{"id":18239,"date":"2022-11-08T16:39:11","date_gmt":"2022-11-08T21:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/?p=18239"},"modified":"2024-06-08T09:43:22","modified_gmt":"2024-06-08T13:43:22","slug":"keep-your-friends-close-and-your-clients-closer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/2022\/keep-your-friends-close-and-your-clients-closer\/","title":{"rendered":"Keep Your Friends Close and Your Clients Closer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Keep Your Friends Close and Your Clients Closer\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n
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No matter how great your services are, they won\u2019t ever be used if people opt to leave your website before checking them out. One of the most important ways to keep visitors engaged is having a credible website. You can prove the authenticity of your website by showing visitors how closely tied your brand is with your clients. Once new users see all the features made to ease their experience using your website, they\u2019ll be much more willing to trust you and your services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article will go over five<\/strong> different ways you can make your clients or customers an integral part of your website and brand. This will help to establish your brand as more outgoing and reputable, increasing the likelihood of visitors becoming customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Idea 1: Include Testimonials About Services or Products<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Testimonials are statements written by clients that advocate for an organization\u2019s products or services. These word-of-mouth recommendations are advantageous in converting new website visitors into customers as they prove an organization\u2019s authenticity. Whereas a visitor isn\u2019t likely to buy into your service just because you talk highly of it, they\u2019re more likely to trust an unbiased voice commending your services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before you can include testimonials on your site, you\u2019ll need to gather some. Think of any clients that you\u2019ve had especially great interactions with, then send them an email requesting a testimonial. Aim for around 3-5 of them. Your email should:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Thank them for their service and emphasize how great it\u2019s been to work with them<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Explain why you are asking for a testimonial and how it will be used<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Describe what they could provide to help<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    We\u2019re currently in the process of building our own testimonial page<\/a> using the Carleton Content Management System. Take a look at it for reference when building your own. We\u2019ve been implementing them onto our page using the Quote Element which you can learn how to use by visiting our Quote page<\/a> in our Advanced CMS Training. Make sure to list your client\u2019s name, job title, and department\/place of work. If you\u2019d like to use a headshot, make sure to ask your client beforehand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Idea 2: Add an FAQ Section<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Often when traversing through a website, you might think of questions about an organization\u2019s services or content. If there is no easy-to-find answer on the website, you\u2019ll most likely leave the site for another. Websites need to anticipate all kinds of questions users might have or they will risk the visitor taking their business elsewhere. However, because it is impossible to predict all the questions a user might have, website owners will regularly receive emails with similar inquiries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you notice certain questions being asked often enough, consider creating a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page on your site. Finding the answer to their question on an FAQ page will help to ease the experience of your users, resulting in a greater chance they stick around your site for longer. Additionally, creating an FAQ page will save you time from answering frequent phone calls and emails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Having an FAQ page on your website is not only convenient, it also proves to new visitors that your organization pays close attention to your client\u2019s inquiries, which speaks to your credibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Creating an FAQ page using CMS is as simple as it gets. You can learn how to add an FAQ page to your site by reading this brief article<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Idea 3: Create a Newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Another commonly used method to engage clients is a newsletter. Issuing a regular newsletter over email is a great practice for connecting with your audience and keeping them in tune with the organization. A well-written and informational newsletter will establish your brand\u2019s credibility, resulting in a greater likelihood of customers returning to your website for information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sending newsletters by email is the optimal avenue to reach new customers by as most everyone has an email account. On social media platforms, it is likely that users\u2019 feeds will distract them from your content. On the other hand, emailing someone a newsletter will ensure that your content is dispatched directly to potential customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Whereas the past couple of ideas were easy-to-implement elements, creating and sending out newsletters will require more effort. The most challenging aspect of creating newsletters is remaining consistent in issuing them out. It can be difficult to find enough topics and content to fit into a regularly released newsletter. However, instead of having to constantly invent new content, you can simply feature excerpts from stories existing on your website in the form of news posts. This has the added benefit of driving readers to your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    To learn how to create your own newsletter using CMS, visit our Building a Newsletter page<\/a> for a quick tutorial. For additional tips on creating an awesome newsletter, read our article called 5 Tips for Creating an Engaging Email Newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Idea 4: Start a News\/Blog Section<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Similar to newsletters, blogs are a great way for organizations to connect with their customers and establish themselves as informed experts in their field. Delivering regular content will lead to readers growing a favourable impression of your brand, increasing your credibility. In addition to their trust, well-written and informative blog posts will keep current customers well fed and will attract new ones through driving traffic to your site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, much like newsletters, a blog will only be beneficial to your brand if you are consistent with it. Many times, people start a blog only to lose ideas or interest. If someone in your department has a long track record of blogging, they will understand what it takes to consistently write blog posts. A wise strategy that we recommend is to write 20-30 blog posts ahead of time instead of one at a time. The large quantity of prepared posts will allow you to schedule posts over the course of several months. Throughout this time, you can work on future posts while not having to scramble for ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    To learn how to create your own blog post using Carleton CMS, please visit our Posts page<\/a> of our Basic CMS Training Course. Additionally, read our article Blogging: What You Need to Know<\/a> for some more tips on creating a blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Idea 5: Remain Active on Social Media<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    While all the other tips can be implemented directly onto your site using CMS, social media technically lies outside of your website. In theory, social media is a great way to attract new customers by expanding your business to markets all around the world. However, just because your brand has a social media account doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019ll be able to reap its benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you\u2019re not going to double down and commit to being consistent with your social media account, don\u2019t bother making one. An inactive account can prove to be harmful to your brand. Over time, your once dedicated followers may grow bitter towards your brand after being ignored for so long. Additionally, new users finding you will be met with an abandoned account, signaling to them your lack of credibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you\u2019re going to create a social media account, please make sure to plan a content strategy before posting. Draft a blueprint for a consistent schedule of posts, ensuring that you\u2019re not having to think of them on the fly. A social media account that combines consistency with preparation will help your brand:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    • Reach new people that were previously inaccessible<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Send targeted ads tailored to potentially interested users<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Drive followers towards your website<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Develop credibility through connecting with and informing users about your brand<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      No matter how great your services are, they won\u2019t ever be used if people opt to leave your website before checking them out. One of the most important ways to keep visitors engaged is having a credible website. You can prove the authenticity of your website by showing visitors how closely tied your brand is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18262,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[369],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-carleton-cms"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18239"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18239\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18262"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/webservices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}