Mixed Messages

A few weeks ago an email circulated pointing out one hapless company’s image problem.  Their website was upbeat, bright, with neon green highlights and a hip feel.  But the actual company’s retail location was drab, old, with ancient signage and really the opposite feel to their site.  While they may have intended to capture the web audience and show them how hip they were, their actual location was anything but, and the mixed message was killing them.

Mixed messages – does your branding match your company's local or retail image?  Is your website portraying a clean-cut, simple but elegant company, while your actual location is large, complex and stodgy?  Does your company pride itself in family values while your website shows the “Babe of the Day”?

Visitors to your website want consistency with what they see online and what they see offline.  If you are saying one thing, while printing another, and uploading a third, customers will never know who the real you is.  If the message is too jumbled up, the customer will simply assume the company doesn’t have a clue – and would you want to spend your hard-earned dollars with a company that doesn’t get it?

So think about the message you're putting out with your existing website.  Is it targeted for your expected audience?  Are you speaking the right words with the right imagery to that audience?  Do you have a clear “call to action” on the site that matches your intended audience?  If you don’t, you’re hurting the image of your company.

If you would like more information on how Sitepro can improve your company’s consistent image, please contact us.