WEBSITES AND EMAIL

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WEBSITES AND

EMAIL Study Notes

SEO (SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION)

Study Notes


Websites and Email

LESSON 1: THE IMPORTANCE OF ONLINE PRESENCE ................................................................ 4

MODULE INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................................ 5

SEARCH BEHAVIOR ......................................................................................................................................................................... 5

WEB SEARCH: FINDING SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS ............................................................................................. 5

SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................... 5

ONLINE SEARCHES AND MOBILE ....................................................................................................................................... 5

WHY BUSINESSES NEED A WEBSITE .................................................................................................................................... 6

ADVANTAGES OF WEBSITES FOR BUSINESSES ....................................................................................................... 6

IMPORTANT PAGES ON A WEBSITE ................................................................................................................................ 6

WEBSITES TYPES AND BUSINESS STRATEGY ........................................................................................................... 7

LESSON 2: WEBSITE DESIGN AND USER EXPERIENCE ............................................................. 10

WEBSITE DESIGN AND USER EXPERIENCE (UX) ............................................................................................................. 11

WHY IS WEBSITE DESIGN IMPORTANT? ....................................................................................................................... 11

MATCHING A WEBSITE TO CUSTOMER NEED ................................................................................................................ 11

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION (SEO) .......................................................................................................................... 11

SEO AND KEYWORDS .............................................................................................................................................................. 11

SEARCH RANK AND BACKLINKS ........................................................................................................................................ 11

OPTIMIZING WEBSITES FOR SEO .................................................................................................................................... 12

DESIGN FOR USER EXPERIENCE ............................................................................................................................................ 12

USER EXPERIENCE (UX) ......................................................................................................................................................... 12

BENEFITS OF POSITIVE UX .................................................................................................................................................. 12

IMPROVING UX ........................................................................................................................................................................... 12

WHY WEBSITE USERS LEAVE ............................................................................................................................................ 13

SEO AND UX DESIGN .............................................................................................................................................................. 13

LESSON 3: WEBSITE CONVERSION JOURNEYS ........................................................................... 14


THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY ....................................................................................................................................................... 15

CUSTOMER JOURNEY AND CONVERSIONS .................................................................................................................... 15

CONVERSION .............................................................................................................................................................................. 15

MAIN TYPES OF WEB CONVERSION .............................................................................................................................. 15

CUSTOMER JOURNEY AND WEBSITE DESIGN ......................................................................................................... 15

LANDING PAGES ....................................................................................................................................................................... 15

CALLS-TO-ACTION ................................................................................................................................................................. 15

LESSON 4: INTRODUCING EMAIL MARKETING ............................................................................. 17

THE ROLE OF EMAIL MARKETING ......................................................................................................................................... 18

KEY CONCEPTS OF EMAIL MARKETING ........................................................................................................................... 18

PURPOSE OF EMAIL MARKETING .................................................................................................................................... 18

ESSENTIALS OF EMAIL MARKETING .............................................................................................................................. 18

PERMISSION / CONSENT ...................................................................................................................................................... 18

CLEAR PURPOSE ....................................................................................................................................................................... 19

NEWSLETTERS ........................................................................................................................................................................... 19

EMAIL AND SPAM ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19

ADVANTAGES OF EMAIL MARKETING ............................................................................................................................... 19

EMAIL MARKETING SUCCESS ........................................................................................................................................... 19

RE-ENGAGING YOUR AUDIENCE ..................................................................................................................................... 19

CUSTOMER RETENTION ....................................................................................................................................................... 19

EMAIL AUTOMATION .............................................................................................................................................................. 19

EMAIL VERSUS OTHER CHANNELS ................................................................................................................................ 20

EMAIL AUTOMATION ............................................................................................................................................................. 20

EMAIL LISTS ................................................................................................................................................................................ 20

ALIGNING WITH THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY ............................................................................................................ 20

MEASURING SUCCESS ......................................................................................................................................................... 20


LESSON 1:

THE IMPORTANCE

OF ONLINE

PRESENCE


MODULE INTRODUCTION

Having an online presence is increasingly important for any business operating in today’s digital

environment. Why? According to recent research, more than 90% of business-to-business

customers carry out online research before making a purchase decision. When customers have a

need or a problem to solve, their first port of call is to search for an answer online.

