Are you questioning the value of your business site? Do you blog less? Perhaps you have your business site on cruise control.

A little thing called change has shown me (once again) why your time and effort is worth it.

Business Site Revisited

In 2019, I decided to take Simply Stated Business in a slightly different direction. I redesigned the site, but it did not satisfy the vision I had.

So, I’ve been procrastinating – um – working on – a revamped site for a while. Then change hit.

• A global pandemic disrupted my best laid plans. I’ve always been an expert in timing.
• A plugin that controls a good part of my design is hanging it up. The WordPress world has moved beyond its current function.
• Social media platforms remain as volatile as ever. Hello, Twitter. Whatcha doing?

There are few things more frustrating than changes caused by the whim of another.

Stuff happens. Want a simple solution? Make your business site Mission Control.

Take the Controls

Houston, We Have a Problem

Apollo 13 was one of my favorite movies.

• It is the true story of the Apollo space program mission
• An explosion in space crippled the craft, endangering the crew
• The module lost power, heat, and had increasing levels of carbon dioxide

Who did the Apollo 13 crew turn to? Mission Control.

200,000 miles away, Mission Control helped the Apollo 13 crew safely guide the damaged craft home.

Plan B

Your business site is one of the few platforms you control (well, mostly. Who hasn’t been forced to deal with the Gutenberg Editor and other changes?)

Social media platforms fail. Unexpected changes occur. With your business site as Mission Control, you always have a Plan B.

The following are a few suggestions for making your site your Mission Control.

1. Steer traffic to your business site.

My own LinkedIn horror story is how the platform smacked all my hard work when it wiped out my Company page for a newer version. That was back in 2014 and I’ve lost count on how many changes occurred since then.

Platforms offer multiple options for promoting your business.

• Portfolio builders
• Article submissions
• Advertising

Whether you opt for a free or paid version for outside platforms, remember one trait they all share – change.

Why you want control

SlideShare is my best example. I’ve always enjoyed putting presentations together. My first SlideShare appeared over 10 years ago.

Since that time, SlideShare went through numerous changes. LinkedIn purchased it (and Microsoft later bought LinkedIn), then Scribd acquired SlideShare from LinkedIn.

During this time, I experienced numerous problems.

1.      Reupload feature poofed

SlideShare had a feature that allowed the reupload of a presentation that you revised or updated. You kept the original URL with all its SEO goodness.

LinkedIn flushed all that SEO love. If you made changes, you had to upload the edited version and receive a new URL.

Lost with LinkedIn’s “improvement” were comments, the number of views, and downloads, etc.

2.      Presentations are M.I.A.

Somehow during the transition, over 25 of my uploads disappeared. Not sure where they went but they’re missing-in-action on the SlideShare site.

3.      Annoying Viewing Hiccups

SlideShare now holds viewers captive by an annoying ad pop-up in the middle of a presentation. Also, for a while, if you were a Firefox user, navigation did not work on the presentations.

I am converting the SlideShare presentations to video (not necessarily a bad thing) and moving on. Fortunately, I kept all original presentations.

SlideShare is only one example. Feel free to share your own social media platform stories.

2. Help them after landing.

Picture this scenario.

• You post a link on your favorite social media platform.
• It snags readers’ attention and they click on your link.
• Your brilliant content creates a successful landing.

This is the #1 reason you steer traffic to your site. Now that you have them there, you have a unique opportunity to show them more.

Prove to readers you have what they need. Even if they didn’t realize it was something they wanted.

• Use simple navigation tools to direct them to points of interest.
• Deliver relevant content, especially those related to the topic that brought them there.
• Grab attention through headlines and stellar visuals.

I admit, I need to do a better job on this. Hopefully, the latest revision will be an improvement.

3. Prepare for the next launch.

After Apollo 13 safely splashed down following its harrowing experience, Mission Control still had a lot of work ahead. What had they learned from the near disaster? What changes were made?

Another bonus when you make your business site Mission Control is the information it holds. It centralizes valuable information for planning.

• Who is coming to your site
• Where the traffic is coming from
• What they do after they get there

Also, another area I need to practice what I preach. Why is my dad’s southernism, “Don’t do as I do, do as I say,” ringing in my head? 😊

It’s Your Business

Social media and all its tools revolutionized business. I am fascinated by the creative minds that develop such helpful tools.

But no one knows your business better than you do. Do you really want someone else controlling it?

• Make your site Mission Control
• Take the controls
• Always have a Plan B

How do you maintain control of your business communication? Share your strategy in Comments.

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Note: This post originally published 10/3/2012. This January 9, 2023 version updates it. About time, right? 😉

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Helping you keep your business communication simple, clear, and uniquely yours.

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