Get More ROI From Your Organization’s Website

Your website should build your reputation, your business and value for your organization. Are you making the most of the opportunity? How can it work harder for you?

You need the basics, certainly. Master the building blocks and ensure the messages are clear and concise. Be sure it is well-written. And, no matter what you are talking about, it needs to be true. A company’s reputation lives with its customers, employees, and peers. If you don’t provide information to shape opinions, others will certainly fill the void for you. Activity might be on social media, but those posts lead to your content on your website. So, how do you get to the next level? Here’s how:

Explain your purpose

You must explain your purpose—why you exist—and why you are worth an investment of time or money. If you don’t take the time to explain, the idea is diminished, the power of what it can enable is lost. The focus on purpose is heightened, and people expect more of all organizations. What people, you may ask? Customers are interested in seeing the who and what behind the products and services they love. Potential partners always make a stop at the website, the media visits when researching a story, job seekers are a mainstay, communities where you operate seek assurance, and investors doing their due diligence—all look to the organizational, or corporate, website information.

Showcase social impact

Beyond the quality of the products and services you provide Corporate Responsibility, Community Engagement and Sustainability are the foundation of your reputation. How your company lives its values, and the evidence you provide, goes a long way. Whether you formalize goals, progress and results in a report or showcase employee actions in articles, include evidence that you do what you say you do. For public companies there’s an army of raters and rankers ready to take you to task, or dole out awards. The ‘concerned consumer’ is another audience, and your site is an opportunity to bolster brand loyalty. Communities where you operate give you the social ‘license to operate,’ and you must earn and sustain their trust. And, employees are the biggest stakeholders of all. Knowing that the company is ethical and focused on issues bigger than itself are key to retention.

Reveal your culture

Employees want to be proud of where they work, and where but your website and social media channels can they send their friends and family to make the case? Job seekers are discerning and need to be wooed, they need to see themselves at your company. Make sure your values ring true, and rise above generic table stakes all companies must meet to exist. (Integrity and trust anyone?) Be sure you have evidence of your awesomeness—from Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, to leadership programs and professional development, employee volunteerism to philanthropy—showcase what makes you special. And, even if you aren’t there yet, talk about your progress.

Make it easy for the media

Be sure this busy group can find what they need so they get it right. Journalists are online all the time and once in a while they will notice what you say, and sometimes they are looking for information. Contacts, basic company information, approved logos, images and b-roll give you some control. Although a very small number of site visitors overall, the risk of not serving their needs is high.

Orient your customers

Although customers are not always the focus of the organizational or corporate website content, they do come. They are curious to learn about the company behind the products or services they rely on and, occasionally they are lost looking for your products or spare parts. Help them by providing links for the ‘lost’ and ensuring their concerns are also represented in the stories you tell. This is another touchpoint where you bring your brand to life, be sure all the messaging is consistent.

Give contact info

For some, the website is primarily a way of getting to people within an organization—so make that easy. The bigger the company the less contact information is typically available (not always true, but it gets more complex). Keep the audiences in mind and try to help users with self service FAQs and easy to find phone or email addresses, that a human being actually monitors.

Get started

Filling your corporate site with relevant, interesting, well-written content that explains who you are, what you do and importantly WHY will start you on the road to getting the most return for your investment in the corporate site. It will also help make the site more discoverable and perform better in search. A great website goes beyond the content, it can bolster trust in your company and its brands, make the investment case, create deeper employee engagement, enhance customer loyalty, and excite purpose-driven job seekers. It’s a win-win.

Ideas On Purpose can help

Contemplating a website upgrade? Consider engaging an expert. Insight-backed digital communication is integral to what we do. Check out some of the stakeholder-pleasing sustainability reports and branded impact communications as well as websites IOP has created—and email us to get in touch if you need help with yours.  

Photo by Clement Souchet on Unsplash
updated 2/2024