Be Easy to Connect with or Miss Out
You know what I appreciate—being able to look at a website, see a phone number and call it. Remember years back when you could find the phone number for any business in the phone book? If you are like me, you have not picked up a phone book in a while, and you probably look online when you want a phone number for a business you have not called before.
Why do so many people make themselves and their businesses so hard to reach? Maybe it’s because we dream of running a virtual business where we can set up automated systems and then go drink umbrella beverages on a secluded beach and magically everything will run smoothly. Well, keep dreaming! People want to be able to talk to people. You do not have to answer the phone but somebody does.
One of my brand attributes is accessibility. I talk to my clients. I talk to my potential clients. I talk to pretty much everyone who wants to talk to me. I say it like it is a novel idea because too many people do whatever they can to not to talk to people under the illusion that they can have a 100% online only business.
While this can work for a few product only folks, for service-based businesses it has your potential clients move on to someone else.
Three Super Huge Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make Around Connectability
1. Not putting your phone number on your website.
Whatever Internet gurus people are listening to that say do not put your phone number on your website are wrong— especially today when people are more cautious about their spending. They want to know there is a real person behind that slick site. They will call someone else if you make it too hard to connect with you.
2. Making someone write in ten information fields before they can send you an email.
When I see all those boxes to fill out on a contact page I go to Facebook and look someone up and send them an email there rather then fill in all those boxes. Most people move on to another site that does not make them work so hard. The more boxes there are to fill out the less likely potential clients will do it. Be easy to connect with everyone at every opportunity.
3. Not putting your email address on your website.
This I think is the most stupid thing you can do. I know your webmaster told you not to put your email address on your site because the spam spiders will grab it. Recognize that your webmaster is not your marketing master, nor your VP of business development. While he or she is worried about spam, what you want to think about is being easy to connect with. Besides, there are ways around that. By writing at instead of @ or using a graphic representation of your email.
The truth is spam is a fact of life and can be managed—that is what your spam filter is for. When someone who is your potential client cannot send you quick email you are making it too hard to connect with you, and that is not smart.
Be the businessperson that people can easily connect with in a world where everyone is trying to hide behind their website and you will watch your business grow. Make it easy for people to connect with you and more people will reach out to hire you and invite you to participate in cool opportunities that otherwise would have passed you by.
Comments
I agree 100%!! Having contact information available is a must for all the reasons you list. I consider being up front with contact information gives the business more credibility in some ways.
Leave a Comment