This module explores:

How customers search for solutions to their needs

How to design an optimized online profile to match customer searches

How to engage customers and build relationships with your online presence

How to increase conversion by connecting search and website content

The role and design of email marketing

The fundamentals of search

The advantages of websites

The most important pages on a website

The different kinds of website

The link between overall business strategy and online presence

SEARCH BEHAVIOR

WEB SEARCH: FINDING SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS

When people are faced with a problem to solve, what do they do? In most cases, they’ll turn to

Google to understand the problem and find possible solutions. It works the same way when a

potential customer has a need to fulfill. They’ll carry out a web search and look for a solution.

In many cases, that solution is a product or service. It is your job to research and understand what

customers are looking for, and why they are looking for it. When you know what customers are

searching for, and why, you know what content to create on your website. You can tailor your online

presence to match what people are actively seeking. Your ultimate goal is to ensure that when

customers search for a solution, they find you.

SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS

Search engines find and return the best matches for the user. This set of links is presented in order

of relevance, and it’s important that users can trust a search engine’s results. Search engines have

many ways of validating whether websites actually have the content that users are searching for –

and aren’t simply ‘tricking’ users into visiting a website.

ONLINE SEARCHES AND MOBILE

According to Webmaster, more than 60% of all online searches are on mobile devices. Consumers

are searching for solutions on-the-go. They find mobile search easier, and mobile is their main

device. These consumers often call a business directly using the number on a website or a Google

Maps listing. They can move from finding your business online to calling you directly in one swift

action, and on the same device.


This has major implications for websites. They need to be optimized for mobile to ensure users can

easily navigate the site on mobile devices. If not, customers will quickly leave and find a better

alternative.

WHY BUSINESSES NEED A WEBSITE

ADVANTAGES OF WEBSITES FOR BUSINESSES

There are several key advantages to having a business website.

Websites increase visibility to customers: Sites that link to your website will refer more

customers. Having a website also allows you to be found through web search.

Websites are convenient for customers: It is generally easier for new, existing, or potential

customers to conduct business on your website than it is for them to travel to your brick-

and-mortar store.

Websites increase accessibility: Your online store can be visited and generate revenue

24/7.

Website performance can be analyzed: You can track online interactions including number

of visits, lead generation, and device preferences.

Websites are less expensive: An online presence can be achieved at a lower cost than

traditional advertising channels.

Websites build trust: A website allows you to build trust and credibility with your customers.

Websites are customizable: While you can use social channels like Instagram to connect

with customers, you can’t change the layout of these platforms. Having control over the full

web experience is essential to making it more useful and relevant to potential and existing

customers.

IMPORTANT PAGES ON A WEBSITE

There are several important pages on a website to consider.

Home page

When someone first arrives on your website, they will often arrive at the home page. This is one of

the most important pages on a website and is often the most viewed. In a world where your

customers are busy and attention spans are short, this page really needs to grab attention and spark

curiosity. The home page also acts as a point from which you can signpost and navigate your

customers to the key elements of your website.

Websites will almost always have a simple way to navigate back to the home page to make sure

customers don’t get lost.

About page

This is your opportunity to tell customers a little more about the people behind the business. Today’s

consumers are increasingly looking to understand more about the people and values of a business.

Potential customers may also be keen to learn a little more about the business, including: how and

why it started; what the journey has been to date; and even what the future plans are.

Contact page


This is an important page to keep maintained. You need to give customers the opportunity to reach

out to the business in a variety of ways. Typical contact details to feature here include email, social

media, online chat, phone numbers, physical address, and a comments box through which

customers can communicate directly on the website itself.

