Digital Curb Appeal

Anyone who’s ever worked in retail, or Real Estate, will tell you of the importance of curb appeal. How many times have you walked through a mall, shopping district, or any place with lots of retail stores, and noticed stores that looked really nice? One of the things you probably noticed was the number of people who were in the store. And how many times have you seen retail stores that have bad displays, the premises look broken down and the overall look and feel of it is just bad? There probably wasn’t a ton of people in there.

I briefly spoke about this point in my article 5 Reasons Why Your Digital Strategies Might Be Failing, but it is so important that I wanted to dedicate an entire article just to this point alone. Today, the internet is that shopping district. The internet is the mall. The internet is the Main St. USA of the 50’s & 60’s. The same basic marketing principles of that era still apply to today’s digital age.

Ask yourself this question: “Where would rather shop? Rodeo Drive, or 8-Mile Rd in Detroit?” In all fairness, I’ve never been to 8-Mile Rd, and my only understanding of that area is from Eminem & images I’ve seen on the internet. But, assuming you had the money to shop wherever you wanted, where would you shop? Here’s two images to compare.

Most people would choose Rodeo Drive. It’s obvious why. People are confident in the brands they’re buying because the store-front represents quality, security & longevity. I’m not so sure the business on the right will even be standing the next day, so maybe they won’t be there in case I decide to return what I bought.

That exact same mentality applies to a business’ representation on the internet. If the website has poor design, doesn’t function, or hasn’t been upgraded to the newest technologies, that means a few things. It could mean the company doesn’t have the money to upgrade their site, so they must not be a stable company. It could mean they just don’t care, so they obviously don’t care about their business. Or, maybe they’re just lazy and haven’t gotten around to it. You get the idea.

In today’s digital age, people will go to your website to see what information you offer. If your site has poor design, or doesn’t work, you’ve told your potential customer everything they need to know about your business. You can’t afford to have a poor representation of your business online. There are probably tons of other businesses selling your product or service. And in that competitive market, you need the best brand representation you can possibly get. Make your customer feel confident you’re a stable business. Make your customer feel like they’re shopping at the Rodeo Drive of your industry. Upgrade your digital curb appeal. You’ll thank yourself for it.