Informative and Interesting Website Content Is Required to Convey That the Products

Introduction

Conquest makes two ranges of quality lawnmowers and other gardening tools, for consumers and professionals.

Informative and interesting website content is required to convey that the products:

are expensive but will last much longer than cheaper alternatives
can’t be bought in the large DIY stores or over the internet
are sold through a network of expert, approved dealers
are serviced and maintained through the dealer network

Target Audiences

Consumers

Research could give a deeper understanding and reveal more segments but broadly there are two types of consumer:

Nurturers –they take great pleasure in the results of their effort. For these people, lawn care is a labour of love.
Enjoyers –wholike to spend time in the garden, not on the garden.

Professionals

Time is money.

Any time spent repairing faulty machinery is lost earnings. They need robust and reliable tools and machinery. Machinery that is adaptable for all their clients’ demands. Whether it’s a manicured, striped lawn, or undulating parkland style gardens, they need the right tools for the job.

Dealers

The dealer network is an important audience. They will want to use this site for their own reference. It will also be reassuring to see that we are helping their business by driving customers to them.

Conquest the clutter

Unless they already know what they are looking for, customers will probably use a search engine with a broad match term, such as “lawnmowers”. This results in all the DIY and large department stores with online buying options.

The discerning Conquest customer may search “goodquality lawnmowers”. This is more encouraging and the top organic result for this is Atco. Looking at this site and other competitors, such as Flymo, Viking and Qualcast, they all look the same. They show pictures of lots of lawnmowers. Hardly surprising, but doesn’t one look much like another? All of themlead with features rather than benefits and bewilder the visitor with too much choice.

There is scope to stand out with careful design, navigation and content created with the customer in mind.

Site Map

This is a relatively simple site plan as there is no e-commerce requirement. The primary objective is to drive customers to the dealer network.

Secondly, the website will raise brand awareness and preference by providing product information and useful advice with the customer in mind.

The homepage acts as the gateway to the rest of the site. Clear, large tabs give easy access to home and professional lawn care, who we are, how to contact us and useful information.

The design will be clean and simple with imagery that shows the benefits as well as the machines. There will be prominent links on every page to find a dealer, sign up to a newsletter and connect through social media:

Find a dealer

This is the most important call to action and should be easy to see at the top of all pages. To sell products, we need to drive the customer to where they can actually buy the product. The visitor can enter their postcode tobe taken to a page with their closest dealers plotted on a map. This will also give contact details of each, links to their websites and iconography to show if they offer sales and/or service.

Newsletter

Join the Conquest Cultivation Club. Offering free and useful information builds trust and engagement. Engagement leads to brand preference.

In exchange for regular, news, hints and tips, we can ask for basic contact information which, with permission, can be passed on to the dealer network. This gives them the chance to nurture their own relationships with potential customersto grow their own businesses.

Social media buttons

Social Media is nowour main activity on the web[1] and an important source of attention and website traffic. By tapping into the online community, Conquest can create valuable electronic word of mouth.

Social media will enable Conquest to give interesting and technical information on anything and everything connected with the garden. The “Lawn Doctor” can be on hand to offer helpful advice on creating the perfect lawn.

It can encourage customers to give feedback and reviews. Good testimonials defend the premium price. Even dissatisfied customers can be dealt with in a positive way, showing Conquest as an honest and helpful provider of gardening solutions.

Product pages aresplit betweenthe two ranges. They would speak in a different tone of voice for each audience: helpful and informative for the home range and more technical (almost ‘Top Gear’-like) for the professionals.

About us will explain Conquest’s heritage, passion, innovation and manufacturing expertise. Pictures and biographies of the key staff can give a human face behind the machinery.

Contact Uswill have two pages with forms:

Order a catalogue enables customers to find what they are looking forbefore being sold to. The catalogue gives more information about the product range and a list of dealer stockists. Showing a picture of the catalogue will improve response. This is another opportunity to capture customer data.

Although the customers cannot buy directly from Conquest, havingCustomer Servicesshows availability, credibility and transparency. Websites should ‘help’ before ‘sell’. It’s infuriating when websites don’t give any physical contact details when you just want to speak to somebody. It also helps you deal with any potential problems. Often a positive handling of a compliant can result in a good review.

News and events includes links to seasonal tips, help and advice, awards, reviews and recommendations. Post upcoming trade fairs and shows so that customers and dealers can come and meet the team, ask questions and see the range.

Knowledge Base“how to” videos can be shared on YouTube. Videos also attract more website traffic as they are favoured by Google in search results. Also ‘how to’ will always score higher than an obvious product sell.

Home page copy

Conquest [logo]

Find a dealer – [search field]Enter a postcode or town to find your nearest dealer

[social media buttons]

[search field] – Search

[header banner]A cut above the rest

[page tabs]

[rotating promotional banners x 3 – can be updated for special offers or competitions, but they essentially show what the company is all about]

[Banner 1]Conquest Lawnmowers

We are truly passionate about lawn care. Conquest has been making quality lawnmowers and garden tools for over x00 years.

A well-chosen machine, that’s fit for purpose, will last a lifetime. Expert service and support from our approved dealer network assures you many years of stress-free beautiful lawns and gardens.

[Banner 2] Conquest Home

To keep your garden looking beautiful, our expert dealer network is on hand to help you choose and maintain a quality lawnmower. Whether you need specific garden tools for particular jobs or you’re more interested in time and energy saving solutions, Conquest makes caring for your lawn easier and more enjoyable.

[Banner 3] Conquest Pro

Your business relies on quality tools that are robust, reliable and adaptable to keep up withyour clients’ demands. Our UK wide network of approved dealers are trained to offer you full support and after sales service. Conquest lawnmowers and garden machinery perform better for longer. After all, time is money. Download our cataloguehere for our full range of parts, machines and tools making it easier for you to find what you’re looking for fast.

Join the Conquest Cultivation Club. FREE. Sign up now for regular top tips and ideas to keep your garden and lawn looking beautiful all year round.

Find your nearest dealer. There is no substitute for expert advice and after sales service. To find your nearest Conquest approved dealer, simply enter your postcode or town here [search field]

[footer links] Contact us - About Us - Site map

Conclusion

This is a cluttered market place and consumers are left not knowing where to turn for help and advice. The DIY stores and online providers offer cheaper alternatives, but cannot compete on quality and after sales service.

This task requires a simple site plan that drives consumers and professionals to the dealer network. It also needs to help them easily find what they are looking for.

Opportunities to help customers by staying in touch through the newsletter, social media and downloadable catalogue will build and maintain brand loyalty.

Conquest Lawnmowers – a cut above the rest.

[1] 23% of all the time we are online takes place on social networks and blogs. Ipsos OTX, May 2013