Why Your Company Needs a Website

Applecore Interactive CEO Deborah Bourden was a guest on Roaring Women Radio this weekend, discussing the importance of company websites and figuring out why your company needs one.

Find the interview here.

Turning the Bad into Good: Using Online Feedback to Help Your Business

by J. Butler, Content Development Specialist

It’s a fear that keeps a lot of businesses, big or small, offline: what happens when you bring your company on to the World Wide Web? Whether it’s through social media or a website, the reality is that going online can feel like losing control over how your business is seen or heard.

This can be especially true when it comes to feedback. Hopefully, most feedback would be positive, chances are sooner or later your business would see the unthinkable: negative feedback online, in a very public forum.

Your kneejerk reaction may to ignore it or delete it, but you’d be missing out on a great chance to connect one on one with a customer. So why not turn a bad thing (negative feedback) into a good thing: showing your customers how much you care.

Responding head-on to negative feedback gives you a chance to not only redeem your company but also fix whatever went wrong. Offering a solution tells your customer that you are accountable for your product or service and also shows you really believe in what your business is trying to do. Ignoring or downplaying any problems that emerge could suggest something to your customers you don’t want to suggest: namely, that you stopped caring about them the minute they gave you their business.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you own a paper business, Sterling Paper Co.—it could be a small 10 person operation or a large, multi-level corporation. A customer (Mr. Smith) leaves a negative but fair comment on your company blog, explaining that not only did their order arrive a week late, but the boxes had been badly damaged in transit!

From here, you can really only do one of three things:

1. Ignore it, delete it or block the sender.

2. Respond, but defensively (that is, blame the problem on the post office or a heavy backorder)

3. Address the problem, find a solution and satisfy your customer:

Dear Mr. Jones,

I was sorry to hear of the damage that occurred to your order while in transit. We always try to package our goods carefully so they arrive in perfect condition, ready to be enjoyed. Thank you for notifying us of this problem, as I will be looking into the packing or your order to ensure it does not happen again.

Sterling Paper Co. prides itself on ensuring the satisfaction of each customer. If you will agree to send the damaged goods back, I will arrange for a new delivery to be shipped to you free of charge, as well as a 15% discount for any future purchases.

Sincerely,

John Johnson

Sterling Paper Co.

This response accomplishes the following:

• It will help the customer feel that his or her problem has been heard and acknowledged.

• It shows you are accountable and eager to fix problems to guarantee great service.

• It shows you believe in your product or service, enough to offer not only a replacement but also a discount.

• It maintains a professional, courteous demeanor that will reassure your customer

• It builds your reputation as a company that cares about what people are saying about them, and is willing to help their customers.

Obviously, it’s up to your business to determine what kind of compensation (if any) you will offer your unsatisfied customers. This example is meant only to illustrate the great gains your business can make online if you choose to listen to the feedback your customers are giving you.

Remember the old adage: a happy customer may tell two people. An unhappy customer will tell twelve. Which would you rather have talking about you?

10 Harsh Truths About Corporate Websites

One article that has made the rounds of Applecore’s inboxes is Paul Boag’s 10 Harsh Truths About Corporate Websites, which we originally found on Smashing Magazine. As Boag states in his introduction:

We all make mistakes running our websites. However, the nature of those mistakes varies depending on the size of your company. As your organization grows, the mistakes change. This post addresses common mistakes among large organizations.

We took these 10 harsh truths and added our own viewpoints, and what your company can do to change them.

1. You Need a Separate Web Division

There needs to be one division for web. Period. And it’s for this reason that outsourcing your web needs is so helpful: no one trespasses on anyone’s turf, and decisions are made for the benefit of the website, rather than anyone’s ego. A single unified team means that the website won’t be a brochure, or an extended resume: it will be an accurate representation of your company’s daily life, and often, objective outsiders can provide the best picture.

2. Managing Your Website is a Full-Time Job

This is self-explanatory. In order for a website to be truly useful, it needs to have a dedicated team. But something else to think about: it needs to have a dedicated team that’s empowered to make forward-thinking changes.

3. Periodic Redesign is Not Enough

Careful consideration through every stage of the website’s life, along with a willingness to tweak minor things that don’t seem to need drastic makeovers, can save so many hours of redesign in the long run. Sometimes, the only way to get this kind of insight is by asking a third party to consult.

4. Your Website Cannot Appeal to Everyone

A website designed without this in mind will be too incoherent to serve your business well. You can’t please everyone. You can, however, determine which of your demographics is the most important to your business.

5. You are Wasting Money on Social Networking

In other words, when you proceed into social networking, make sure you understand what makes social media work: that it’s people connecting to people, not just another venue to talk about your company. Use social networking to make your company more human, because at the end of the day, no one wants to visit your blog or Twitter account if they don't get anything in return.

6. Your Website is Not All About You

Self explanatory. No jargon, no insider acronyms. Your website isn’t being designed to suit the tastes of your staff; it’s being built to cater to the needs of your users. After all, they’ll be the ones spending their time there, so their requirements shouldn’t be ignored.

7. You’re Not Getting Value From Your Web Team

A web designer brings much more to the table than simple programming. They understand what makes a website work, what translate best to the web and what features are most helpful to a user. Use this amazing resource to produce the best possible website.

8. Design by Committee Brings Death

Harsh, but accurate. Design by committee is well-intentioned, meant to give everyone a fair stake in the decision making process. However, often what’s required is an educated, objective decision.

9. A CMS is Not a Silver Bullet

A Content Management System is like any tool— it won’t make the decisions for you; it can only make the decisions easier to implement. You need to have the resources in place for timely, relevant updates.

10. You Have Too Much Content

Constant review of content ensures that there’s no useless information taking away from your most important messages—only what is fresh, relevant and useful.

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Does any of this sound familiar? If so, interact with us--the solution is closer than you think.

Corporate Blogging for Self Defense

I have recently been discussing with clients and the blogosphere why it is important for companies to author blogs.

This evening, in lieu of the last week of economic turmoil on Wall Street, I did a quick search on Google for the term, "CEO".

The top articles returned were very negative in nature. What can a company do to counter the onslaught of negative press and foster an image of customer service and relations?

Step one: set aside a tiny amount of your marketing or public relations budget to start and maintain a blog.

Step two: discuss relevant corporate issues and bring your customers and concerned interests one step closer to the board room.

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