Tired of Kitchen Sink Marketing?

A common complaint from many prospects -- or even current customers -- is that most websites look to be selling everything and the kitchen sink. This approach may work if you're selling home goods and appliances, but not if you're a professional services company.

The problem is -- website space is cheap. There is nothing to stop you from putting content about every service, product or solution you offer onto a web page. Length doesn't matter -- lots of SEO copy, right?

Wrong. Your prospects don't care about everything you provide. They don't care about most of the things you provide and they certainly don't care about you. They may care about one, specific thing that you have to offer and you've hidden it in a maze of navigation and copy.

What can you do?

Try developing microsites for specific services, vertical industries or topics of interest among your prospective clients. If you offer multiple lines of insurance, but your clients are looking specifically for a retail solution, break out your retail offerings into a specific microsite.

I know, I can hear some of you asking, "Can't I just add it to my main website with additional navigation?" Sure, you can. But if that information was easy to find already, you probably wouldn't have read this far, would you? No, you're better off using your main website to briefly list information about your company with product and service overviews. Then you can develop specific and relevant content for smaller, topic-specific microsites.

For example, Logicalis, an international provider of integrated information and communications technology (ICT) solutions and services, offers a number of IT solutions, including outsourcing services, which can be found on the services pages of its website.

The company has identified, however, that customers can yield three specific benefits through outsourced services -- Save Time, Reduce Costs, and Stay Current.

This approach enables Logicalis to invite prospects to the microsite via social media, emailers, direct mail and public relations. There they can learn more about this specific service and click to get more information or speak with a sales consultant. It’s a smart move and avoids wasting prospects’ precious time.

The point is, when a prospect first comes to your website, that’s not the time to try and immediately cross-sell or up-sell everything you offer.