We know what it’s like to be you. We’ve been our own client lately and we’ve been working on a new website. Questions have come up on just how and when we should announce and launch it. So we thought we’d share some best practice tips with you — and, at the same time, use it as a nice way to let you know about the change that’s coming. So, that’s tip number one.
Talk to your clients about the new site before you launch it.
Let your customer base know you are about to make the change. It will build curiosity and interest and drive initial traffic to the site. But it will also prepare customers who may not be as thrilled as you are that a change is coming. An improvement for you might be an inconvenient adjustment for them, at least initially.
Talk up the why.
Let customers know why you made the change and tell them how they will benefit from it. What new features does the site provide that will help them know more about what you do and what you can do for them? Even if the main feature is just a less cluttered design and user interface, it is a benefit to them. And hopefully you’ve added other features, in addition to a better design, that are also directly beneficial to them. So tell them all about it.
Hand-hold a little.
Be sure to let your customers know that you are eager to assist them if, for any reason, they have trouble finding what they need in the new site. And encourage them to give you feedback. Obviously, things in the new site should be easier to find, not harder. But if one of the reasons you redeveloped your site in the first place was to control content that had gotten out of control (one of the most common reasons), it is probably inherent that the features will work differently and be organized differently. Give them time to adjust and offer them channels of communications that will give you feedback about any problems they might be having. As much as you (and we!) try to anticipate everything little thing, it’s not always possible.
Send an emailer to announce launch day.
Create an emailer that reflects the new site design and send it the day the site launches, and again once a week for four weeks after it is launched. If you can, alter the emailer for each send, asking your audience if they’ve seen it yet. Encourage their feedback in the emailer and tell them exactly how they should provide that feedback. The best way is to provide a link to the contact form on your contact page. Let them know that their comments will be kept confidential but are truly valued.
Be prepared for the feedback.
Not all the feedback will be positive. But don’t take that to mean that you haven’t done a good thing. Many people just resist change. Remember that growth and evolution are necessary and it is natural for websites to become more complex as businesses grow and audiences expand.
Promote the site in your company and personal social media pages.
Talk about your new site on your Facebook page. Tweet about it. Let your LinkedIn contacts know about it, too. Even promoting it on your personal pages will help to get the word out.
Send a postcard.
Within a week or two of the launch, send a postcard letting people know about your new site. It should be designed to reflect the look of the new site, display your web address prominently, and provide a list of the new features the site offers.
Add some text to your email signature.
A simple question will do the trick. Ask “Have you gone to our new website yet?” Then provide a link to get to it. Anyone who’s missed it from your other correspondences just might click spontaneously. Keep the question in your signature for about a month or so. Then replace it with a regular site address and link after that.
Send a press release to media.
Send it to local media and industry-specific trade publications to generate publicity. Emphasize the new features the site offers and how they will benefit the industry and customers. Be sure to include any groundbreaking services you’re offering and any “firsts” within your industry that your site might include.
Remember to promote your mailing list sign up.
In all of your site talk, be sure to direct readers to and encourage mailing list sign up; and let them know where it is in the site. It will, of course, be easy to find (a high priority), but tell them where it is anyway. It will encourage interaction.
Engage in ongoing site marketing.
More than anything else, committing to an ongoing marketing program to drive regular traffic to your site should be a priority. It can include online marketing through google adwords or pay per click advertising; print media, like direct mail and industry publication advertising; email campaign communications direct to your mailing list; or content promotion from inside your site. No matter what you do, it should be varied, regular and ongoing.
So, consider yourself informed.
We are happy to announce the upcoming launch of a new website. We’re heeding our own advice, so you’ll be hearing more about it soon. But in the meantime, we want to let you know it will be very different from our old site. First it was developed in WordPress — an interface for which we’ve come to be big fans. The site will offer more focus on the direct branding and marketing needs of our service industry and nonprofit clients. It will offer more free advice than our old site and has an expanded portfolio section to show the work that we do. We hope you like it. We’d love to hear your feedback so keep the communication coming. We created the site for you — to serve you better and help you in your marketing efforts.
— by Chris Quinn, principal and brand strategist
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