Monday, January 4, 2016

Why Your Education-Related Business Should Have a Website

Teachers, by nature, are information junkies. We love to know stuff, but we want our information easily accessible and organized. Which is why having an easy to navigate website, with SEO optimization for education-related key words and phrases, is important if you want to market to educators.

With 40% of the world’s population having access to the internet, chances are your potential customers are already searching the web. Over 50% of Americans purchased a product online in 2015, and we were fourth behind the UK, Germany, and South Korea (wearesocial.com). Imagine how many potential customers you are missing out on if you don’t have a website!

Considering the average internet user spends almost 4 ½ hours on the web each day (wearesocial.com), here are some benefits to having a dedicated website for your business:

  • a website increases your credibility, visibility, and accountability
  • a website promotes your brand awareness
  • a website promotes your business 24/7
  • a website allows you to compete with your competition
How does all this translate to the education arena? The same benefits apply as with any other business, small or large, but the education field is becoming more technologically driven. We are tapping into myriad social media platforms and technological tools, so keeping up with current trends is important if you want to market to this field.

Having a hard time visualizing an education-based website? Here are links to three popular and successful websites that cater to the education-minded:

  • Edutopia: Edutopia offers myriad resources, both video and written, for educators, administrators, and parents. The website has multiple avenues for visitors to research a specific topic, making it accessible.
  • Scholastic: Yes, the company behind the little book magazines you took home as a child has a fully-functioning, dynamic website, where teachers, administrators, librarians, parents, and students can go for information and inspiration.
  • Education World: This website is more geared towards educators and administrators. It provides information on all things current in education, from Presidential Candidates’ views on education to non-profit organizations that help students and families.
These are just three examples of education-related websites. To find one that reflects your product or service, simply conduct an internet search of your company’s key words.
Having a website doesn’t guarantee its effectiveness, though. You have to market your website with the education field in mind. Here are some suggestions for marketing your company’s website to the education arena:

  • Blog: Add a blog to your website and post regularly. Sharing your blog posts on social media sites, such as Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin, will drive more traffic to your website.
  • Online Discussion Forums: Join education-based online discussion forums, such as The Educator’s PLN. Visiting discussion forums focused on your area of interest allows you to collaborate with like-minded individuals. This can then lead to website visits and clients.
  • Comments: Many of the websites I have highlighted in this blog post allow for reader comments. Adding meaningful comments to these online conversations can give your business a “voice”, drawing visitors to your website. I have found, one of the most stimulating websites to engage in intellectual conversation is TED Talks. If you are unfamiliar with TED Talks, please click on the link! You will be inspired, educated, challenged, and, hopefully, engaged. Consider one video, “To This Day…for the bullied and beautiful”, in the education archives generated over 600 comments! You don’t want to participate in these types of conversations for the single goal of promoting your website, though. Instead, you want to engage in intellectual conversations that allow you to share meaningful content, as this will establish your authority on education-based topics and build your brand awareness.

What does all this mean for you? Put simply, a website lays a solid foundation on which businesses can build their online presence and promote brand awareness. If you don’t have a website, you don’t have the groundwork to build a successful business.

Need help writing content for your website, or do you have content that needs optimizing? Contact me to see if I can help!

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