NS Blog

We are on the map...!

We are on the map, and in the super pages, and yelp, and zagat, and....

We all know that the more positive marketing you have as a business the more that customers are going to want to know more about you. Visit, look you up, and add you to there list of places to go and things to do. One more place in the lexicon. Make a good impression and they are loyal, at least for a while. But first they have to find you!

It comes down to this simple forumla, if you want to be seen be where people are looking. I am sure you have heard it before but it is sound, simple and true.
Well people are looking all over, so really the more places that you are represented the better it is. I will list a few places that you should consider if you are in the business of getting business. More and more people are using new ways of finding places.

If I want to find a new place to eat on a Friday night. Something I haven't tried before. What am I going to do? I am going to go online and look at a few different places.

The first thing I do is go to Google and type in 'restaurant Oakville' (my home town). Ok what do I see, I see Google Maps local results for Local business results for restaurant near Oakville, ON' which lists 10 or so places, where they are and the phone number. It also shows there web addresses. Great if I see something I like I can go right to it. But I don't know if I will like these places. So I look a little further down.. and I see Restaurantica.com 'www.restaurantica.com/on/oakville/ great, they offer reviews, catagories (Thai, Pub, Fine Dining, aso), even neighbour hoods! I can see what is within walking distance, which is good for me since my wife and I only have one car, and seh likes to go out on Fridays more than I do.

Since I live in Oakville, I also have a icon on my browser pointing to 'http://www.oakville.com/', one clicks and I am looking at a hand full of restuarants in oakville. Or by visiting toronto.com and searching Oakville I find 250+ listing for Restuarants Oakville.

Now I am not sure which restuarant I am going to go for. Depends on what I am in the mood for, how much I want to spend, and whether I want take out eat etc, but I most certainly will be choosing one of the restaurant s that were on the sites I looked at. Back to the simple premise. If you want to be seen you have to be where people are looking.

Some other sites that I might choose to peruse are http://www.zagat.com/toronto, and http://www.yelp.com/. Both of these sites show an excellent list of restuarants.

Based on the results, the buzz at these sites, and the quality of the actual places website, I would make a decision on what I was getting for diner.

The point is this, be where people are looking! And when they are looking, be sure they see good things!! When I click to see the restaurant itself, am having to explain to myself why they don't have one. Or is it one click to a nice .com intro page, that shows me delicious food and makes an unmistakable impression of their brand. To me that says, they are a quality establishment that I will feel comfortable, and that they care to serve their customers.

...so what am I going to have for diner tonight?

Excite Visitors with your Services!

Today a web site is a dynamic engagement. Mostly if I call up a page, and I am looking for information. I want to a way to engage the interface and find the information I want.

When considering web design, a new web site or a rebuild or expansion, it is important to realize that you need to provide the 'user' the visitor to your page or your site an opportunity to become part of the process of you site. It is in the interest of your active marketing, o keep people happy, to keep things flowing and to keep the user engaged and satisfy there needs as well as presenting them with a reason to visit again. To mark down your business as a smooth and easy solution to their needs. Who doesn't like an easy solution to a problem?

So keeping that in mind, try to imagine yourself as your site visitor, why are they are your site. What are they looking for and how can you provide that service or information. Firstly, as a visitor, I have to like what I am looking at, it has to be clean and readable. Offer me some choice but I really really want to find what I am looking for right away. As a designer this is always priority one. Why are they on site, and where is the information they need. It should never, never be more than 2 or 3 clicks away. Most important elements should be visible on the first screen and linkable directly to the product, solution or service.

Secondly, as a developer I am looking to provide clients with opportunities to rise above the standard and present their users with real online benefits. Solutions that can be engaged online, and provide satisfaction to the individuals that are visiting or seeking information from the site. If you are a Restaurant or a Physiotherapist consider a reservations / schedule request module. A way for your visitors to find you and then make momentum decision to book a time with your establishment / services. This way you can take care of your clients without lifting a finger. You get updates to your schedule requests, if you choose update them online with the CMS interface (Content Management System), and let them see the updated schedule with an email reply. Or allow for immediate booking confirmation without reviewing emails. Then have the message sent directly to your email informing you of your new customer on Wednesday 2:30pm.

This is just one idea one method of employing online interaction with your clients to provide better services and increase client flow to your business.

Subscribe to this blog to stay tuned for more ideas and suggestions for your site on line. How to provide the best services and encourage people to use your services.

Joomla Templates