A consumer centric approach to crafting your website content
There is a reason for a fundamental shift in approach in digital marketing – from brand-centric to consumer-centric. The advantages are too many to ignore! An online customer is spoilt for choice when they go online and try to zero in on a company to enter into business with. Customers of today are far more aware, well-researched, and already very particular about their choices. Being vague can only drive them away.
A brand-centric approach is all about generalization, while a customer-centric approach is entirely about personalization. It’s easy to guess which one sounds more appealing.
Break the monotony
A brand-centric website is quite standard in its content depiction. There’s usually an About Us page, followed by Products, Awards & Recognition, Media, Contact Us etc. The sales team aggressively pushes the brand forward and attempts to close on sales. They enter the market with “this is how we do business” in line with “these are our ethics” and “our ethics have found representation in our products”.
Usually, the monotony these websites exhibit is too stark to go unnoticed. Someone with a brand-centric mindset is comfortable seeing this sort of uniformity and attributes it to a certain standard to be maintained. They tend to dismiss any website that seems different or attractive as ‘below standard’. This may or may not be the truth. A brand-centric approach is therefore limited in producing results, unless the brand itself is an established one and a known name to reckon with. A new company would suffer if it tries to establish its brand first.
Wording it different
If a website takes a customer-centric approach, the brand may still exist but it’s not highlighted to a customer. Instead, the website delves straight away into problems that the customer may be facing and suggests a product as a solution. This is far more appealing to customers, and is akin to someone who has suddenly discovered the elevator as an alternative to taking the stairs.
The questions a consumer-centric website might put up on their index page could be along the lines of “Looking to expand your business?”, “Scaling up – need assistance?”, or “Import-Export – looking for a reliable partner?” Notice the questions; they go straight to the point and save the prospective customer an enormous amount of time in figuring out whether to do business with them.
Imagine a stranger walking down your street looking for a medical store. Which of the following scenarios makes more sense? Would you walk up to them, introduce yourself, inform them of your line of business, and your approach towards work? Or would you simply ask them what they are looking for and direct them to the medical store they were hoping to find?
Parting Words
A little reflection can help you channel your marketing better, and use this approach in every step of your sales efforts. Being informative and useful to the client helps them perceive you as being resourceful and trustworthy, a foundation that in turn displays your brand in action rather than as a statement with text flowing and populating pages endlessly.
A consumer-centric approach is nothing but the brand walking the talk. Now you know what makes for a better choice!
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