In part 1, we covered how you can identify the key motivators within the “Need recognition” stage of the buying process, and use that information to increase awareness of your web hosting products and services. However, at this initial stage, the opportunities to close a sale are scarce. In part 2 we will look in to an area where you can have a lot of impact; “information search”.

Once a customer has identified their need for web hosting/ a new website, they will typically then begin their search for a provider. Your goal is to make sure you are found, and then present them with the information they need to make a decision.

Identifying your prospects

The type of information searches your prospects make (i.e. where they go to find information) will depend a lot on their existing technical knowledge. For example, if they have past experience of building websites, there is a good chance their information search will be based around looking for “web hosting”. However, if this is their first website, or they use point and click website builders, you will also need to consider this prospect will be looking for ways to “build a website” rather than “web hosting”.  Where you focus your efforts on building a presence, should be based around who your target customers are. For example, if I am targeting prospects who want to use an online website builder, I would be wasting my time booking an advert on an advanced Photoshop blog.

The key touch points

There are many ways for people to research a web host. I have collected these in to the following broad categories:

• Personal sources e.g. friend, family or colleague recommendation

• Commercial sources e.g. an advert, advertorial etc.

• Public sources e.g. search engines, articles, reviews etc.

• Social sources e.g. comments and interactions on social networks

• Your sources e.g. the information on your website, brochure, flyer…

Personal sources

 

 

Nearly 1 in 5 consumers are more likely to buy from a brand if it was recommended by someone they knew (source:  Havas Media Social and Lightspeed Research).  A reliable product backed up by responsive support is always the best way to guarantee positive word of mouth and recommendations. However, there are ways you can encourage happy customers to be more proactive and forthcoming in their recommendations:

• Refer a friend program with an incentive such as account credit or a points based system

• Give them coupon codes to share with people they know

• Group discounts for multiple purchases made at the same time

Commercial sources

 

 

There are a lot of commercial sources you can use to advertise your web hosting services, some of which are basic adverts, and others are more integrated in to a publications’ editorial. Large web hosts spend in excess of £1.5m per year advertising their services, so costs can be high. The ideas below presume you are working on a much smaller budget.

• Paid search: Target long tail research keywords (e.g. “best web hosting UK 2013”)

• Magazines: Many web design/ IT magazines have hosting comparison tables

• Hosting review websites: There are a lot of web hosting review websites that carry adverts and sponsorship. Get in touch for their rates

• Affiliate program: You only pay when a sale is made, which means you don’t have any waste. A lot of review websites also use affiliate programs

Public sources

 

 

83% of UK online shoppers use search engines to research a purchase (source: Bazaarvoice), making it an important area to consider. There is a lot of competition to get ranked for the broad keywords such as “web hosting”, and large hosting companies all employ specialist SEO professionals. With this in mind, rather than targeting these highly competitive keywords, look further down the search funnel and target long tail review keywords e.g. “best UK web hosting 2013”. Google’s keyword research tool is a goldmine for inspiration.

Beyond search engines, where do your prospects go to find public reviews of web hosting providers? A quick search online will soon identify the most prominent sources related to your target audience (e.g. “web hosting reviews”). If you have a happy customer base, a handful will go out of their way to express their positive attitude towards you, however, getting people to consistently leave positive reviews is tough, because it requires effort and it is out of your control whether they do it or not. Here is one idea to help increase the likelihood of your customers leaving reviews about your company:

• Step 1: Identify which review based websites you want to target and increase your positive comments/ reviews

• Step 2: Identify which of your customers are most likely to leave a positive review

• Step 3: Contact them asking for a genuine review and direct them where to leave it

Always ask for a genuine review, and resist the urge to write it for them. The fake/ controlled reviews are always easy to spot, as they are too formal and “on message”. Honest reviews are far more powerful, and effective as they feel natural to the reader.

Another key area to consider are article based websites that cater to your target audience (e.g. Blogs, “how to…” guides etc.). By contributing material to these key websites, you can position yourself as an expert in this field, and dealing with an expert is an appealing factor to any potential customer.

Social sources

 

 

A relatively newcomer to the game, social media is fast becoming one of the most influential channel on people’s attitudes and opinions. It is estimated that 48% of consumers combine social media and search engines in their buying process.  Social media marketing is not something you can turn on and off, it is a persistent process that requires time an effort over a long period of time to be truly successful.  The huge benefit of committing yourself is when your prospects view your Twitter of Facebook profiles and see genuine, positive 3^rd party comments from existing customers they trust.

Beyond a great product/ service, you can encourage positive comments via your customers’ social media accounts in a number of different ways:

• React quickly and decisively to any queries directed towards you (even if it is negative)

• Reply to positive comments to say thank you

• Integrate social media with a competition on your website

• Creating useful/ interesting/ funny/unique content to share

• Have genuine conversations with your brand fans

Creating content that people share is a tried and tested tactic, albeit one that is easier said than done. With so much content to be found online, the bar is constantly being raised. Additionally, you also can’t expect disengaged followers to be active in sharing your content, no matter how good it is. Tips on how to increase the likelihood of your content being shared include:

• Focus on quality over quantity

• Engage with your followers regardless of whether you have anything to share

• Share 3^rd party content you know your followers will be interested in reading

Your sources

Your marketing communications (website, brochures, flyers etc.) play a key role at the information search stage. At this stage you need to clearly show how your products will satisfy your target audience’s web hosting needs. You should aim to answer questions your customers will have in mind. Some examples include; Is it affordable? Is it the web hosting platform reliable and secure?  Is it quick and easy to set up and use? Is there customer support if I need help? How big is this company and can I trust them? Etc. Ways of achieving this include:

• Prominent contact us, find us and about us pages on your website

• A money back guarantee

• A demo of the product on your website

• 3^rd party endorsements

• Testimonials, case studies and customer comments

• If you have been around for a long time, your heritage (e.g. “Since 1998)

The next stage

Once a prospect has all your information, they will then move on to the next stage, the evaluation of alternatives.  This could be as quick as a mental run down done in seconds, or as involved as creating a spread sheet comparing web hosts’ specifications, and anything in between.  In part 3 we will look at how you can increase the likelihood they choose you.