Sometime back in the early 90s you finally got sick and tired of everyone saying “you really ought to get a website” and paid an IT guy a small sum of money to build a site that consisted your phone, fax, address and a bulleted list of your principals.
And there it stayed – virtually untouched for the past 20 something years. And honestly, it has never done a single thing for you except maybe shut up a few friends back in the 90s.
In the year 2013 – people really expect more
Ask yourself one question right now. Would you buy from someone who has a website that looks like yours? If your answer is yes and you are the proud owner of a line card website, you need to take a look at the web around you. It has changed drastically since you built that line card website and your customers’ expectations have changed with it.
What’s expected?
- Modern, clean design – partner with a professional or start with a stellar, flawlessly coded template.
- CONTENT – never force your customers to go somewhere else (for example your principals’ websites) to learn about what you are selling to them
- Easy ways to get in touch – phone numbers, email addresses and contact/lead forms readily available on every page.
No content = no search traffic
The primary reason your line card website will never generate new business is because it has no content. No content = no search traffic and search traffic is the most effective way to generate business through a website.
I won’t go into detail here on how search engines work but trust me when I say content is key to your online efforts.
On a related note, don’t generate content for your website by copying and pasting from manufacturers’ sites. You won’t get search credit for this duplicated content – in fact, you could be penalized for it. Put some time into crafting a message about each product you carry and how your company brings value to the line through additional support and expertise.
Your competition already figured it out – and they are taking your business
Every day reps and distributors are converting their websites from basic line cards to lead-generating machines so you can bet your shorts that your competitors have either already figured it out and are taking business away from you or they are well on their way to it.
Don’t let a poor website stand between you and your next lead (or sale). Get a quote or get to work building something awesome on your own.
A little more food for thought….
Regardless of how they get to your website, customers expect to see more than a listing of the manufacturers you represent. In fact you run the huge risk of turning your customers away and potentially losing them to a competitor. Lets look at a few reasons why:
- Lost leads – You may have gotten fancy back in the 90s and had your web developer (or your nephew) add links to your principals’ websites so customers can do their research and learn more about the products you carry. Great, right? Wrong. When you pass that customer back to the principal’s website they probably will learn more about the product and if they are interested they’ll fill out a lead form on that website – not on yours. It will then be up to the manufacturer to either work the lead direct or pass it off to another rep.
- Broken trust – Who supports these products? Who warranties them? Who ensures they are delivered correctly and on time? If your website doesn’t address the basics of what you do and sell then we can safely assume it doesn’t touch on these oh-so-important details. The more questions you leave in your customers’ heads, the less they will trust you.
- You made them do the work – Honestly, the customer did all the research, sold themselves the product. No loyalty to you has been created in this transaction even if the sale did eventually come back to you.
