A Web site can only be as good as the content it includes. If you spend all your Web site development resources on building the technology that contains your message and don't clearly think through the message itself, your site won't be effective. Part of your Web strategy and design planning requires that you think through the type of content that would be most appropriate for your audience and how you'll create that content and keep it fresh and interesting. See the checklist steps that follow to make sure that your site reaches its target.

Understand What Your Site Content Can Do for You

Content is the primary reason that people visit your site. You're writing content to attract and keep visitors on your site (a concept known as "stickiness"), to get them to return again and again, and to sell your products. Your content can generate page views; the more page views your site serves up (and the more traffic it generates), the more money you can charge advertisers to place banner ads on your site.

Tailor Your Content to Your Target Audience

Who are your customers? What kind of content do they expect to find on your site? Keep in mind the purpose of your site, and examine your competitors' sites. The results of your research will help you determine what content you should include.

3 Essential Content Categories

Keeping in mind who your audience is and what your site does, develop content in these three essential categories: product information, company information, and special features (such as case studies, white papers, news articles, and customer testimonials). This is an important way you can use your Web site to build trust in your products and expertise.

Establish Your Content Budget

Within the context of your overall budget, come up with a range of how much you want to spend to put content on your site, and then to maintain it and keep it current. It usually costs more to commission content than it does to refresh it or check it periodically for accuracy. Don't forget to consider the costs of taking people away from their primary responsibilities to create content.

Create Your Own Content

You could generate your own text and graphical content by drawing upon your existing in-house talent or by hiring outside content creators. Creating your own content gives you a greater level of control over the information that is featured on your site. You'll need to evaluate your current resources and decide whether the alternative of hiring people to create your content is feasible.

Acquire Content from Outside Sources

You can acquire both text and graphical content from outside sources through syndicated companies that share their content. Obviously, this content will likely have a broad appeal, so if your company fills a niche market, you may not find content that is appropriate.

Find Out What Content Is Working

The only way for you to know whether your site is meeting your customers' needs and how it might need to be changed is to keep monitoring it after it is built. You can use a number of methods to make sure your content is right for your audience, such as log analysis tools for tracking traffic patterns on your site, keyword tracking, and customer surveys.

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Russell Shaw

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