Tune Up Your Digital Marketing: Your Website Bootcamp
Website Jump Start 1:
Building Your Online Fan Base
Learning Objective: Start creating and sharing powerful content that will reach and build your ideal community—perfectly presented for maximum message
You’ve planned and written focused, powerful content for your site and you’ve learned to create new pages. Now let’s take a look at how to make them display their best so they reach the right visitors.
Step One: Your About Page
As we noted in Website Jump Start 3, many people make their about page their home page—but no matter which page is your home page or where it is in your menu, your about page has only one, overwhelmingly-important task.
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It has to make your ideal visitor say, with emotion: “She’s talking about MY life!”
Depending on where they are, this will either be:
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An identification with pain (“Wow, she lost everything like I did!”) or…
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An identification with possibilities (“I want that to be me!”)
Your about page should leave her feeling that, “hey, it’s hard… but I can do this too … and that coach is just the one to help me!”
So you’re talking about yourself—but you’re really talking about your ideal visitor.
So first, sit down and tell your authentic story. Imagine you’re sitting face to face with a particular person you want to engage with after an event. People are packing up chairs around you, she comes to you with a question and you begin to talk, asking questions, answering them … and sharing.
The two of you move out to the garden beyond the French doors, to get away from the noise. You sit on a wall overlooking the ocean, and you tell her your story:
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Why you do what you do
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What your “knife edge” moment was—the epiphany that transformed you
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What happened then
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How you can help her experience that and break free of _______________ too.
When you’ve written your “Transformational Story”—or recorded it, if you’re an auditory learner—take a look at it, in print. (Type it out or have it typed, if you recorded it.)
Take a look at your transcript. How long is it? How short? What’s the most powerful, heart-grabbing statement in there? What one thing is likely to make people want to keep reading?
How can you use it?
Here’s a strong, heartfelt example: Outsourcing Coach Melissa Ingold’s transformational about page tale at TimeFreedomBusiness.com . Sit on the beach with Melissa, and let her tell it to you.
A well-told About story will be personal but focused—and oriented towards helping the right visitor over hurdles that you yourself have faced—and overcome.
It reinforces your main message, your mission and your brand.
Step Two: Adding Images
Images help people put faces to names; feel the sun on their backs and hear the wind on the water. It puts them in a moment, helps them recall certain moods—perhaps when they were at their most carefree, happy or optimistic.
Images help people identify with you, connect with their pasts, or see what the future might be like.
Never underestimate the power of images, when it comes to adding depth, clarity and focus to the words you speak or write.
Here’s how to add images to your WordPress site.
If you are using Divi, you will select Image Modules and upload your photos directly into those.
If you have chosen any other theme than Divi, add images and multimedia from right within that page or post, simply by selecting the “Add Media” button; uploading to or selecting an image in your gallery; and inserting your image into your page or post at the point where your cursor is resting.
No matter what insertion or upload method you use, ALWAYS add Alt text (a descriptive keyword) to each image. Enter it in the Alt Text field in your Media Gallery; or if you’re using Divi or a similar theme, use the field in the Module pop-up.
This makes it easier for Google to index and can help improve your searchability. And in the rare event an image doesn’t display, it tells your visitors what they should be looking at.
What makes a strong image?
People tend to think of images as stand-alone items. Not so. They are an integral part of your story.
Where you place them can be as important as what’s in the image. That goes for size too—is your image full of detail that’s so small it gets lost (or—worse—looks like something completely different) on mobiles?
And how do your images relate to the text they are paired with? Do they support its message… or do they distract or contradict?
A strong image, composition-wise, has a strong single focal point. It uses strong contrast to make an impact, or soft focus to support a mood.
Here’s a good example of a mood-supporting, soft focus shot on the website of coach, Allyson Chavez.
Where you place your image makes an impact too—so train yourself to be mindful of all these aspects.
Writing heartfelt content:
Does this mean you have to be all touchy-feely? Of course not. Sometimes that’s not even appropriate. But the way to write truly heartfelt content is not to pour out your guts, but to give authentic, honest answers. Make authentic, honest statements. Be thoughtful about what you want to say, and how you want to say it. Check your facts, and approach your writing in an attitude of service—not one of ego (though you are a business owner, so that’s not likely you!).
That means giving them not only the best content, the best answers, you possibly can, but also focusing all your attention on:
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Where they are in their journey now
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Why they are hurting
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What you can do about it
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Why you care so much
It’s in answering your own questions—as well as theirs—that epiphany moments happen, changing lives. (Remember, as Tony Robbins famously says, “People who are successful always ask questions”.)
So don’t write complacently. Write from your core values. Question what you say, what you teach, what you think. That’s where you’ll find that magic twist that makes you different from all the other businesses in your field.
