With more pet owners than ever searching online for pet care experts, your web presence can play a critical role in meeting your revenue goals. In this economy, the pool of potential new customers is not only shrinking but also becoming more selective. They are certainly checking out your website before deciding whom to call. To help take the mystery out of the Internet, check out these Top 10 Tips for a quick guide on how to do web marketing right.

1. Own your business’s web address. Your web address is known more formally as a URL (uniform resource locator) or domain name. Simply put, it is your business’s address on the Internet (e.g. www.my-loving-petdaycare.com). Many website companies register a web address with your name but keep ownership of it. You might be a hostage to their service and not even know it. If you did not register the address yourself, check with your web designer or web marketing provider; they should be able to help.

2. Display your professional association’s logo on your home page. When potential customers come to your site, any top tier association logos quickly send the message that you are credible and that you provide a premium and professional service. If you already have a logo on your site, check and make sure it is an up-to-date version. An old, tired, or sloppy graphic makes your business look old, tired, and sloppy.

3. Check your site for “old school” web design standards. Scrolling text, “cute” animated graphics of paw prints, “bark” sound effects, and site visit counters send a message that you are not keeping up with the times. Clear, clean displays of text and animations that are not there “just because” but rather to support your overall marketing message are the way to go in 2012.

4. Can visitors to your site find your phone number easily? Contact information should be clearly accessible from the home page and in your navigation. Better yet, list your phone number and physical address in the top right-hand corner of your main header. No matter where the visitor clicks within your website, your phone number and general service area are always right there. Remember that customers will move on to another pet resort if you make it difficult to call your business.

5. Review your site right now, checking for misspelled words or outdated information. Either mistake will make your business look like the lights are on but no one’s home. Mark your calendar and review the entire site every six months, checking for broken links, missing images, and the appropriateness of the text. Site reviews are a step that many overlook, but they are part of the proper maintenance of a professional website. If your About Us, Testimonials, and Photo Gallery pages are still “under construction,” it is time to finish them off. Incomplete pages make the visitor think you don’t care about finishing the job well.

6. Incorporate your business’s logo in the header (the top section) of your website. Make sure it looks crisp online. Check with your web or logo designer and make sure the version you use is optimized for the Web. Web users today distinguish between businesses that look like pros online and those that do not. A graphic that looked great 10 years ago might not look so good to the newer generation of customers.

7. Add your photo to bring your site to life. People like to buy from people – not from faceless companies. A photo helps customers make a “connection.” Depending on the layout of your site, the best place for a photo is on the home page, the Contact Us page, or the About Us page.

8. Check with your professional association for any content they have for members to use online. Call or email your association’s member services and ask what’s available. Your affiliates can be a good source for content for FAQ pages and for text detailing the value your membership in their organization brings to the consumer.

9. Get rid of any irrelevant items on your site. Visitor counters, web search forms, and time and temperature displays are all examples of distracting clutter we have seen on outdated pet care sites. Keep your site clear and focused on you and your services.

10. Highlight key seasonal services on your site according to the season. Your site’s mission is to deliver key and convincing information about your business, which is compelling to an interested customer. Just remember to keep that information seasonally appropriate. Is your homepage promoting ways to keep pets out of the summer heat – in early winter?

If you want more business from your website today, you must begin with these Top 10 Tips.

Griffin Davis is VP of Marketing for Market Hardware, Inc. (www.markethardware.com). Griffin has worked in Internet marketing and small business marketing since 1993. Market Hardware helps pet care professionals compete on the Web and offers special discounts for association members. Ask Griffin any website or Internet marketing question by emailing [email protected] or calling 888-381-6925. Follow his web marketing newsfeed at www.twitter.com/markethardware.

Next Article