An attractive website can bring customers to you and increase profits, says Owen Brierly, executive director of Edmonton-based Guru Digital Media Arts College. He outlined the power of websites to a group of producers at a Bison Producers Association meeting here recently.
“If you’re still using brochures, bumper stickers and all of those things, the website can augment that and enhance it even further to give you greater reach with your story,” he said.
Brierly’s presentation dispelled myths about websites and website development and emphasized sharing stories to engage potential customers.
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There are strategies producers can use to get their message onto the web, said Brierly.
“It’s not going to be the same as buying a million dollar ad at the Superbowl, but you can still get out there and start building what we call viral marketing,” he said.
Viral marketing is based on the principle that one person will talk to another person who will then spread the word to yet another person. Websites have several components which make them an important part of a marketing campaign, said Brierly.
Websites are “live,” which means they can be easily updated and information can be added to them quickly. “If you have new information to share, you can publish it tomorrow. You don’t have to print out a million brochures and then try to disseminate them. You make a change and people in your sphere of communications are aware of that information,” he said.
Websites are also layered, allowing visitors the opportunity to visit multiple areas of the site to access background information. Links can allow visitors to arrive at websites from a variety of places including Google, other websites or cross-links.
Brierly encouraged producers to include their website address in every form of communication, including e-mail, so potential clients can easily find information.
