Twain, as usual, said it best:
“Old habits can’t be thrown out the upstairs window,” said Mark Twain. “They have to be coaxed down the stairs one step at a time.” So it goes with website content management. Old habits (neglect being the #1 bad guy) die hard. So make 2016 the year that you rediscover the potential of your website as a tool for building engagement with these 5 steps.
1. Retrench on SEO
Study the best SEO practices and make sure you’re hitting the highlights: Be mobile friendly. Commit to multimedia. Keep social channels energized. Play nice with Google.
But never, ever forget that premium, branded content also remains an essential standard for search visibility, which brings us irresistibly forward to:
2. Invest in principal photography
Especially given the recent trend toward large-format visuals on home pages (which often have greater stopping power than a mosaic of content areas competing for viewer attention), you should consider shooting a new deck of heroic brand images for use across appropriate marketing channels, starting with your site.
Reality check: There’s too much stock photography in use on legacy websites, period. And that means you may have an opportunity to differentiate yourself when you invest in compelling imagery that’s right for the brand.
3. Review and refresh your message
How long has the same set of messages been parked on your home page image rotator?
When was the last time you reviewed landing page copy, subheads, calls to action, and the key language you use on pages where you really need engagement?
Doing a copy audit of your site may take some serious time, but it’s a way to adjust your message upward and reinforce it across every part of your site.
4. Get CMS training and website HR in place
Many clients tend to build or rebuild their site, declare victory, have a parade, and then allow the content to be mismanaged or the site functionality to be underused.
But what many organizations need to commit to is a set number of hours each week that are allocated for content updates and maintenance.
5. Build and commit to an editorial calendar
Even if your site is more textbook than magazine, you should plan out 12 months of editorial content for it.
Our experience is that this enables clients to (and this is huge) anticipate opportunities to gather content.
Too often, content-origination opportunities such as speeches, live events, product launches, and photo and video shoots are missed because no one saw it coming until too late.
We just thought of a 6th resolution for better site performance.
Have a cup of java with us.
