First Order of Online Business: Create a Site That Sings

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1 First Order of Online Business: Create a Site That Sings By Michele P. Warren Word of mouth may be a great way to drum up business, especially for channel partners serving the SMB space, but there s simply no excuse for not having a strong online presence (read: Website) in While there s no one recipe for a winning Website, there are plenty of do s and don ts being doled out from experts and gurus in Web design and development. Consider these tips if you re looking to give your site a facelift. The Best Laid Plans... Things don t always go according to plan, but you re still better off having one than not. Redesigning a Website is no exception. Set out some goals. What do you want to accomplish with your site? Do some reconnaissance. Scout out other B2B sites, especially competitors, and see what they re doing that s worthy of emulation and avoidance. Think about your budget. It might be worth the investment to hire a Web design firm to help you flesh things out.

2 Let s Face It: Looks Matter You have only 5 or 10 seconds to make a first impression with your Website, so don t blow it. Every detail counts. Avoid clutter and minimize distractions, such as pop-ups and animations. Don t be afraid to use white space. Every space on every page doesn t have to be filled. Let the elements breathe. Be aware of your color palette. Colors convey mood and emotion, so choose them carefully. The safest bet is to go with mostly neutral tones and add only strategic splashes of color. Don t skimp when it comes to images. Use high-quality photographs and icons. You want your business to come off as polished and professional, not amateurish. Think typeface is unimportant? Guess again. Experts recommend using a universal font one that s easy to read across all browsers and devices and a type size no smaller than 11 points. Create a compelling mix of images and copy. No one page should consist solely of copy or images. And keep the copy brief. Long blocks of text can turn away visitors. Consider the gestalt. Obviously, there are myriad details that factor into the look and feel of a Website. Aside from paying attention to them all, you have to look at the overall presentation. If something isn t sitting quite right, it s time to do more tweaking. The whole really is greater than the sum of its parts. Content: Yes, It s Still King In the final analysis, a pretty Website with anemic content just won t cut it. You have to back up the beauty with some brawn. Showcase your expertise with videos, white papers, and case studies. Build your credibility with testimonials. Have satisfied customers that are willing to talk you up? Cite some of their quotes.

3 Don t omit an About Us page or section. Most customers potential and existing are looking for a quick description of your company and its value proposition. It s not a bad idea to include staff photos and bios here as well, and that copy doesn t have to read like a resume either. Mention skills, naturally, but show the lighter side of things as well. People want to know what moves you, what you do for fun what makes you human. To that point, try to use photos that are somewhat candid employees in action or in conversation perhaps not posed and stuffy. Employ Calls to Action (CTAs). These must-haves tie into the Website goals mentioned earlier. What s the next step you want visitors to take? Should they read one of your white papers? Call you? Get a quote? With well-placed CTAs, you can successfully lead visitors where you want them to go, with the aim of converting prospects into customers (and inciting existing customers to buy from you again). Try putting those CTAs at the top or bottom of pages. List contact information. Your phone number should be prominent on your home page, not buried somewhere on a contact page. Experts say the top-right corner is ideal. On your contact page, you should also list your address, and it s not a bad idea to include business hours and directions too. Be a social butterfly. Everybody s doing it may not generally be a good reason to go along with the pack, but in this case, it is. As a business, you ll miss a lot of great opportunities for exposure if you don t leverage Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media outlets that allow you to build a community around your brand and make a connection with customers. Blogs, while not necessarily tied to social media, add a nice touch as well. Keep copy short and sweet. Avoiding long blocks of copy will go a long way toward keeping site visitors interested. The writing should be clear, concise, and here s the sweet part error-free. Misspellings, typos, and grammatical errors will detract from your professionalism, so you should have multiple pairs of eyes reading behind you. Want to be really thorough? Hire an editor. And don t forget about SEO. The copy should be optimized so that your name and Website come up during relevant searches.

4 It Don t Mean a Thing...If It Doesn t Work So you ve put together a good-looking, content-rich Website. Great. But can people access it easily and safely? And does it help you achieve your intended goals? Focus on ease of navigation. This could ve been listed under the Looks category, but it fits here as well. You have to make it as easy as possible for people to get around your Website. The primary navigation bar should be horizontal across the top of each page, and all headings should be clear so that visitors can find what they re looking for quickly and easily. And for goodness sake, make sure all of your links work. Nothing will frustrate a visitor more than clicking on a link in excited anticipation of a juicy tidbit and getting an error message or blank screen. Heed the need for speed. We all have places to go and people to see, so things should move lightning-fast at your site (barring network problems, of course). Keep your images small, so they load quickly. (Consider using CSS sprites, which split large images into several smaller ones.) On the back end, address any bottlenecks that could slow down your site. Be sure your site translates across devices. With so many road warriors out there today, chances are good that your Website is being viewed from as many smartphones and tablets as desktops. With responsive Web design, your site will look good on any device, with any browser. There are inexpensive tools out there for creating a mobile-friendly version of your Website. Otherwise, you can invest in a good design firm. Any one of them worth their salt will know all about responsive design. Be safe. Cyberattacks and compromised data are the nemeses of online users nowadays, so make sure you have a secure system in place if you re conducting transactions online. And always be diligent about what information you make available at your Website. If there s a question, double-check with the source. As the old adage goes, if in doubt, leave it out. Measure your results. Don t just assume everything s working as it should. Use analytics and any other means of measurement to make sure you re reaching your goals. Things to look at include keyword rankings, bounce rates, unique visitors, conversion rates, exit rates, top page views, and traffic sources.

5 Armed with the knowledge of what makes a Website work, you should be able to pull together something that really resonates with your customers. Top-performing solution providers are already doing something right when it comes to their online presence. The third annual Ingram Micro SMB 500 shows the group growing at a compound rate of 43 percent, with the highest-ranking channel partner posting a three-year annual growth rate of nearly 625 percent. The annual ranking is based on the performance of more than 20,000 small-business solution providers operating under the Ingram Micro umbrella, and shows partners growing at rates three to four times the channel industry average and well above the channel average for SMB-focused resellers. The Ingram Micro SMB 500, compiled by Ingram Micro s Business Intelligence Center and U.S. SMB Business Unit and business strategy firm The 2112 Group, recognizes the sustained growth and business performance of SMB-focused channel partners.

6 ABOUT the Ingram Micro SMB 500 Program Ingram Micro SMB 500 The Ingram Micro SMB 500, facilitated by The 2112 Group, tracks and studies the performance of the top U.S. solution providers in the Ingram Micro network servicing small and midsized businesses to provide actionable intelligence for improving sales, revenue, and profit of all companies in the go-tomarket value chain. For more information about the Ingram Micro SMB 500, visit Ingram Micro, Inc. Ingram Micro Inc. is the world s largest wholesale technology distributor and a global leader in IT supply-chain and mobile device lifecycle services. As a vital link in the technology value chain, Ingram Micro creates sales and profitability opportunities for vendors and resellers through unique marketing programs, outsourced logistics and mobile solutions, technical support, financial services, and product aggregation and distribution. The company is the only global broad-based IT distributor, serving approximately 160 countries on six continents with the world s most comprehensive portfolio of IT products and services. For more information, visit The 2112 Group The 2112 Group is a business strategy firm focused on improving the performance of technology companies direct and indirect channels through our portfolio of market-leading products and services. We leverage proprietary intelligence with qualitative research, market analysis, tools, and enablement programs. By looking at the technology market from the viewpoint of vendors, partners, and end users, 2112 is uniquely positioned to develop go-to-market strategies that are beneficial to all parties from both a channel and enterprise perspective. For more information, visit