Hi, my name is Elise and I’m a web strategist with TinyFrog Technologies and I’d like to talk a little bit about who your target audience is and how that impacts your website.
When we’re working with a new client, one of our primary focuses in the early stages of the project is defining the users of the website. We actually like to say that the website’s not for us, it’s not for you, it’s for the visitors and so we want to understand who those visitors are and what their primary goals are as they navigate your website.
In order to do this we define what we call ‘visitor profiles’. This is similar to a marketing persona, if you’re familiar with that, but it’s a little less specific. We’re not getting into the name or the age of a one single person, we’re looking more at the groups within your target audience and how they can be defined by similar goals, experiences, and situations.
And so there’s four key components to a visitor profile that I want to define with you here. The first is understanding the situation that’s actually leading somebody to your website. Did they meet you at a conference? Did they hear about you from a friend? Or maybe they just did some Google searching and came across one of your pages online and they’re clicking in to learn more about you.
Depending on which circumstance led them to you, they’re probably going to have different levels of of understanding about what you offer. If they did speak with you at a conference or chatted about you with a friend, they might have a little bit more understanding of your services, your experience compared with someone who’s just finding you on Google for the first time. So take that into consideration as you lay out the content and the style of your web pages. Make sure that the details you’re sharing align with the understanding that somebody has as they come into the website.
The second component relates to the goals that they have. So, what brought them to you in the first place? What are they trying to accomplish? What is going to be beneficial for them to understand from your side of things in order for them to accomplish their goals? if you’re able to address their most top goals on your website through your content, you’re going to show them that you’re the right fit to help them achieve those goals.
Similarly, is understanding their number one questions and so what are they hoping to get answered as they navigate your website and read more about your company. These might also be the questions they have about the overall situation. Are they trying to figure out what experience you have or how large your team is? Are they interested in knowing what services you offer? Or just making sure that you’re the right fit to help them and maybe they have some questions around the situation that they’re going through that they’re hoping you can answer for them.
The fourth and often overlooked component of a visitor profile is the challenges and pain points that someone’s going through. These are the concerns that are top of mind for them that could potentially get in the way of them wanting to engage with you. Examples of this could be their budget or their timeline. Maybe they’re looking for a cheap option or a fast option and you might not be the right fit for that and so it’s important for you to address that on your website.
Other things could be more emotional. Maybe they’re stressed or overwhelmed or just worried about the situation that they’re going through and they need some support to get through that and they want to make sure that you recognize those emotions and can guide them through it.
All of these components together create a visitor profile. Examples of a visitor profile could be a young couple who’s looking to start a family or someone who’s getting ready to retire and needs to navigate that transition. You can also have visitor profiles outside of your actual clients. Maybe you use your website to attract new employees or you’re looking for partners or investors in your company. All of those are different visitor profiles because they have different goals, objectives, and questions as they’re navigating this process.
And so you might only have one key profile or maybe you have four. No matter how many there are, it’s really important that you define them before you start working on your website so that you can tailor your website to those visitors. If you have any questions or you want to work through the process together feel free to reach out to us!
