The PTCA Methodology defines and groups all activities that can effect your web presence's effectiveness. Neglecting any of these areas will negatively impact your ability to reach your goals. I would like to note that while there is a hint of chronology in the nature of this system, it is more about function than order. Analytic activities are almost always the first thing I establish with any project and they are persistent throughout the process.
Most company’s opportunity’s on the internet are misunderstood. Although it is not as much the rule as it was just five years ago, most companies do not fully understand the actual value that is being created through online activities. A well architect-ed and executed analytics strategy is the precursor to understanding the current state. However, knowing the actual impact, while crucial, is still just one of three objectives that I prescribe. It is a foundation to build from strategically. Next you must define and reconcile your key stakeholders current expectations and desires for internet operations. Many companies are further ahead in this secondary stage than they are in the aforementioned one. This can cause real issues if it is not aligned with the last objective, to delineate the real potential of online activities.
In a situation where these three objectives are met your resources can be unleashed from posturing and defending the current state and can begin boldly creating the plans to push the company’s online presence toward its potential. Actual planning and evaluation services offered are…
Traffic is a fairly simple concept. Getting people to your web assets and sharing your "message" with them. This is where most of my clients want to start. I will meet with a potential new client and in the first 5 minutes of our conversation they will say something like "I want to start a paid search campaign on Google" or "I want someone to fix my SEO". Everyone wants more people to come to their site. They should, but with the following caveat, spend as little as possible to get the best possible traffic. All marketing activity has a cost associated with it and as such when you execute online marketing spend you should make sure of two things; first, make sure that your conversion assets (website, mobile app, social page, etc...) is optimized to move that traffic optimally through the conversion process (we will discuss this in detail in the next section), next be sure you are spending marketing dollars in the right place and monitor constantly for ways to improve it.
While I prefer to be involved with my clients holistically across all online marketing channels as there are real benefits to be had through the leveraging of assets and in the consistency of brand messaging, I will take marketing engagements in any of the following areas...
This is the area where lost revenue and diminished return hide. If 1 out of 50 people would buy/convert on your site if everything was ideal, but only 1 out of 200 actually do so, then you will spend 400% more in driving traffic to your site than you should to get a sale/conversion. For that reason i often push for conversion optimization activity to take precedence over traffic generation. Why spend up to 1000% more on marketing and advertisement than necessary. However this is not an area that you can fix once and walk away. This area should be continuously monitored and tweaked. The actual activities that occur here revolve largely around user experience. We measure and adjust aspects of the user interface including colors, images, layouts, conversion paths, informational cues, landing pages, and anything else that impacts the users assessment of fit and function.
Measure, Measure, Measure. Then act on what you find and measure some more.
Analysis is the alpha and omega of web site effectiveness. I start by measuring the current state of both the site I am working with as well as its competitors. Then we plan and execute strategy and measure the effectiveness of our actions every step of the way. At a very high level analysis will give you deep insight on who your visitors and customers are, where they came from, and what they did on your site. You can track the effectiveness of your ad spend and promotions. You will be able to identify pages and content that work against your goals and act upon them. Analysis empowers you to take control of your web site in an informed and positiveway.
Martin Pippin is an MBA with extensive online experience. He is a partner in Destination 2581 Limited, a Web Properties company based out of Knoxville TN. Previously he served as the President of HELO Online, an internet marketing agency, V.P. of Online Operations for DenTek Oral Care, a leading niche consumer package goods company, and Director of E-business Development at JewelryTV.com, one of the top 250 ecommerce sites in the U.S.