If You Build It, Will They Come?
Ever since the heartwarming, Kevin Costner movie, Field of Dreams, some share an often misguided belief that if they build something, people will flock to it. In the case of Kevin Costner’s film, Shoeless Joe Jackson and his band of former baseball players wanted the opportunity to step up to the plate under the bright lights one more time and Kevin’s character, Ray Kinsella, obliged them. It was a wonderful story and one that can give a “reason to believe” (thank you Tim Hardin).
In reality, if you build something that offers value and if people know about it, they will come to it or use it and it will likely be successful. However, if they do not know about it, how can success be realized?
This is very often the case with web sites, which can be passive unless some type of pro-active action is taken to inform people about the site. Then, if visitors really like your site, you might also enjoy additional exposure though viral marketing (friends telling friends).
In retail we often hear “location, location, location” as being the most important aspect of success. Why? Simply because in high traffic areas, people can usually just look at your storefront to see what you do. But, of course, the same cannot be said for many web sites or blogs for that matter, as people do not drive by them or walk by them in quite the same way. So, as has been the case for thousands of years, the key lies in promotion.
As we are in the direct marketing business, we have an inherent bias towards conventional, direct mail, and postcards are a great way to drive people to a web site. However, there are many other things you can do. You can also try banner ads, press releases, classified ads, seminars, contests, teleconferences, reciprocal links, TV, radio etc. or you can try these in various combinations. The key, though is that to generate interest, you usually must do something.
A friend of mine once said, ‘”Good ideas are a dime a dozen, but it takes good planning to make them work.” If you have a great web site without the traffic that you would like to see, maybe it’s the marketing component that is lacking from your overall plan. A modest investment in this area might just be the cure that you are looking for.
In closing, I do want to recognize the magic in the extraordinary movie Field of Dreams, and how the phrase “If you build it, they will come” fit the theme perfectly. But, in reality, I think it might best to rephrase this somewhat and say, “If you build it and it’s good, they will come – if you help them to find it.”
