4 Website Branding Strategies
Let’s face it, every business in existence today, no matter how big or small, needs a website. A company’s website is often the first stop customers make when doing research for a solution to their problem. It also helps establish the legitimacy, or lack thereof, of your brand.
If done right, your website allows you the opportunity to make a great first impression and connect with customers in an authentic way. So when a customer is in need of the products or services you provide, but finds 3 other companies with similar offerings, they choose you.
If you’re a small business owner like me, you’re wearing multiple hats to keep the company profitable. You’re the Visionary, the Ops guy, the Sales guy, AND the Marketing guy. With so much on our plates, how can we find the time to focus on branding? It’s obvious we need a website but we just need something up so people can find us. Right?
Wrong. If you simply approach your website as a place where people can find you, that assumes they know who you are, what products and services you provide, and if it is of value to them.
Instead, take a week and carve an hour out of each day to spend a little time putting a strategy in place for your website before building it and releasing it into the wild. A small investment of time has the potential to save you thousands rebranding a confusing website.
Here are 4 strategies to focus on when branding your website:
- Brand Strategy
- Content Strategy
- Technology Strategy
- Design Strategy
These are not in any particular order and will often overlap so refer back to each one as you move through them to create an effective branded website.
If you simply approach your website as a place where people can find you, that assumes they know who you are, what products and services you provide, and if it is of value to them.
Brand Strategy
Before you should even be thinking of putting up a website you should have a brand strategy in place. This will be both the anchor and the North Star for all your marketing initiatives.
A brand strategy should encompass these 7 things:
- Vision
- Mission
- Core Values
- Customers
- Voice & Tone
- Brand Narrative
- One-Liner/Elevator Pitch
In order for your customers to connect with your brand through your website you’ll need to properly define your business, your customers, and the story you want to invite them into. It will also help to rally your employees and marketing around a consistent narrative.
For most entrepreneurs or business leaders, this is the hardest part to define. I’ve outlined this framework in a previous article, How to Improve Your Brand, so I won’t go into detail here. Just know that if you decide to skip this step, your website and your other marketing will be shallow and won’t help move your business forward.
Content Strategy
When it comes to the content on your website, it is largely dependent on the brand narrative you’ve defined in your brand strategy.
You’ll want to create sections of your website based on the various “buckets” of your narrative. For example, The Plan, would be a simplified process of how to achieve the transformation your customers seek.
For a financial advisor, it would look something like:
Step 1: Schedule a Consultation
Step 2: Implement our investment and saving strategies
Step 3: Enjoy financial freedom
Your content strategy ensures the messaging you include on your website is meaningful, engaging and cohesive. The caveat is it requires you have a clear understanding of your brand.
For tips on ensuring your content isn’t confusing potential customers, check out 3 Ways Your Brand May Be Confusing Your Customers.
A vital element to any content strategy is the brand positioning for your business on the website. In the website examples in the Brand Strategy section above, the company is the hero in the narrative.
It’s difficult for customers to connect with businesses that place themselves as the hero because they view themselves as the hero. The fundamental shift you’ve got to embrace in your content strategy is that your business is the guide to help the customer find the solution (your products and services) to their problem.
You can download a free PDF on How to Structure Your Website to Turn Browsers into Buyers by visiting thebrandinsight.com. It even includes a wireframe you can hand off to the designer or agency designing your website.
It’s difficult for customers to connect with businesses that place themselves as the hero because they view themselves as the hero.
Technology Strategy
Let’s be real. You can’t have a website without technology. Your technological needs will also vary depending on what you want your website to achieve.
If the primary goal of your website is to have customers schedule a consultation, you’ll likely need to allow 3rd party integrations with software like Acuity Scheduling. If you’re offering something like home loans, you may need a complete online loan application submission system.
Whatever the case, you’ll first need to identify the action you want customers to take when visiting your website. From there, here are things to consider when formulating a technology strategy:
Determine what systems and platforms are needed to achieve the customer’s goal.
How can we leverage technology to enhance our customer’s experience with our brand?
- For example, if your brand is built on customer service then don’t have a typical contact us form but maybe integrate live chat functionality to reinforce your company’s commitment to service.
What is the estimated development effort and timeline?
Are there any implementation challenges or risks?
- For example, if a customer needs to enter their social security number to apply for a loan, you can mitigate that risk with partnering with a company known for data security.
Do we need to migrate any existing content or data from a previous website?
Is the technology scalable and future-proof?
- For example, if your business offers sales staff their own websites to generate sales and you build them from scratch because you only have 5 sales people, what happens when you experience exponential growth and need a sales force of 20?
While many companies see their websites as “something to get up so they have an online presence”, a little strategic thought beforehand can be the difference between a browser and a buyer. Imagine the business growth you’re potentially leaving on the table by rushing your website. It could also be doing your business a disservice by giving a terrible first impression and a difficult user experience.
Design Strategy
“Great design is a visual expression of great thinking” — Stephen Gates
For a website, design unites the thoughts and ideas that drive your brand, your content, and your technology to create exceptional experiences for your customers.
Your design strategy should also take into account the business goals of the site. Ask yourself:
- What actions are you trying to get the visitor to do?
- What is the user flow of that action?
- How can design help create efficiency and clarity around those actions?
Not only must you consider the visual aspect of your website in your design strategy, you’ve also got to consider the usability and user experience.
Now that you’ve defined your brand, know the type of content that will resonate with customers, know what type of platform you need to run your website, you’ve now got to put it all together to make a cohesive and delightful experience for your users.
You won’t have it all figured out at launch so don’t sweat it. Having some sort of design strategy in place is a starting point but to get it right will take lots of iteration and listening to your customers.
Launching a website can be simple or it can be extremely complex. It varies depending on your products or services. The one thing that rings true no matter the nature of your business is your website will often be the first touchpoint potential customers will experience with your brand. So applying a strategy for how you can make that initial experience a positive one is of vital importance.
Think about it. If you were going to meet a potential mate you wouldn’t just put whatever clothes on just to get out the door. You’re going to think about the best way you can make a great first impression. The way you approach your website shouldn’t be any different.
If you put little to no effort into how your business is presented on your website, what impression does that give to potential customers? You’ve likely put little to no effort into the creation of your product or service.
Instead, take some time and work through each of the 4 strategies mentioned here. The little investment of time you put into the beginning stage has the potential to save you thousands rebranding a confusing website. Plus, your web designer and developer will thank you for it.
If you were going to meet a potential mate you wouldn’t just put whatever clothes on just to get out the door. You’re going to think about the best way you can make a great first impression. The way you approach your website shouldn’t be any different.
