needs to be done. Then hire someone to do the time-consuming, technical and complicated work for you.
That way you can focus on doing the things you do best and have your business growing for you.
Stacy Karacostas – TheUnchainedEntrepreneur.com
Stacy Karacostas is a woman on a mission to help savvy entrepreneurs like you, discover how to market and grow your businesses and still have a life! A Practical Marketing Expert, reformed copywriter, and Business Lifestyle Architect, in her last business, Stacy increased revenues by 50% annually while reducing her work hours by 30%! Her clients regularly see up to a 300% increase in their own sales and conversions without working harder.
The author of “The Overworked Entrepreneur’s Guide to Outsourcing Success”, Stacy’s words of wisdom have also been featured in the books “The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World” and “Leap: 101 Ways to Grow Your Business”. And her articles have appeared in a variety of online and print publications in more than five countries and two languages.
Stacy is the featured expert in the Passport to Business Freedom program on:
How to Turn Your Website into Your #1 Salesperson and act as a Lead Generating, Money Making Machine Learn more.