Blog

A blog is an ongoing communication channel for your business. It allows key individuals within the

business to provide their thoughts on relevant topics. Businesses will often let employees contribute,

and blog readers will typically have the opportunity to post comments or feedback that can be useful

to the organization.

Product pages

Product pages are individual pages that promote a particular product for sale. They will usually list

each product’s features and benefits.

Checkout page

For E-commerce websites, the checkout page is key to making it easy and secure to buy products

or services.

WEBSITES TYPES AND BUSINESS STRATEGY

The kind of website a business chooses, and the level of interactivity it offers, will depend on its

business strategy and how its products or services are sold.

Brochure website

Brochure websites provide information about products or services, but the business depends on

customers contacting it directly. Products and services are not normally paid for through the

brochure sites. This type of website gives existing and potential customers more information about

the business, but interactivity on the site is limited. The main call-to-action is for customers to get in

touch directly, usually via email or telephone.

E-commerce website

E-commerce websites provide customers with the opportunity to interact with the company and

make bookings that are often fulfilled offline – for example, booking a service that is paid for at a later

date. Some

E-commerce websites provide an end-to-end product or service, enabling customers to browse,

make purchase decisions, and order and pay for a product.

Dynamic website

Dynamic websites are interactive, allowing increased user engagement and personalization. This

requires a content management system such as WordPress or Drupal. For dynamic websites,

content is king and continuously changing – for example, an online magazine.

Web application


Web applications provide a deeper, more complex experience with bespoke functionality tailored to

specific functions – for example, an online banking website.


NOTES


LESSON 2:

WEBSITE DESIGN

AND USER

EXPERIENCE


WEBSITE DESIGN AND USER EXPERIENCE (UX)

WHY IS WEBSITE DESIGN IMPORTANT?

A good overall website design and user experience (UX) are essential elements of attracting visitors

to your website. Positive user experience not only provides benefits for customers – it also delivers

better results for the business.

MATCHING A WEBSITE TO CUSTOMER NEED

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION (SEO)

It’s essential that your website appears in the search results of potential customers. This requires

Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

SEO involves optimizing the content and links of a website to make it more findable when people

search for topics on search engines like Google.

SEO AND KEYWORDS

Google’s search engine is essentially a ‘question and answer’ machine. Consumers use Google to

find answers that resolve their needs or solve their problems. It’s useful to think of keywords as

questions that people are asking, and think of search links as answers that you and your

competitors offer the consumer.

SEARCH RANK AND BACKLINKS

Many factors influence how and where your website appears in search results. These factors direct a

search engine to list your website higher or lower in search results, and ultimately drive more traffic

towards or away from your website. In particular, your prominence in search results depends on:

The content on your website

The quality of the content in relation to what people are looking for

It’s not just about quantity. High-quality content is essential. Search engines, for example, use

algorithms to detect if users are engaging in a website’s content or quickly leaving. If users are

engaging, search engines will make that website more prominent than others that don’t have the

same level of user engagement.

The key is to know what people are searching for. Establish the questions users are asking, in the

form of searches, and then create website content that answers those questions and aligns to user

needs.

BACKLINKS

Backlinks – or links from other websites to your website – indicate trust. This makes them a good

way to improve your search results position, because Google uses the number of ‘quality’ links to

your website as an indication of the value of your website’s content.


OPTIMIZING WEBSITES FOR SEO

So, how do you optimize a website for SEO and improve search results position?

Use keyword tools to research and anticipate the questions that customers are asking.

Create website content that positions your products or services as the solution to customer

needs.

Search engines aim to provide a trustworthy resource for the user. If websites have incomplete

information or try to trick the user or search engine into visiting it, they will be penalized.

DESIGN FOR USER EXPERIENCE

USER EXPERIENCE (UX)

To maximize the effectiveness of your website, it’s important to focus on UX. This is especially true

during website design.

UX is the overall experience of a person using a website. Can they find what they want? Is the

website fast or slow? How does it look on a mobile device?

