There is an old saying by a Harvard marketing professor Theodore Levitt that goes, “People don’t want to buy a quarter inch drill. They want a quarter inch hole.”
I’ve always loved this saying because it really illustrates that you must sell the results, not the product, service, or features.
“People don’t want to buy a quarter inch drill. They want a quarter inch hole.”
The point is, people need to know that the product they are purchasing will likely accomplish their desired result.
The same is true when trying to attract customers to your service business through your website.
Can your services really help them?
Are you showing them that you can help? Or simply telling them?
Most service businesses miss the mark in their online content by simply telling prospects how wonderful the company is, about the attorney’s education, but fail to really answer the visitor’s questions that led them to you in the first place.
“WIIFM – What’s in it for me?”
The truth is that only existing customers Google your company name to find your office address or contact number, not prospective customers.
In fact, most prospects don’t know you from your competitor across the street.
Instead, they search for answers to their questions.
People search for answers to their questions, not your business name!
For instance, they might search: “What to do if your spouse asks for a divorce?” or “How much do I need saved for closing costs?”
This Google search could lead them to your marketing website for your law firm, where there are given a few answers and suggested next steps.
The final sentence could read something like: “If you’d like for a professional to look at your situation, contact us at (555) 555-5555 for a free consultation.”
A quick phone call later, the rest is history.
A portion of the people that find article will contact the company because the article was helpful, but it didn’t completely solve their problem. It did, however, build trust between you and the prospect by demonstrating your expertise.
Enter The Blog Post
Content marketing, typically through blogs, is simply “a form of marketing focused on creating, publishing, and distributing content for a targeted audience online.”
The same strategy works for nearly any service business.
Common Questions For Title Insurance Agents…
For example, homebuyers don’t want to purchase title insurance, per se; they do want to own a home free and clear. This is one of the things that purchasing title insurance assures.
Especially for first-time homeowners, the buying process can be overwhelming.
Your target customer might be frequently searching for information about buying a home, and reading content about financing options, the right time to close, prerequisites for purchasing a home in your market, and what to bring to closing.
If you have content on your website that explains these and other common search terms, your site is more likely to draw visitors looking for the answers to these questions.
Common Questions For Law Firms…
Moreover, most people don’t wake up in the morning with a burning desire to hire an attorney.
However, it is very likely that they want their legal issue to be resolved.
What information related to your practice areas can you share on your website that would build trust between you and a potential visitor?
What educational articles can you post that would assure your visitors they want to work with you, and only you?
You don’t have to give legal advice or make any promises. Instead, simply explain the process, definitions, and relative timeline so that your content demonstrates your expertise on the subject.
Why does this work?
Remember that the vast majority of Google searches are for information, and are not transactional in nature.
Google ranks the best content the highest in the search results because it wants to connect people to the best answers to their questions.
This is exactly why Google has the majority of the market share; it is because they known for yielding the best results!
Let the most useful content win!
So if your website has the most useful content in your target market and your information is relevant, there is a higher chance people will find you online.
And if you build trust by answering their questions well, it is likely that a portion of those visitors will contact you.
Google understands the psychology behind this and rewards websites that “get it” too!
This is why blog posts are so powerful. This is the information your website needs in order to bring you business for years to come.
Homework
So what are five common questions you get asked by prospects on a regular basis?
I challenge you to add detailed answers to your website and think through how people would search to find those posts.
If you don’t have time to do this, we do have a content marketing library for both law firms and title companies as part of our website platform which include up to 125 blog posts and videos that answer common questions related to the following topics:
- Real Estate Law
- Estate Planning
- Bankruptcy
- Divorce
- Landlord / Tenant
- Litigation
- Buying Real Estate
- Mortgage
- Financing
- Credit, Closing & Federal Programs
- Selling Real Estate
- TRID
Just remember that buying a product or service is simply the byproduct of finding the information you are looking for.
In other words, in the online world the company that answers the prospect’s the question the quickest and best earns the business.
Are you ready to start attracting more leads through your Law Firm or Title Company’s website? Take a tour to learn how our marketing platform gives you much more than a website!