So you think your PT business is ready for a website?

Your website is the outward expression of your brand on the Internet. It is the focal point that helps consumers form their opinion about your brand. It is therefore important that you define your website's purpose. If your objective is to create a positive 'brand experience' your website requires intuitive navigation, alongside rich and interactive experiences. However, if you are predominantly e-commerce your site would require simple navigation and search functions to ensure consumers find that they are looking for.

We often speak to coaches who are seeking to launch a website purely because 'everyone's doing it, and if I don't I'll fall behind!'. Websites can be costly in set-up and maintenance. Furthermore, if you get it wrong in the first instance, you may potentially be alienating consumers from your brand which is an even bigger cost. Before you seek out a web developer ensure you have answered the following questions:

• What is the purpose of your website? i.e. Disseminate information / Market your company and products / Sell products online / Build constituent and supporter base / Grow your profile
• Is your business primarily Internet based?
• How long have you been in business?
• Where is your business in the marketplace? i.e. lagging / par with competition / leading edge
• Who are your customers / clients / constituents?
• What message are you trying to deliver to your customers / clients / constituents?
• Who is your intended website audience?
• How will people learn about your website?
• What do you want people to do once they visit your website?
• Do you have an overall marketing strategy?
• How will you promote your website?
• What competitor's websites do you like and why?
• What competitor's websites do you not like and why?
• What kind of material will you include on your website? i.e. Information about us / Contact us / Marketing information / FAQ / Product information / Store / Journals / Articles / Current information / Personal material, writings, and accomplishments
• Will your website content be oriented toward: archival / mixed / current information?
• How often to you plan to update the main pages on your website? yearly / quarterly / monthly / weekly / daily
• Who do you want to update the visible content (or "copy") on your website? webmaster / both / myself
• What features do you think will improve your website? Store / Content management system / Blog / Bulletin board / Photo gallery / Email campaign manager / Realty specific / Audio / Video
• How complex will your website be? simple average complex highly complex
• How many visitors do you intend to draw to your website every week?
• Will your website reach out to returning or new visitors?
• How important is it to keep people coming back to your website?
• Do you want your website to look like others in your line of business?
• What colour scheme do you prefer?
• Who will provide the materials and content?
• How will you measure your website's success?

By answering these questions ahead of commissioning a developer, it will help you determine how your website should look, what it should contain, and what features it should include.  These questions are critical, otherwise you will end up spending cash and resources on something that does not work for you.  

Another important consideration is how you write the copy or content for the site. The internet lends itself to a different way of reading information.  You must be mindful that often people who are on your webpage are scanning for information and often don't read every word. It is therefore important that you improve the ‘Scannability’ of your site. You can do this by:

• Using Highlighted keywords (hypertext links serve as one form of highlighting; typeface variations and colour are others)
• Create meaningful sub-headings that give the user the sense of the page if that’s all they read 
• Use bulleted lists and other layout tricks to improve scanning - info-graphics are fantastic at displaying a concept idea in a simple way
• Only ONE idea per paragraph

Now, there is the issue of SEO or Search Engine Optimisation. Essentially, you want to be found on Google (and other search engines).  In order to achieve this, your copy must be written for humans and for machines.  This can be a tricky balance, but it is not impossible. To do this, you must ensure you are using the key 'search' terms that your customers would be using to find you. For example, if you are a personal trainer in New Farm, you would use this throughout the text of your site. Google will rank this higher as it appears to be relevant to the information searched. However, you do not want to have the key words used so frequently it eliminates the sense or the interest for the reader.

Here are some ways that you can create interesting content to keep a reader engaged:
Try STORY TELLING, everyone likes a story.

Implement CREATIVE IDEAS.
Use a CONVERSATIONAL style.

Remain ENTERTAINING (even with important information).
Be OBJECTIVE- DRIVEN
Be CONTEXTUALLY AWARE

- Kristine.