Content Strategy | Content for Biz Inc.

How Website Content Supports and Sells Customer Service

Outstanding customer service is something that many companies make claim to, but how do you convince prospects that your business will go above and beyond? How do you make your website an extension of the outstanding customer service you deliver in person? We looked to four customer service leaders for inspiration.

Tell the “Wow” Stories

Ritz-Carlton’s customer service has been widely recognized. In each hotel every day, every department meets to share stories about customers who have been wowed by their services. We find a selection of these stories on their website. Stories That Stay With You: Unique and Memorable Moments from the Ladies and Gentlemen of The Ritz-Carlton, makes customer service interesting and compelling to the website visitor.

Build a Customer Service Page

Wegman’s is a grocer that consistently ranks high in customer service. On a a recent Bloomberg Businessweek survey, 60% of respondents would recommend the brand. Visit Wegman’s website and the Customer Service page is a convenient one-stop shop for any and all info a consumer might need. From frequently asked questions, to actual phone numbers, and a store locator, Wegman’s anticipates customer needs well and neatly compacts the info in one convenient place. A website that does this well can effectively reduce customer wait times and free up staff for other assignments.

Add Convenience

Automaker Lexus (Ranked 7th on the same survey) uses its website to build in convenience for busy customers. Once enrolled in My Lexus, an owner can conveniently schedule service appointments online, access their complete service history, or download ownership manuals. Imagine, no more digging out a paper invoice out of a file cabinet to see when the last time you had new tires installe

Be Helpful

Home of “the Helpful Hardware Man,”Ace Hardware extends customer service online through the Projects and Solutions area of its site. Expertise is shared through interactive project videos, step-by-step how-to’s, and the Helpful Hardware Man’s Corner. Customers know where they can find assistance with their projects. Are you doing the same for your “DIY” B2B customers? “Projects sell products,” we used to say when I worked at a home center publication years ago. Similarly in foodservice, recipes and menu ideas sell ingredients.

What these service leaders demonstrate is that website content can not only sell customer service to a prospect, but also extend customer service by helping customers find the information they need online. While face-to-face customer service is highly valued, these companies recognize that buyers increasingly go online to interact with the brand. Smart marketers will maximize the customer experience in both places.

Are you ready to think differently about how you approach your website content? As professional content strategists and contest writers we can help you determine the content that will best support and sell all aspects of your brand, including service. We can help you find and tell your customer service stories; organize and write an effective customer service page; enhance customer convenience, and share your know-how.

Give us a call, or send us an email. We’ll respond right away, either way.

SEO Post Panda Puts Emphasis on Quality, Not Quantity Content

“Our goal is simple: to give people the most relevant answers to their queries as quickly as possible.” That’s how Google introduced its new Panda algorithm on the Official Google Blog written by Amit Singhal, Google Fellow, and Matt Cutts, Principal Engineer, in February 2011. They go on about the purpose of Panda……”it will provide better rankings for high quality sites—sites with original content and information…“ SEO aficionados looked at their toolkits and began to wonder.

On the official Google Webmaster Central Blog Amit offers guidance on what constitutes a quality site. Quality sites are trustworthy containing well-crafted content relevant to the audience’s interest. The questions below are the kind that Google staff pose when assessing the quality of a site. My advice for increasing your search rankings follows.

Trust

Would you trust the information presented in this article?
Does it carry authority from a knowledgeable author?
Is the site a recognized authority on its topic?

Who is researching, writing and overseeing your content becomes more important within the Panda paradigm. One way to build trust is to distribute original quality content throughout relevant networks online. You may gain inbound links that add to your authority.

Content

Is the content well edited? Does this article have spelling, stylistic, or factual errors?
Does the article provide original content or information, original reporting, original research, or original analysis?
How much quality control is done on content?
Does this article contain insightful analysis or interesting information that is beyond obvious?

Conduct a quality content audit. Review all of your pages and improve the content or remove low quality content. Eliminate duplicate content and keyword-stuffed pages. Hire an editor. Rely on people who can conduct an interview, research and write in a voice that conveys the proper tone, insight and interest. Create high amounts of content consistently.

Relevance

Are the topics driven by genuine interests of readers of the site, or does the site generate content by attempting to guess what might rank well in search engines?
Would you expect to see this article in a printed magazine, encyclopedia or book?

I thought these last questions interesting because they align with traditional publishing print practices. Imagine a magazine putting fluff on its pages to entice but not deliver to its audience or reading a published article with blatant factual errors. It wouldn’t be in business for long. Know your audience.

Google is now rewarding trustworthy, well-written, relevant content sites with top slots in its search rankings. Do you have someone you can depend on to deliver such content? Have you hired any new staff to address Panda’s quality issues?

4 Content Strategies to Increase Sales Leads Online

Content encompasses all that conveys information from your web presence. To increase sales leads online break the big picture down to small but effective steps. In essence craft, share, and measure your content. Add live interaction to complement your content strategy. Doing so will increase sales leads.

