Selling products via the web has become very common, and most of us have made one or more purchases on line. Taking a service-oriented business to the World Wide Web is not as easy as it may seem. For the first two decades of the global web service businesses used “brochure” websites where interested parties could find information on the company and services.

Brochure sites, though still common, are slowly evolving into a much better marketing tool, as general acceptance of the web is spreading, and it has become a vast research tool for finding just about anything you care to investigate. Making your services website a tool that really works for you can be done, but there are some important reasons selling services via the web is such a challenge.

One of the primary difficulties is that you are selling yourself. You are the product that you have to sell, and you have only so much of you that can be sold. You can only provide as many services as your time allows. And, time is something you can’t expand. There is a fixed amount of it that you can offer. Assuming you plan to work 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year, you have 2000 hours of your time to sell.

This problem of time is a very important part of your business planning, and you must plan how much you are going to work, and much time you are going to reserve for your family and community obligations, and what level of quality of life you want. This requires a lot of thought, and usually means that you have to analyze each opportunity that comes your way for a good fit. You are likely going to have to turn some projects down, in order to maintain quality for you and your customers.

Just as in any presentation you make, prospects want to see proof that you’ve delivered great results for other clients. And, they also want to know how your experience in previous projects relates to their needs. They have to be able to understand how your services can help them overcome the challenges before them. This is much easier to do in a conference room presentation than it is on the web, because you can speak directly to the need when you are one on one. On the web, you have to talk to a much broader audience, and still attract attention.

Your web presence must be designed to provide examples of completed projects that represent the scope of services you offer, while not disclosing confidential client information. A good way to do this is through Case Studies, which give an interested party an insight to the project, the actions taken, and the results. Case studies are usually less than a typewritten page in length, and are designed to help the reader visualize how your skills can fit their needs. 

When you sell your services, you’re selling the possibility of a mutually rewarding relationship between yourself and your client. This means that your website has to do more than one selling products; it has to establish your credibility and develop a level of communication with your visitors that helps them visualize how you can help them. You need to not only establish the benefits of the service you’re offering but also establish the value of having you provide this service.

Design your website so all your services can be seen on the homepage. If you bury services several pages into your site, you’re unlikely to get the exposure you need to generate sales. Look at the screenshot of my home page, to see the number of links to specific topics on the website. This site is designed to be pleasing to the eye through use of warm colors and white space to separate each group of topics. This site is easy to navigate, since you can get right into the area of interest from a link on the homepage.

You need to include a listing of your credentials, of course, but if you have a large number of services you provide, remember that the links themselves are sales tools that demonstrate the breath of your services. You need to be very specific about what you have to offer to help your visitors understand how your services can meet their needs.

Too often, website owners fail to provide their visitors with enough information, presuming that the topic header or link will be clear to everyone. Not so. Each service you offer deserves a page of its own with sales copy that creates interest and motivates the visitor to take action. One of the most effective tools you can include on each of these pages is a testimonial from a satisfied customer. Whether included in the copy itself, or set out in a special box of its own, the comments of those satisfied with your previous work will be one of the strongest sales tools you can use.

The real key to selling a service, rather than a product, is understanding that every aspect of your design must work together to project the desired business persona. The look, the feel, and ease of use are important elements to creating a services website that draws visitors in, encourages action, and brings them back again.