There are a range of UX best practices to be aware of, including:

Responsive design

Easy navigation

Signposting answers to common questions

The key is to focus on how the site helps move customers through the user journey.

BENEFITS OF POSITIVE UX

Great UX doesn’t just increase customer engagement. It also delivers better commercial results. For

example, if you’re trying to buy a particular item from a website, but you find it difficult to complete

the purchase, you’ll become frustrated. This may result in you leaving the site and not returning. You

had a need, you found what you were looking for, but the website made it so complex that you

chose not to buy from them. A better UX, in this case, would probably have delivered a conversion

for the business.

IMPROVING UX

There are many ways to improve UX, including:

Using Customer Reviews and Trust Seals

Always using compelling images

Making action buttons like ‘Add to Cart’ easy to find

Adding video content to product pages

Analyzing user behavior to see where you can improve overall UX


WHY WEBSITE USERS LEAVE

Many users leave a website, or bounce, after a few seconds or having visited a single page. They

may even abandon their shopping cart without completing a purchase. There are a number of

reasons why website users leave, including:

They didn’t find what they were looking for.

They didn’t like the value, price, or options of the product or service.

The experience was too tedious or confusing.

The website was too slow.

The website wasn’t mobile-friendly.

SEO AND UX DESIGN

SEO and UX work together by combining relevant content, keywords, UX design, and backlinks to

drive results.

NOTES


LESSON 3:

WEBSITE

CONVERSION

JOURNEYS


THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY

One of the fundamental aspects of a successful web presence is understanding the customer

journey and the process that leads to conversion.

CUSTOMER JOURNEY AND CONVERSIONS

CONVERSION

For a website, conversion means getting visitors to do what you want them to do. That could be:

Buying a product or service

Signing up for a newsletter

Filling out a contact form

Downloading a whitepaper

MAIN TYPES OF WEB CONVERSION

There are two main types of web conversions.

Macro conversions: These conversions have a direct, high-impact value to your business.

Macro conversions involve leads and sales.

Micro conversions: These conversions include video views, reading key content pages, and

adding a product to a Wishlist.

CUSTOMER JOURNEY AND WEBSITE DESIGN

A well-designed website helps take the customer through each stage of the customer journey.

Remember that potential customers will go through each stage at their own pace. It’s your job to

identify the best content to present at each point of their journey, and to present it in a timely and

efficient manner. Showing customers the right content at the right time will help them move through

the conversion process as quickly as possible.

LANDING PAGES

A key part of the customer journey through a website is the landing page, or the web page users

land on when they follow a link.

Customers generally arrive at a landing page via search results or a marketing campaign.

Landing pages are usually designed to promote a product, service, or sale.

CALLS-TO-ACTION

A call-to-action is a button or prompt on a web page that tells the user to perform an action, or take

the next step towards a conversion. They’re usually written as a command like ‘Sign Up’ or ‘Buy Now’,

with action words and verbs helping to push people through the steps to a completed conversion.


NOTES


LESSON 4:

INTRODUCING

EMAIL

MARKETING


THE ROLE OF EMAIL MARKETING

Email marketing plays an essential role both in forming strong relationships with customers, and in

supporting sales and referrals. When compared to other marketing channels, it has several

advantages in terms of increased conversion rate, increased customer retention, and automation.

However, it is important to align email marketing with other marketing channels, and to optimize it

with a view to maximizing its impact and reach for the business.

KEY CONCEPTS OF EMAIL MARKETING

Email is a simple way to communicate a message to recipients who have actively decided that they

want to hear from you. In terms of tone, it’s usually less chatty than social media.

When discussing email marketing, there are several key terms to note.

Bounce: When an email comes back with an error message, it has bounced. Emails often

bounce because the email address is incorrect.

Permission: Getting consent from subscribers before sending them commercial email

marketing is extremely important. Permission must be explicit, and is usually gathered on a

sign-up form.

Spam: This is junk email, which is normally sent out in bulk. Spam is often filtered out by mail

servers.

