Show me the money, right?!
We work so damn hard, and put SO MUCH effort into all that we do, that sometimes we’re left wondering, why is the cold, hard cash not pouring in? What are we doing wrong?
(Don’t worry, I’m going to show you 6 ways your website can make you money – KEEP READING!)
One of the things that might NOT be working for you is your website. And trust me, your website is one heckuva important asset that you DO NOT want to ignore.
More than any other marketing tool, YOUR WEBSITE makes (or breaks) your impression with the world and ALL potential clients, and also your ability to generate an income. Do a great job and that potential client becomes a real paying customer (and makes you money!!), but do a poor half-ass job, and that potential customer is clickity click clicking AWAY from your website in search of one of your competitors (and taking their money with them).
So let’s talk about HOW YOUR website can make you money, and also the reverse, how they can turn your clients OFF, and in turn, lose you money.
6 Ways Your Website Can Make You Money:
1. E-Commerce
E-Commerce is the obvious way your website can make you money. The term e-commerce means the act of selling products online with some sort of automated checkout. If you have products (physical or digital), that you can sell on your website, you can embed a checkout and make an immediate income – think Shopify. This is a no-brainer if you have people who want to buy your products and you want to reach a wider audience and make the buying transaction automatic and effortless.
If you do not have products to sell, and are service-based, fear not, there are other ways to drive sales and make money through your website.
2. Call-To-Actions
I hope by this stage, everyone knows what ‘call-to-actions’ are because they are super duper important, but just in case, I’m going to remind you. A call-to-action is when you prompt your reader to do something or you tell them what you want them to do next (like giving them a map or directions).
For example:
- click the button below
- sign up here
- call me at x
- email me with your order
- come by the store to get your discount, etc.
Call-to-actions are imperative because they give your website visitors a road map to what they should do next and where you want them to go. Without call-to-actions, your visitors have to guess or search on their own, and guess what will happen most of the time? They’ll leave your site and their business goes with them.
Make it easy for your website visitors and tell them EXACTLY what you want them to do, why you want them to do it, and what will happen if they do. You can make money when you use call-to-actions because you funnel people to where you want them to go – buy/book/email/contact!
3. Get Their Email
Yes, we can see how many people visit our website by using various statistic programs like Google Analytics, but we can’t get the contact information – i.e. emails – for the people visiting our site through these programs – bummer. So if they leave, they’re gone … forever! What a waste; they were on your site. So close … but yet so far.
One of your main goals through your website should be to GET EVERY VISITOR’S EMAIL ADDRESS before they go.
How Do Your Get Every Visitor’s Email Address?
One option is the standard newsletter sign-up (boring, and a bit misleading unless you actually do send out newsletters). And who really wants to voluntarily sign up for more emails if they’re getting nothing in return?
Visitors are much more likely to give their email address to you if they get something in return; we call this a freebie or a lead magnet (because it attracts potential clients and provides a lead to your business).
A few great things to offer on your website, in return for a visitor’s email address:
- a discount
- a gift with purchase
- e-guide
- Top 10 …. tips, looks, recipes
- Templates
Want more information on Email Marketing? Check out my 4-in-1 Email Marketing Bundle!
4. Book A FREE Call
If you are a service-based business, the ‘Book A Call’ strategy for making money through your website is a goodie, especially if your services (or products) are higher in price and require a bit more contemplation prior to purchase.
You want to give your website visitors a chance to:
- get to know you
- spend some time together
- see if they like you
- find out more about what you offer
- learn about the results they can expect
BEFORE they sign up for a high-ticket service or product.
… But if you don’t offer this to them and don’t have it highly visible on your website and offered more than once or forget to tell them it’s FREE, how are they going to book a session? Simple: they won’t!
Check out CALENDLY – a useful service to help you book appointments through your website.
5. Service Descriptions
If you have GREAT service and product descriptions on your website, this can help you make a lot more money on your website. I so often see business owners skimp on this area and either skip descriptions completely, or skimp on them – only including the basic and most obvious information. Let’s say you offer a white t-shirt or a one-hour massage in your business, look below for example #1 of skimping on your descriptions.