Step Three: Adding Multimedia
If words can connect you with people on an emotional level—if photographs can enhance that even more—then just think what video and audio can do. They can not only add a feeling of live interaction, and increase the entertainment level, but they can also help people feel they’ve really “met” you.
This happens when they see your body language and expressions. These will either attract your visitor even more… or push her away. And don’t worry if the latter happens—you’ve saved yourself a frustrating client or one who just doesn’t “get” you.
They hear your tone of voice: The sincerity, the animation, the warmth.
That builds real trust.
Even if your video doesn’t feature your face—say it features slides instead: Your audience still hears your tone of voice—and if they are visual learners, the audio of your voice plus the visuals of the slides helps the information or story you’re sharing really stick.
They remember you better. And they may return to watch helpful videos again and again.
How to embed a video:
Although things have changed greatly with WordPress, web technology and video, it’s still important NOT to host your video on your own site. It can eat up enormous bandwidth and if you get a lot of hits, crash your web host’s server. And hidden incompatibilities and processes can massively slow down your site.
It’s still better to embed video on your site—and plugins can really help with the visual appearance, appeal, accessibility and presentation of your video, so let’s take a closer look at embedding videos.
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YouTube
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Instagram
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Vimeo
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Scribd
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Photobucket
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Blip.tv
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Flickr (both videos and images)
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Google Video
These are the safest sites to upload your videos to.
If you don’t want to use skins and you don’t mind displaying your videos “as is”, follow this simple oEmbed procedure. (No; ‘oEmbed’ is not a typo.)
Copy the URL for your hosted video (in one of the above platforms) to your website page or post and paste it in
DO NOT HIT ENTER to turn it into a live link, if in Visual mode—and DO NOT ENCLOSE IT WITH CODE to turn it into a live link.
It should be on its own line, and look exactly like this (without the check mark):
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f_0jwFaybA
NOT https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f_0jwFaybA
OR <a href=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f_0jwFaybA/”>Learn how to create a Monthly Coaching Program</a>
Videos and audio files automatically increase your traffic potential—by taking advantage of the powerful popularity among searchers on these platforms.
Step four: Backing up your site
We promised that in this Module, we would look at a better way to back up your website. The problem with using plugins is that should you ever need to retrieve a backup, you find you haven’t a clue how to restore it—or it takes more knowledge of behind-the-scenes WordPress and web activities than you have (or have time for).
There’s a reason that one of the most popular ways to back up your site is to use something that isn’t a plugin at all: Auto Site Saver
It’s not free but it is easy—and starting at only $20 per month, it is one of the most secure, “no muss, no fuss” ways to back up your website.
STEP Five: Building a relationship
One of the most often-missed parts of running a business website lies in the relationship building. No matter how authentic you are, you need a system for that too. Don’t passively wait for people to comment on blog posts. Use calls to actions and graphic buttons containing these also.
Share your posts, offers, and truly helpful resources on social media. Put social share buttons on your site. Use social media to drive people back to your site—and interact with and acknowledge them.
Interview people for your site—and be a welcome guest on theirs, providing content and a fresh perspective.
Sharing content and presenting offers is a twin process: Your content hooks and retains your ideal visitors, who turn into action-taking fans—who then start looking for something they can buy from you.
It’s a good idea to have products that both “introduce” and augment your main offering. If people aren’t ready to invest, they might buy your signature book. If they like what they read, they are more likely sign up for a package you are offering. If they experience a powerful, productive Discovery session that leaves them with one achievable but slightly difficult quest to undertake, or a suggested action plan laid out, they’re more likely to sign up for a package.
And if they are enjoying success with your package, they are also more likely to join your VIP Monthly Club because they want more of you. And if they achieve successes that transform their lives, changing things for the better in some way, they are the ones who will rush to invest in your Annual Mastermind Retreat.
And another area you don’t want to overlook: Giving people an easy way to sing your praises. While it’s nice if they do this on social media, don’t wait for that—include a Form on your contact page that prompts them to share how you’ve helped them … or create a Survey at SurveyMonkey.com asking simple, closed questions that actually help them to articulate why they love what you do.
Social proof is also another important way you can boost the power of your website. Include that social sharing plugin, and put sharing badges on your website. Share those testimonials (especially if you can provide a link or website name with a first-and-last name … and a profile photograph).
Put a Media Section (with a minimum of at least a Media Page that journalists can use) –and be active about adding to it, every time you are interviewed or speak somewhere or achieve something to which people can relate. And we’re talking about interviews with authority sites, TV interviews, magazine interviews—as Spiritual Entrepreneur coach, Eva Gregory demonstrates on her own site.
And do create a membership site, VIP Club or at least a closed Facebook or LinkedIn Group for your fans. It’s a great way get detailed feedback you need for creating better products and programs—and that’s where you’ll find a core group who takes action and act as really valuable helpers and/or potential affiliates.