1. Craft highly focused content that addresses your prospects’ pain points and offer a solution. Do not overwhelm with too much information. Take a look at how Glidden Paint offers simple solutions and adds an interactive element on their website.

2. Share your content. The Word of Mouth Marketing Association estimates that two thirds of economic activity is influenced by personal referrals and recommendations. An effective way to share content online is to add share buttons on each web page and each piece of self-contained content including blog posts, videos, newsletters and offer-type emails.

To get a sense of what kind of content people like to share visit the Allthingsnow site which shows the top Facebook Shares of the day as well as the most popular Facebook page sites.

Include a link to your content on twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn posts. Don’t forget Tumblr, Posterous and bookmarking sites such as Stumbleupon, Delicious and Reddit. The Google Reader share button is also useful. Adding a feed to your own sites’ most popular content is another way to share your information.

3. Study prospects online behavior. Who is on your site and what content are they engaging with? Follow up. Eloqua and Hubspot are two companies that offer marketing automation and web analytics solutions. Reach prospects by function and vertical using content aligned with their interest and business objective including white papers, case studies, and articles. Track which content is leading to conversions.

4. Give your prospects a choice for some kind of live experience. Even if it’s a telephone number to call. Viewers appreciate accessibility. Live chat software is being used successfully by Wells Fargo and Regence BlueCross/Blue Shield. Both reported higher customer satisfaction after adding a live chat option to their websites. Wells Fargo reported a double-digit increase in sales. Customers preferred using live chat over the telephone.

Each of these strategies can be used on websites and social media sites. Apply them regularly and your leads will increase.

Content Strategy: A Recipe for B2B Marketing Success

Are you overwhelmed by the number of touch points you have with customers? The marketing mix for many B2B companies today looks like a recipe with an ever-increasing number of ingredients. Imagine the pot is your company. The protein for your recipe is your website and without it, your marketing lacks power. Trade magazines, trade shows and traditional public relations form a base; add blogs; mix in Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and You Tube; sprinkle in custom events, networking, webinars, and mobile. It’s either a recipe for success or a recipe for disaster.

Before the Internet, you knew the recipe for B2B marketing success fairly well. Now the recipe has become far more complicated. You can’t just throw in more ingredients and expect it to taste good. You need to think about what each element of the marketing mix can contribute because time and money are limited. You need to think about what customers are looking for and how they engage in each of the platforms.

In the old days a prospect may have picked up the phone and called a vendor to help him in the buying process. Today buyers conduct much of their preliminary research online. Your customers are going to find the information they need from someone. How will you help them? What can you provide that will be useful? How will you stand out in the crowd? How will you build trust? Where will they look for this information?

Here’s a way to simplify the process:

1) Determine Who

Who do you want to reach? If there are multiple audiences you’ll need separate strategies. Learn as much about them as you can.

2) Determine Your Objectives

Are you after sales leads or brand awareness? Are you trying to establish credibility or educate customers? Choose the “ingredients” of your marketing mix based on your objectives.

3) Determine What

Content should also be aligned with objectives. What can you show, what can you say, what have you done, that will help you accomplish your objectives? How will you show it, how will you say it, how will you communicate it on each of your selected channels? This is content strategy.

Some B2B marketers are probably moving too quickly into new media, while others aren’t moving quickly enough. But whether you are just beginning to embrace it, or have already jumped in, taking the time to develop a content strategy will help ensure your success.

Coming soon… Content for Biz will offer a complimentary B2B content strategy worksheet for all our subscribers. Sign up today be sure you don’t miss it.

Social Media Strategy: 10 Ways to Increase Involvement on Your B2B Facebook Page

Successful Facebook pages are all about involvement. How will you keep website visitors involved and engaged?
What’s your social media strategy? If you feel as if you are talking and no one is listening, it’s time to consider a new strategy. .

Here are 10 things you can try.
1) Include a compelling call to action. If you want me to like you, give me a good reason why? Keep your message front and center. Offer an incentive.

2) Try something fun. Ecyler produces a weekly 30-second series called “Crush that Can” which highlights fun ways to collapse a can for recycling.

3) Demonstrate your product or service with a video. At StellaDot company founders showcase all the feature of their fashion products and how to wear them.

4) Launch a contest. Western States Cat held launched a heavy equipment rodeo at 12 locations across its territory. Participants competed in five event and the winner from each location will compete for a championship. Share the news on your Facebook page.

5) Seek out legitimate feedback on your products and services. Conduct a survey asking readers a simple question?

6) Have employees tell a story about what they do for the company.

7) Offer discounts for involvement. Offer a discount if they post of a photo related to them using the product. Threadless allows users to upload photos of their own t-shirt designs.

8) Promote community content if you are a local business.

9) Give them something for sharing with a friend.

10) Respond to posts in a timely manner. Thank your fans for contributing and call them by name..

Let me know how it goes.