Time to overshare with you – I’m a nerd.
I actually love doing research, finding out truths from across the world, and investigating even further with the only goal of learning more.
Yep – NERD!
Lately, I’ve been looking at local businesses in Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. Specifically, in the industries I work with. I like to find out what the trends are, not just in marketing, but in business in general. I like to see how businesses are growing, how they are hurting, and if there are solutions to those problems.
After all, as a marketing agency owner, my only goal is to solve problems, ya know?
So, during a recent stretch of looking into home-centric industries, I discovered a big problem that is growing for companies dealing with garage doors installation and garage door repair. At first, I saw this as a fluke, but then, as the weeks of research went on, it became clear – there is an industry-wide issue.
In this article, we are going to look at this big problem. I want to show why it is not only a problem in terms of the surface-level stuff, but also in terms of growth, operations and more. In all truth, this issue is far bigger than a simple website design issue. It’s a revenue killer at the end of the day.
We are going to talk about remedying this problem. And, I will be doing it with an affordable, fast and crystal-clear solution for you.
Here’s the issue – cheap, copy/pasted websites that seem valuable
The plain and simple of it is that I’ve discovered a company or a freelancer, using copy/pasted websites to ‘rent’ to companies in some cases, for traffic and visibility in Google.
Rental sites, by themselves, are not a problem. Google technically is fine with using keyword terms for domain names, and then associating those domains with brands.
And, by extension, many business owners feel the same way. Clearly branded companies still use keyword-based domain names for their websites. They still work. They still do business from them.
However, just like anything else in life, that is slowly changing.
“I see a lot of small businesses make the mistake of taking a generic term and calling it their brand.”
John Mueller further explained that businesses choosing keyword-rich domains often end up competing with directories, aggregators, and other established sites targeting the same phrases. Meaning, unnecessary competition when a branded website and branded domain name would yield better results.
Back to what I found, let’s look at all of the websites that I found using nearly an identical layout, content structure and website design.
These are only 8 of a handful of websites I found just in the area. As you can see, they are 3 page websites, with similar headers, similar content, similar CTAs, etc. They are, for lack of a better word, duplicates of each other.
Are they cheap? Yes!
Do they drive traffic to businesses? Yes.
Do they work for long-term goals of a business to become a brand and blow up their year to year revenue? Absolutely not.
Do these businesses fully own the website, the domain name, etc? Usually, they own nothing. Once they stop paying the monthly or yearly rental fees, the company finds a new business to take its place in the contact details and content.
The marketing problem with those websites no one is talking about
So, ownership is a big problem with these garage door websites. Plus, the competition in Google Search can be a bit problematic, too.
What else?
Let’s talk about it…
Taking A Business To A Brand
I’m an advocate for making your business into more. Specifically, going from ‘just a business’ into a true brand.
What is a brand? What makes your small business into a brand people recognize?
First things first, your business isn’t “Best Garage Doors New Castle”, right? Your brand is your name, the people that work in it and your motivating factors like your vision and your mission. Without those parts, a business will never become a real brand.
Next, you have to remember that a brand has messaging which in turn creates a feeling. A business is just about charging for a service or product, having employees and making money. What is your messaging? And, in the above example of duplicate websites, how much real messaging is being created?
Another thing that you should remember is that a brand can become synonymous with a product or service. People like to talk about the “Uber of xyz”. People refer to “Googling” for talking about searching for things. People say “Kleenex” for all facial tissue. Chapstick, Croc-Pot, Band-Aid, Frisbee, Tupperware… these all are synonymous with the business that they perform. But, these examples are all brand names. See the power in a brand?
Lead Generation Processes, Systems and Foundations
One thing I notice that might not be a clear problem with business owners is that this style of marketing solution prevents you from using a lead generation system in your website. In my observations, it appears that there is little wiggle room for editing, changing layouts, altering content, etc.
And, by extension, this also means little to no (and I mean I never have seen it) additional pages. These landing pages could be, in theory, used for paid advertising campaigns. But with this style of service, you evidently do not have access nor ability to have additional pages.
