This is one of the first questions I ask the executives I advise.
The second question I ask sheds light on their strategy from an equally important direction: What job are your customers hiring your website to do?
These two questions help bring to the surface important — often unspoken — stories we tell ourselves about the identity, role and purpose of our brand or business.
In this post, I want to focus on the job you hire your website to do.
Did You Say “Hiring” a Website? Yep — Here’s Why
In the brilliant Harvard Business Review article, Marketing Malpractice: The Cause and the Cure, Clayton Christensen et al argues that we essentially “hire” products and services to do specific jobs for us.
A morning commuter may “hire” a milkshake to make it to work and lunch with minimal effort, while a parent may “hire” that same milkshake to bond with a child.
I hire Amazon to buy books and other stuff. And I hire my truck to get me to kids’ activities, my office and trailheads. You may hire a film or dinner for a date night. Or hire a certain brand of shoes for running.
Once we see the world through this mindset of “hired jobs” it changes the way we approach our strategy.
We are hiring our website to do a specific job for us, while prospects, clients, partners and job seekers are hiring our website to specific jobs for them.
The 3 Jobs Your Website Can Do For You
You can hire your website to essentially do one of three jobs:
1. Build trust. This is the least expensive and time-consuming type of website to build, because it uses content to inform and inspire. As leads are identified in the field, this type of website reinforces the stories the sales folks are telling.
Most professional service firms and creative freelancers need a website that simply supports their sales efforts, which are primarily relationship-driven and occur offline.
2. Generate leads. This type of website requires a greater investment of time and technology, because the site’s architecture needs to be built to effectively learn about and lead each new visitor.
Staffing firms are a good example of businesses that need websites to generate leads. While sales teams are calling on clients to win bids for job placements, they must also be amassing a large database of active job seekers to fill those jobs as they come available. Job boards, especially, can serve as terrific lead-generation websites.
3. Transact with customers. The most expensive and complex websites are commerce sites. Think Amazon and Walmart. Of course, your site can be a commerce site on a much smaller scale. But a lot of thought, work and service must go into creating and maintaining a safe, reliable user experience in which people make purchases.
Of course, there is a fourth option, but I don’t recommend it — you could “hire” your website to be your website.
I’ve seen too many companies and creatives do this. They need a website, so they hire a team to build a website. Which, of course, turns out to be a digital brochure on how awesome the company, product or service is. And how bad we need their also-ran solution.
A business’ website is a connective agent. It is not a channel for self-expression. It is not a campaign of what I call the 4Fs — facts, figures, features and fear.
It is a place for you to serve people. For their benefit. Then yours.
StudioPress hires its website to transact with WordPress theme buyers. eHarmony hires its website to transact with people looking for relationships.
David Meerman Scott “hires” his website to build the trust of event coordinators and corporate planners looking to hire him as a keynote speaker. He hires his blog to generate leads. Jay Baer takes a similar approach by splitting his agency’s website from his personal brand’s website.
Leah Hewson “hires” her website to build trust through showcasing her artwork for potential commissions.
What job are you or your business hiring your website to do? If you are currently hiring it to do a) the wrong job, b) more than one job or c) no job at all, then it’s time for a new strategy.
I sincerely hope something I’ve written here helps you get started. If I can answer any questions, feel free to email me or comment.