Website visits are no longer key performance indicators of marketing success. It’s not enough to simply measure how many hits your site gets. We now need to look at ways to turn casual website visitors into followers. Creating relevant content and maintaining a strong social media presence have never been more important.
Research conducted by Hubspot shows that websites that create a lot of content, build active social media profiles and blog regularly are more successful.
Converting visitors to followers is critical to your school’s marketing success. Here are five ways to turn casual website visitors into followers:
1. Create a great user experience (UX)
Understanding your customer base and how they use your website is the first step to improve the online experience of your brand. A well designed and easy to navigate site is vital. To assess the UX of your website, start by checking out your bounce rate. We know that online users only take a few seconds to decide whether or not your site is relevant. If your bounce rate is high, it’s pretty clear that your customers can’t find what they are looking for. The key to good website design is to keep it simple.
2. Relevant content
If you’re looking to create a following, you need to make sure there’s something to follow. Schools need to create content that is engaging and relevant to prospective parents in order to be considered a thought leader in the education sector and articulate a point of difference from their competitors. Regular blogs, podcasts and video content can help schools establish themselves as a useful resources for knowledge.
3. Social engagement
Social media is a great way to share content and generate a following. If resources and time are issues, focus on one channel well. To ensure your social posts are engaging, conduct AB tests to determine which posts receive higher engagement levels.
4. Promote social channels
Add follow buttons to your website. Include ‘follow me’ calls to action to blog contributors’ bylines and embed social mentions on your news and/or testimonial pages.
5. Capture and nurture leads
In order to increase the opportunities to stay connected with your casual website visitors, you’ll need to find out who they are. Don’t be afraid to seek customer information in exchange for providing useful and relevant content. Using forms to capture names and emails will allow you the chance to send newsletters and other resources that might be useful to your visitors.
