As Steven Covey says "Fail to plan and you plan to fail".

If, for example, you wanted to reach the top of Kilimanjaro, would you just pack a few things and set off in the hope of reaching the peak? Or would you take the time and effort to plan and research your goal and gather all the resources your needed? 

I’m guessing (hoping!) it’s the latter! And the same is essential for marketing and growing your business effectively; you need to have a clear strategy for what you want to achieve, how to achieve it, plus a whole host of different resources to ensure the best outcome. 

And if part of your marketing strategy includes a website then the same applies for this too; rushing in and creating pretty or ‘all-singing, all-dancing’ websites without doing your research and planning can be a waste of time and energy, and you may become quite disillusioned about Internet Marketing altogether - which would be a shame since it offers enormous potential for the small business owner. 

As a service professional you have more than likely invested a huge amount of time, energy and money in your professional training so why skimp when it comes to investing in the marketing that will enable you to make best use of all that training and reach those you most want to help?!  Since I fist started my business Internet Marketing has played a huge part in it's success - and I want to share some of my expertise with you.

So, here are my top 10 tips for turning your website into a client magnet! 

1. Planning and Strategy – Be clear on what you want your website to do for your business. Don’t just think about creating a nice looking site, think about the copy, the structure and the ongoing development too!
2. Budget! – Marketing your business is not a one off exercise and therefore just creating a gorgeous website does not ensure traffic or clients. How will you maintain your website, keep it fresh and up to date and continually drive qualified visitors to it?
3. Clearly define your target market – This is an area that many service professionals (particularly coaches) dislike and often avoid because they think it limits them; when in fact it positions them! If you don’t do this, how can you hope to use your website to engage your visitors and convert them to clients?!
4. Research your target market – once you know who your ideal clients are, you need to know as much about them as possible; including how they buy, where they hang out, what their problems and challenges are in relation to your services?
5. Have a clear offering – If you want your website to work hard for you then be clear about what services and products your are offering and who they are for. Make your site open and easy to navigate.   
6. Structure and copy – Once you have done your research and you are clear about your target market and your services; plan the structure of your site and the structure of the copy on each page. Again it can be easy to go rushing in and start writing before you are clear on what you want your visitors to know, feel and do as a result of landing on your site.
7. Your website is not an Island – you need to plan how you will drive qualified visitors to your site on a regular basis otherwise your site and your business will remain a well-kept secret! As I mentioned earlier, marketing is an ongoing process throughout your business; give it the love and attention it deserves!
8. Measure your results – this is critical for any marketing activity; if you don’t know what is and isn’t working, how do you know where to put your time, energy and money?
9. Nurture! – Just like a beautiful flower, your website needs constant love, attention and nourishment to ensure it grows into a client magnet and stays that way. How will you make your website flourish?
10. Demonstrate your expertise – your website is the perfect vehicle for show-casing your knowledge, expertise, passion and style of working; both through your copy and regular articles/blogs.
11. Patience, tenacity, creativity – you all know that building a business takes time, effort, patience and a variety of resources, and the same is true for turning your website into a client magnet. Keep learning, writing, tweaking and finding creative ways to bring visitors to your site and keeping them there!
12. Ask an expert! – Well I do have to earn a living you know! My knowledge and experience encompasses IT, Marketing and Coaching and it enables me to help my clients on many levels. I’d love to help you too and would love you to join other like-minded service professionals on my next workshop and learn How To Turn Your Website Into a Client Magnet! It’s a small-group workshop, not a huge seminar so plenty of time and space for individual learning.

And if you're like me and hate selling then having a well designed website can actually do a lot of the selling for you!