Top tips and tricks for growing a company’s digital presence

Other website enhancements

Once the website’s bones/design has been determined, a company can turn its focus to enhancing the site in other ways. Digital marketing and web presence are evolving at a rapid pace so staying on top of trends and using the variety of apps, plug-ins, and platforms that are available will keep the website ahead of the game.

For instance, chat bots add an extra level of communication and transparency. They have become increasingly popular over the years and show no signs of disappearing from the hot seat anytime soon. There is something very reassuring to a customer, knowing they can reach an agent with the click of a button and receive that ‘instant gratification’ so many shoppers desire. Chat bots can be sent to a mobile phone allowing one to easily reply in similar fashion to a text message or e-mail.

Another tool that cannot be stressed enough when it comes to making a website work for a business is the use of analytical data. Google analytics is a free tool and there is no excuse not to reference this data.

Also, when a business uses Google’s analytic services, its website will be favoured over other sites that use a competing tracking service. Although one could get lost in Google analytics for days if they wanted to, do not get intimidated. There are surface insights available that are quite valuable from a business/sales standpoint.

The following are the top 10 most helpful (surface) Google analytic insights one can use to ensure the website is working for the business

1. The dashboard

• Upon signing in, a standard dashboard will outline the company’s website traffic, the days and times users visited, active users, and location of users (all of which can be customized to display the information a company deems important).

2. View popular pages

• This is especially helpful with digital campaigns. After creating a new page with a custom URL, Google analytics can be used to determine how well a particular campaign performed.
• It also helps one see what the company’s customers are searching for and viewing most, which should drive the business’s advertising efforts—sometimes what a company thinks should be popular is not.

3. View pages that are not very popular

• Perhaps a lot of time and energy is being invested in a new product considered to revolutionize the company but have not garnered interest. Analytic data will help give the business a tangible and reliable reason to maybe drop it and move on, or amp up its efforts and re-evaluate again at a later point.

4. Popular site content

• How long did visitors stay on the website to read certain posts? This can help a business narrow in and offer great content to keep them coming back.

5. The areas that website visitors live

• If a company just opened a new store in one area and has been hitting the ground running to promote it, it is nice to see if the visitors to the website are from that area.
• This also helps a company determine where its most interested visitors are located so unique campaigns can be tailored for them knowing it is money well spent.

6. Learn what visitors are searching for on the website

• A company will know if its website is answering the questions visitors have.
• A company will know if there is a product or service the public wants that it does not have but should get.

7. If products are sold online a company can see at what stage people abandoned their cart by creating a goal funnel

• This is especially helpful if a company has a multiple-step checkout process.

8. Acquisition

• This helps one see where the company’s website visitors are coming from. Was it an organic search or through social media? Perhaps even a link off of a distributor’s website? Knowing how visitors found the website is quite valuable because it allows a company to go back and nurture those sources.

9. Bounce rates

• Businesses can track a visitor’s click-through and see where it was they left the page and then determine
  if changes to the website need to be made.

10. Know the audience

• Google analytics allows a company to see the age, gender, location, and interests of its website audience. This helps tailor the content or angle in which to approach them. From the lingo being used to the website’s design, this information allows a business to create accurate customer personas.

A website is an ever-changing, workable document that is meant to grow and evolve with the company. It is an invaluable tool and acts like a compass to both the present and the future of the business. Websites work for all companies; they just have to be set-up for success.

Crystal Lengua is the sales and marketing manager at SMP Ultralift and sits on the Pool and Hot Tub Council of Canada’s (PHTCC) national board of directors, as well as on the PHTCC’s Toronto chapter board of directors. A graduate of marketing, public relations and corporate communications, professional sales, social media marketing, and event management, she has positioned herself as a leader in digital and traditional marketing methods. Featured in Mississauga Life magazine in 2014 as a leading female entrepreneur, she is also a keynote speaker, blogger, and social media maven. She can be reached via e-mail at c.lengua@smpmetal.com.