Is Your Website Making You Money?

Article Details
URL: http://support.freestart.com/index.php?_m=knowledgebase&_a=viewarticle&kbarticleid=104
Article ID: 104
Created On: 06 Jul 2007 12:57 PM

Answer

Is Your Website Making You Money?

There comes a time when every website owner asks, “Is my website making me money?” If the numbers aren’t adding up and your revenue stream is dwindling or your cost of advertising is increasing without corresponding sales, then it may be time to assess whether your website is working for you.

How do you do this? Websites can be enabled to track many statistics such as the amount of visitors, the time they visited and what they’re buying (your bank account from all of your transactions will showcase this as well).

What’s important is to understand these statistics. If the number of visitors is zero, then you have a serious problem with your website. It can be the actual items or the process that the customers have to perform in order to get their purchase. It may be necessary to have an independent person assess your website from the customer perspective and have them tell you what they found wrong.

Or if you have a mailing list, you can ask your customers why they aren’t buying anymore. You’ll actually be surprised that people will take the time to answer a well designed questionnaire. 6 to 10 questions works best.

What’s necessary is understanding that your website didn’t reduce the amount of its customers overnight. It took some time. Fixing the problem will also take time.

Panic and anxiety may seem the natural course of action. However, if you panic, you may rush important decisions about your website and will actually do more harm.

One of the best ways to assess why things have changed is to take a look at your success. Why did you have those previous successful campaigns? Was it because you had a fabulous product or service? Was it because you marketed effectively and sought out the right markets for what you’re selling? Take a step back and see what worked. Chances are, they’ll most likely work again especially if those are the techniques and methods that built your business.

Also, take a look at why you changed your website model. Was it because it was the latest technique for website design or maybe you thought your website needed a ‘face-lift’? Did your sales start to slip after this occurred?

These questions may be a blow to your ego, but will help you determine whether your website is salvageable and whether you actually wish to continue your website model. By performing quantitative (data driven) testing, you will be able to better assess and perform the required business decision.

Just remember, patience is required. However if you want to jump start your website back into action then visit Freestart at www.freestart.com or call us on 0870 741 5296. We have years of experience helping people, just like you, maximise their website presence.