That sucks.
Even the foundational lead generation items, CTA buttons and content forms, are stunted severely. You are limited to the links, designs, CTA positioning, and forms with these services.
Limiting lead generation activities leads to limited revenue generation with a website.
Utilizing Local SEO For More Visibility
This problem extends part of the last issue – we cannot make additional pages.
One of the core actions I can perform for better Local SEO is to create region + service pages. This leads Google to ranking me for my service area; and ranks my service area plus services as well.
This page creation can go on forever, as I extend my service area as my company grows. Google likes it because it’s clear where my business does business, and the general public likes it because they know we can service them!
This offer allows for none of that. Not one of the multiple websites that I’ve discovered has any additional regional pages that I would consider as a part of a content strategy for Local SEO growth.
Ownership; Plain And Simple
Ownership is a big issue with me. I personally think that your brand assets should be 100% owned by you. Yes, your marketing and sales and operations team have access to them, and can perform actions on them, but YOU should own it all.
This includes your website. And this includes your domain name. And this includes what you can do with both, when and how things get done.
In this problematic marketing service, that ownership goes right out the window.
You are in temporary ownership. So, if you choose to build a brand using that service as a foundation, I cannot guarantee it will crumble, but I would never suggest it!
How to fix this marketing issue in one weekend
Ok, enough of me bashing this.
I don’t, after all, blame the business owners. They likely have been bombarded with marketing agency owners like me, thought leaders on marketing and business and other business owners that ‘you need a website’.
And, in many ways, I don’t blame the people offering these types of services. The business owners, after all, just want a website. They put the website together, rank it and rent it.
Everyone is happy, right?
Truth be told, I also offer a rental website style package. However, I also offer a more custom design with it. I also offer choice in content. As well, I offer a simple path to controlling and owning that website when your brand grows to that point of need.
But, I still think it’s more of a problem than a solution. One that we can fix very quickly. And, without breaking the bank – if you are willing to do the extra work.
Now, let me preface all of this with saying that I don’t recommend DIY marketing solutions. A lot can, and often does, go wrong. In fact, many things happen that can take longer to fix, than the original work would have cost you.
With that being said, let’s get into it…
First, you need website hosting. I recommend a more affordable service from NameCheap. For less than $40 for the first year, and around $60 per year thereafter, you can have a full web hosting package that puts you in control.
Next, you need a good domain name. The simplest way of deciding on one is to use your brand name. Mine is blewsmedia.com – not newcastlemarketingagency dot com, nor any generic keyword domain name. On NameCheap, I can get a .COM domain for less than $10 the first year, and about $15 each year afterwards.
But, what about the design?
Well, I recommend using something cheap and free (I’m a fan). Start with WordPress. This is a piece of software called a CMS, that manages content for you on a website.
For a customized template, theme, whatever you would like to call it, I recommend ThemeForest or a similar website. You can get a WordPress theme or template for less than $60, lifetime – no monthly or yearly subscription fees. You can then install the theme into WordPress, and alter it, customize it, and truly brand your website.
And, that is it!
For around $100 to start, you can own your brand’s website completely. You control it all, not someone around the world. And, your only fees are for web hosting and domain name renewal.
Where Do You Take Your Brand From Here?
In this article we looked at a growing problem with small businesses dealing with garage door installation and garage door repair in the area. Namely, cheap, rented, copy/pasted websites.
These websites have many issues with them, namely branding, ownership issues and the ability of the business to grow with these websites.
We also talked about the fix for them – a relatively affordable and fast solution. From that solution you will have true branding, real ownership and the ability to use Local SEO and lead generation to turn your website into a revenue generator.
I know this has been a lot of information. Even creating real ownership in the DIY process I outlined might be a little too much for you. If that’s the case, give me a call at (724)510-7201 today, or send me a quick email at james@blewsmedia.com. We can discuss your particular needs, creating a really great branded website and what your results could be.
If you would like to see some of the website design offerings we currently have, check out our website ownership offer.