Example #1:
T-SHIRT: 100% cotton white T-shirt
MASSAGE: 1-hour massage
When you write product descriptions and service descriptions, you want to write them in a way that connects with your ideal client, explains to them how what you are offering will help them or benefit their day-to-day life or how they’re feeling, how they can use it, and who it’s perfect for. Let’s tweak our shirt and massage descriptions so they do a better job at reaching out to our clients.
Example #2:
T-SHIRT: this soft and luxurious white t-shirt is fitted, without being too tight, contains luxurious stretch and is perfect on its own or paired with a blazer or cardigan.
MASSAGE: Say goodbye to all your worries as you embark on a 60-minute relaxation massage where your sore muscles will be targeted and you will leave feeling less stressed and tense and ready to conquer the world. Perfect for busy moms who need a massage but never get around to booking it.
Which t-shirt would you be more compelled to buy?
Which massage tells you what to expect and sounds more appealing?
Need help with your product & service descriptions? Hire me for a day and let’s get them done! Check out my VIP Day Service HERE
6. Contact Information
This is the MOST BASIC way to make money but sadly, there are so many websites I visit that do not have adequate contact information on their site (or any at all) – YIKES!
ATTENTION EVERYONE WHO WANTS TO MAKE MONEY: if you want people to buy from you, you need to give them multiple ways to reach you and you have to MAKE IT EASY for them to find your contact information.
My recommendations:
- Place a CONTACT option in your Header Menu (the menu at the top of your website) AND your FOOTER menu (the menu at the very bottom of every page). Both of these should link to a CONTACT PAGE and/or have a phone or email.
- Your Contact Page should include multiple ways of reaching you:
- Phone
- Address
- Submit a form
- Book a call
- Social channel links, etc.
If you are a brick-and-mortar store, you need to include your address and phone number – no excuses. If you are selling products, you should include a contact phone number so people can reach you and ask questions about a product. As a single entrepreneur, I understand not wanting to put your home address or maybe even your cell phone, but make sure you include other ways for people to reach you.
- Ensure your PHONE NUMBER is visible at the top of your home page and multiple places on home page if you are retail, restaurant or some type of business where people will be calling you often. It should be prominent and visible within 2 seconds of landing on your page.
Without proper contact information, your website looks incomplete and unprofessional. It also leaves your potential client high and dry with no way of reaching you.
How Your Website Can LOSE you Money
1. Lack of Investment
If you have not invested in your website adequately, either through education if you DIY’d or by hiring the appropriate professionals, it will be obvious and reflect poorly on your business.
Your website could look unprofessional if you have cut corners or not included proper website design, copywriting (words), call-to-actions, imagery, spelling, formatting, navigation etc.
A visitor will be able to tell if your website is ho-hum and will most definitely impact the likelihood of them doing business with you and giving you their money.
2. Broken Links
If your website has broken links (things that you click on that don’t go anywhere or that result in 404 error pages), it’s going to turn your customers away. It shows that you are not maintaining your website, and it also prevents them from navigating to a page where they were interested in going.
3. No Way To Get A Hold Of You
If your business contact information does not exist or is buried deep within a hard-to-find contact page, your business and sales will suffer.
It should be obvious and easy for your website visitors to contact you. I always recommend having some way to contact you in the HEADER MENU and the FOOTER menu, as well as on a contact page. Everyone searches and experiences a website differently, so you want to make sure that you provide multiple ways to find the information.
Whether you sell products or offer services, your website can help you make money. If you want to know more about how your website stacks up – take my WEBSITE AUDIT QUIZ and find out specific steps and tips you can take to make your website even better.
And if you want to speak with me personally about your website, for FREE, please click HERE to book an appointment with me so we can chat!
From my kitchen table to yours,
Tracy Smith is a professional copywriter, brand strategist and the Founder of Kitchen Table CEOs. Through tips, writing templates and one-on-one consulting services, Tracy helps women entrepreneurs create the content, brand and online presence they need to launch and grow their business. For more information on her services and how to work with her, please click HERE.
