8 Reasons to Put Your Website at the Heart of Your Digital Marketing Strategy

Businesses have more ways than ever to connect with potential customers. From social media and email marketing to paid advertising and online marketplaces, there’s no shortage of channels to choose from in this day and age. However, while such platforms can be a valuable asset to a business, your website is actually more than just an online brochure. It’s a digital asset that you own, control and continually improve. With this in mind, here are eight reasons to put your website at the heart of your digital marketing strategy:

1. Your website is a digital asset that you own

One of the biggest advantages of making your website the centre of your digital marketing strategy is that you have complete control over it. Social media platforms, search engines and third-party marketplaces can change their algorithms, policies, features or pricing at any time. 

A change to a platform’s algorithm could suddenly reduce the number of people who see your content. However, an increase in advertising costs could then make customer acquisition more expensive. Your website is the thing that will give you a more stable foundation upon which to build your business and marketing efforts. You get to control content, branding, customer experience and functionality. 

You decide what information visitors see, how they navigate your pages and the actions that you want them to take, ultimately. This doesn’t, however, mean that you should ignore external platforms. Instead, you should use them to bring people back to an environment that you have control over. 

2. It gives your brand a central online presence

Customers will often encounter a business in several different places before deciding whether or not to make a purchase. They might see a social media post, read a review, discover a blog through Google or click on an advertisement.

Your website can provide a consistent destination throughout this entire consumer journey. It’s something that gives customers a central place to learn about your products or services, understand what makes your business different and, ultimately, decide what to do next. 

A strong website should communicate your brand consistently through its design, messaging, photography, tone of voice and overall customer experience. It’s this type of consistency that helps to build recognition and trust simultaneously. 

3. Your website supports search engine visibility

Search engines remain an important way for people to discover businesses, products, services and information. If your website is well-optimised, then it gives your business the opportunity to appear when potential customers search for topics that are related to what you offer. 

However, unlike a social media post that can have a short lifespan, a useful website page can continue to attract visitors from search engines for months, or even years. Search engine optimisation (SEO), for instance, can involve many different elements, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Creating useful, relevant content
• Targeting appropriate search terms
• Optimising page titles and descriptions
• Improving website speed and usability
• Making pages easy for search engines to understand
• Building authoritative links
• Creating a logical website structure
• Providing a strong experience on mobile devices

4. It turns marketing traffic into opportunities

Getting people to visit your website is only part of the problem. The next step is turning that traffic into leads, enquiries, sales and other valuable actions. Your website is where you can design this conversion journey seamlessly. This is the case regardless of the industry you work in. 

For instance, a service business might use landing pages, enquiry forms and calls to action (CTAs) as a way to encourage visitors to request a quote. Whereas a different business might encourage potential clients to download guides, book consultations, or simply get in touch. 

Every marketing channel should, ultimately, contribute to a meaningful business objective. Your website is the very thing that provides the infrastructure needed to turn heads and convert attention into action, which is something that can’t be done as easily with in-store, physical marketing. 

5. It provides a home for your content marketing

Content marketing can be an effective way of educating customers and website readers in general. It’s a great method of demonstrating expertise and attracting organic traffic as a result. But this is why having a website is so important. It can display information in a way that posters and other in-store advertisements can’t.

Your site can act as the central library, so to speak, for this particular type of content. A website allows you to publish a wealth of reading material and resources, such as blog posts, guides, case studies, FAQs, industry insights, videos, research papers, reports, tutorials and downloadable resources. 

Once everything has been published, the content can be promoted and distributed via email, social media, paid advertising and other channels. As such, just one piece of content has the ability to support multiple marketing activities, and all of this is possible with a quality website at the heart of your online operations.

6. It generates results around the clock

Unlike a physical shop on a high street or in a shopping centre, your website is available to potential customers at any time – day or night. As such, someone could discover your business through a search engine at any time, from anywhere. Once they find your website, they’ll then continue along the consumer journey, whether you’re awake, on holiday or at your desk. 

They can read the content, compare your services or products, submit enquiry forms or simply browse what your site has to offer without needing to wait for the next working day to break. While a website could never replace human interaction, which is why many businesses have both a site and a physical shop or office, it gives customers the flexibility to research and take action when it suits them, and not when it falls within trading hours. 

7. It strengthens customer trust

Before buying from a business, customers will frequently want reassurances that they’re making the right decision. Your website is available to provide the reassurance that they need, basically. If you have clear information about your company and the products or services you offer, the experience a customer can expect and any policies and FAQs that help them to answer their queries, then it can increase trust and credibility. 

Testimonials, reviews, case studies, awards, qualifications, accreditations and client stories are all enough to provide additional evidence of credibility and authenticity when your prospective customers need it most. A website will help you to do this in a way that just can’t be done with other marketing channels and techniques. But that brings us to our next point – support.

8. It supports other marketing channels

Your website shouldn’t compete with your other digital marketing channels. But it should, however, connect with them. They all need to complement each other, and your website gives the other channels something to link back to. Let’s take a closer look at what I mean:

• Social media – this platform can generate awareness and send visitors to your website easily through links
• Email marketing – this brings new and existing customers back to your site with ease in a digital world
• Pay-per-click (PPC) – this type of advertising can send targeted traffic to dedicated landing pages on your website
• Online PR – this can generate interest and direct readers to your website easily and quickly
• Video marketing – this introduces your brand and encourages viewers to learn more in a way that’s simple and rapid

Kumo is pleased to provide a wide range of digital marketing services, including content creation, SEO, PPC, website design and more. You can rest assured that our team of dedicated experts can set you apart from your competitors with excellent content creation and copywriting services. If you’d like further information about how we can help you today, get in touch with a member of our friendly, specialist team – we’re always happy to hear from you.