"Unless your website has content that visitors can look at or download.... information that's useful to them.... they won't visit or stick around when they do. If your website doesn't have stickiness, it's probably a waste of time and money" says Martin Pollins.

The Internet revolution precipitated a catchphrase-fest: viral marketing, permission marketing, opt-in, burn rate... the list goes on. And the latest buzzword is 'sticky content': getting visitors to go to your website and keeping them there for longer.  

Just building your website and expecting visitors to come to it is outdated; it no longer rings true in today's fast paced economy. Today's mantra sounds more like 'Build it, add some magnetic content to draw visitors in and they will come (and be glued to your site for longer; revisit and tell all their friends..., etc., etc.)'. In a nutshell: make your website as sticky as possible:

According to web design magazine, Cre@te (www.createonline.co.uk), "Stickiness is the Holy Grail of Web design - that indefinable quality that makes your sites compulsively addictive for users. Designers strive for it; clients yearn for it, and users? Well, they just can't get tear themselves away from it."

The 'Pros'...
Site stickiness is not something you can afford to ignore. Rather it should be pursued and used, but used correctly with your visitor in mind at all times. The benefits include:

  • maximising your web site's commercial value: the longer your visitors stay, the more likely they are to buy. Also, to help build and retain client loyalty, you need content that pulls visitors in and makes them "stick around";
  • increasing sales and profits: repeat traffic and business are the 'lifeblood' of most businesses, both online and offline. Sticky tools and content can pull your visitors back to your site again and again, maximising their exposure to your message and increasing the chances of them doing businesses with you - which means more sales and more profits;
  • research and development: interactive 'sticky' tools and content enable you to gather feedback from your visitors. Feedback can be used to make sure your audience needs and demands are met consistently.

What Makes a Website Sticky?
Site stickiness is a three-way proposition:

  1. Actual time spent on your site.
  2. Your website's ability to retain your visitors and push them deeper into your site.
  3. Attracting repeat visits.

Actual time spent on your site and its ability to retain visitors can be problematic, because a visitor spending a long time on your website may just be lost or stuck and unable to get out of your site. Or, more seriously, they may be unable to perform the function or access the information they want. So, to use stickiness in a positive way, you need to combine the time people spend on your website with navigation tracking analysis plus top quality customer/client relations. For example, surveys can find out whether people are getting lost in your website, or are finding it a great resource.

Sticky content can maximise your website's commercial value, as the longer a visitor stays on your site, the more likely they are to buy from you or contact you for a consultation. And, of course, content that pulls them in and keeps them there will increase customer/client loyalty.  However, whatever content you choose to put on your website must be regularly updated and remain fresh in order to keep your clients and prospects visiting frequently.

When I was in public practice, I realised the importance of stickiness and set about creating tools such as downloadable up to date publications, on-line calculators and evaluators, on-screen software training - try it yourself, let your imagination run wild.

By Martin Pollins

Martin Pollins MBA, FCA ATII, F IDM, former ICAEW Council Member, the Founder of The CharterGroup Partnership and Bizezia Limited

For further information about this article, contact Iman Rouane at: Bizezia Limited, +44 (0)870 389 1420, E-mail iman@bizezia.com

To find out more about web tools, please visit: www.bizezia.com