So far, so good…

Over the course of a month, 768 people responded to his advert and went to his business to find out more information. When they got to the right place, they could get in through the door, but all they could find inside were posters around the walls, all spouting vague generalities about how wonderful the company was.

All the visitors looked around, but they couldn’t find anyone to talk to. There just didn’t seem be anyone around. There wasn’t a bell they could ring, nor any useful information they could take away with them.

So what do you think they did? That’s right – they walked right out!

Now what’s your opinion of the businessman who placed the advertising and then wasn’t there to talk to the prospects when they came?

Idiot, right?

Now that story isn’t QUITE true, but I’ll tell you what DID happen.

The client is in the mining industry, and he did run an advert for a month. It was strategically positioned on a daily newsletter emailed to over 25,000 middle to senior level people in the industry. Loads of decision-makers! A paid subscription service, so the people (those decision-makers) actually read it.

So, the audience was the right one, and over the course of the month 768 people did click on the advert, presumably because they wanted more information. We call those people “prospects”, don’t we? Maybe not red-hot, but surely worth talking to?

In effect, those 768 people knocked on the door of his “electronic office” and found what I described earlier. A bunch of vague nonsense about how good the company was, and absolutely no attempt whatsoever to engage the visitor.

You wouldn’t dream of running a real business like that, so why is it so hard for the average businessman to get this one, easy to grasp, fact?

Unless your website is up there just to use up spare pixels and you’re happy for it to be just another expense, then it’s almost certain that the very best purpose it can possibly be put to is this:

LEAD GENERATION

And when they come to your website, PLEASE be there to at least say “hello”!

When I explained it to my client THAT way he said “Ah, now I understand”…

Philip Langley is National Online Advertising Sales Manager for Aspermont Limited, Australia's leading Industry publisher. Philip can be contacted on 08 6263 9100 or by email at Philip.Langley@aspermont.com