The modern business website

Isn’t a website at all, at least not in the traditional sense. It’s now a hub.

Even just a year ago, it was a common purpose of digital marketing programs to simply drive people back towards a business’ website. In doing so, the company was given the chance to showcase their entire product/service catalogue and hopefully convert some visitors to customers through subscription and request forms.

That goal—where the company converts visitors to customers—is still, obviously, a vital piece of the puzzle. If a business can’t make money, it won’t be in business very long. What’s changed is the path to the company’s website. That is, if the desired path even takes one there.

Increasingly, people are discovering and choosing businesses solely through friends’ recommendations and reviews. If you’ve ever read a personal blog or been to Facebook, Twitter or YouTube, you know that it’s in these gathering places where many go to socialize and engage with others.

Put the two together, and you can see how networked channels have become a primary route, in addition to search engine results and mobile applications, by which people learn about and engage with brands.

As you’d then guess, the modern business website is about people and companies interacting with them directly. It’s less of a tower and much more of a hub; a well-designed, central location where all of these above-mentioned “spokes” re-connect and serve to drive traffic outwards again.

Where to go and what to do

In deciding what channels to use, pick ones that make the most sense. If people are talking about your business’ products/services on Facebook, first, quietly follow their conversations from afar. As always, it’s important to focus on high-value, long-term relationships rather than low-value, short-term interactions—so take your time.

Research what people are saying about the business, what types of reactions the various products/services create, how these reactions are shared and what kinds of discussions they start. How do people feel about the business on micro and macro levels?

It’s at this point a company should feel informed enough to get engaged. Be friendly, honest, approachable and do as you say you will do.

It’s still about business

What’s key is that these various social networks aren’t just places to hang out and chat with new and existing customers. If a business only uses these channels to react to conversations, it’s missing out on potential, in-place, revenue-generating activities.

A business’ presence in each channel should also make it easy for people to find out what else it has to offer and, if possible, buy products/services directly from within. This is where everything—the hub and spoke concept—comes together.

In order for a business to stay hooked into a range of channels, and in the case of e-commerce, make sales, the modern business website is no longer just a static content-delivery vehicle; it’s almost completely a technology platform. A standalone website that’s disconnected from internal systems is no longer enough.

With progressively decentralized content, customers and communications, a good website technology platform will empower staff to manage these disparate elements plus include workflows and processes that adequately support their activities. These are the hallmarks of a modern business website.