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Chapter 30—Websites

It’s hard to imagine that just ten years ago digital marketing
barely existed in B2B budgets. Digital marketing is the
fastest-growing marketing category; B2B marketing budgets
are shifting from print, trade shows, and direct mail to digital
media and more money is being added to the budget.

A good website attracts and informs prospects, generates
leads, promotes the brand, and updates customers. For
B2B companies, especially those who sell globally, the
website is now the central pillar in marketing. It used to be
that B2B companies could launch a website and forget about
it for a few years. B2B buying behaviour has changed, and
websites have evolved alongside it. And the pace of change is
accelerating. Now website content must be kept up to date so
search engines can find the site, and the appearance must be
modern so that your company doesn’t look antiquated.

Most small and mid-size B2B companies have updated their
sites in the last five years—but many need an overhaul. It’s an
intensive process, so it’s understandable that companies resist.

I’ve seen companies take months to go through the website
re-development process—only to end up with a website that
doesn’t really serve the company. Too many businesses get
caught up in the design of the site rather than the function of
it. An effective website, like every B2B marketing tool, has a
job to do.

As a starting point, perform an audit of your current website. Go
to www.marketsmartb2b.com/resources for a white paper on
how to conduct a website audit.

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© 2012 Lisa Shepherd