Many small businesses are enticed by using lead generating services to grow their customer base or increase market share. Often, business owners fall into the trap of creating microsites and using Leadpages and ClickFunnels tools without understanding that there is a right and wrong way to implement these tools and services into their digital marketing strategy. Utilizing these tools with a solid value proposition and call to action can be a good short-term plan. These options should never be considered as a long-term marketing approach or utilized as your company’s main website.
Short Term v. Long Term
A microsite or Leadpage offers an affordable option to implement testing with a quick turnaround time, without making major changes to your company’s website and running the risk of negatively impacting your brand. These tools can be a great short-term option to generate leads or test a new product or service you are considering bringing into your business portfolio. For instance, your want to try A/B testing (or split testing) to see what version of a web page gets a better conversion rate or you want to broadcast a new service that your company is considering. If you are uncertain whether you want to tie the service to your brand or you are not ready to commit to revamping your entire website to include the new service until you know that it is a viable option for your company, these tools are a good starting point.
Moreover, when you utilize these types of tools long term you are sacrificing your SEO results. With the exception of the immediate click to buy, contact us form completion or opting in for your company’s newsletter, there is no long-term benefit. Additionally, once you terminate your services your URL link becomes dead. Therefore, any URL links to social media postings become ineffective. These service companies will not offer you forwarding address services to your main website once you quit utilizing their service.
Using the analogy of owning a home versus leasing a home simplifies this explanation. When you own a home and you make improvements to your home you add equity or value to your investment. When you own your website, you own your organic traffic, SEO and website ranking. When you create a microsite, Leadpage or ClickFunnel for long-term use you gain no long-term equity. Essentially, you are the renter and the lead generating service is the property owner.
Recognize Short & Long Term Benefit with Website Optimization
When a small business owner makes an investment in website optimization they will not only generate more leads in the short term, but they will simultaneously increase long-term SEO equity. Additionally, when you utilize your newly optimized landing page in social media posts you drive organic traffic to your website and your URL will always remain live. You do not dilute your domain authority on the website or negatively impact your brand. Thus, if you have optimized your website and you are not seeing the results you expected, you may need to rethink your value proposition, content and page layout. This is where Tiny Giant Web Solutions can create a landing page that turns visitors into customers.
If you are persuaded to use these tools as a long-term business solution or if you are considering creating a microsite, Leadpage or ClickFunnel for the goal of increased SEO you are wasting your time and money. It will not work and you will likely dilute your brand. On the other hand, if you are considering these tools as a short-term plan this option can be beneficial. With a clear value proposition, correct content and smooth page flow the page could yield promising results.
In a nutshell, do your homework. Understand when to use these resources in your business. If you opt to invest and implement one of these tools in your short-term marketing plan make sure to set up and track the results separately in your website analytics. At Tiny Giant we understand when these tools are most beneficial to our customers and when they are just not a viable option. Whether your goal is to create a Leadpage for a short-term solution or website optimization for the long-term plan, we will partner with you to build a unique landing page or optimize your website and track activity in your customized analytics dashboard, which will guide you in executing a solid plan for business growth.