Webmail: Also known as web-based email, this allows users to check their email using any

web browser and without the need to install a dedicated email client.

PURPOSE OF EMAIL MARKETING

The goal of email marketing is:

To get noticed and opened in the recipient’s inbox

To avoid being marked as spam

ESSENTIALS OF EMAIL MARKETING

There are many different kinds of emails that businesses use, including:

Newsletters

Promotional emails

Re-engagement emails

On-boarding emails

Contact submission received emails

Order confirmation emails

PERMISSION / CONSENT

You must get permission from subscribers before sending commercial email messages. To get users

to give you their email address, you need to give them a clear and compelling reason. This can be in

the form of an informative newsletter, a discount code, and so on. Best practice is to follow up with

that user soon after the initial subscription or consent is secured.


CLEAR PURPOSE

It’s important to give a clear purpose to users when asking for their email address. For example, if

they will be contacted by a sales rep after filling in a form, tell them that someone from your team will

be in touch. Let them know what to expect. If they will receive a newsletter or other email, let them

know what’s in store and always follow up as soon as possible.

NEWSLETTERS

With newsletters, you need to consider frequency. It might be appropriate, depending on factors like

audience and content, to send newsletters monthly, quarterly, or even weekly. Content could include

a roundup of industry events, blogs, or promotions, but shouldn’t be too focused on sales. Always

provide value in a newsletter, or customers will quickly lose interest.

EMAIL AND SPAM

It’s extremely important that your emails are not marked as spam, and there are a number of things

you can do to avoid this.

Don’t send too many emails.

Make sure you have a valid sender email.

Add an ‘unsubscribe’ link to each email.

ADVANTAGES OF EMAIL MARKETING

EMAIL MARKETING SUCCESS

The role of email as a digital channel can’t be underestimated. It still delivers one of the most

effective Return on Investment performances of any marketing channel.

RE-ENGAGING YOUR AUDIENCE

Email marketing is a great way to bring people back to your website. You can do this by giving them

an email taster of the content and information they can expect on the site.

CUSTOMER RETENTION

Email is also a great way to retain customers. Effective email marketing keeps your brand in

customers’ minds, making sure they return to your website.

EMAIL AUTOMATION

Email can be completely automated. You can set it up to automatically send messages at designated

times or when customers take specific actions. This saves time, reduces the sales cycle, and can

increase order value, conversions, or repeat purchases for B2B and B2C customers.

EMAIL CAMPAIGNS AND THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY


EMAIL VERSUS OTHER CHANNELS

It’s important to think about when to use email versus other marketing channels. For example, email

is a good first step in promoting sales, before deploying other channels to close the sale.

EMAIL AUTOMATION

When you automate your emails, there is a funnel or automated chain of email marketing messages.

These will guide customers towards a desired action, such as requesting a demo, booking a meeting

with a sales rep, or buying a product

These funnels are important, as they allow you to:

Measure the progress of customers through each stage of the sales process

See the impact of the content you send at each stage to the purchase journey

Identify gaps in content that could move consumers towards conversion

Analyze the sales cycle when email automation is included in the process

EMAIL LISTS

Email lists are often split into more targeted groups – for example, customers, leads, prospects,

suspects, defectors, and so on. This is called segmentation.

Best practice is to send different content and messaging to your segments. For example, you

wouldn’t send a ‘request sales call’ email to a brand new lead, as they might not be ready for that

level of commitment. A more appropriate action would be to send them a ‘request product brochure’

email.

ALIGNING WITH THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY

When email marketing and the customer journey are aligned:

Businesses can grow their sales and revenues faster

Customers can resolve their needs more efficiently

MEASURING SUCCESS

It’s important to measure success with email marketing. The most important metrics are:

New subscribers

Number of emails delivered

Number of Emails opened

% Open rate journey

Number of links within the email that were clicked

% Click Through Rate (CTR)

Website visitors from email

Conversions from email

Unsubscribes


NOTES


Documents

WEBSITES AND EMAIL