by Dustin Driver
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Corporate websites aren’t always a pleasure to review. In fact most websites, around 80-85% - according to some experts - are not enjoying success business-wise. While these businesses themselves may be strategic and profitable, thanks perhaps to a crystal-clear business plan, their accompanying website often lacks such business acumen. Why? The answer may surprise you. It involves a new field of expertise for websites.

Keith Finley, a “Web Strategist” for Web Pens, an Orlando-based website consulting company, believes he has figured out the “Why?”

“Around 80 percent of websites are terribly flawed,” says Finley, one of the first web strategists in the business, who’s been tweaking business models for websites for the past few years. “A lot of websites fail because they don’t have good strategies, because they are unclear, because they are painful to navigate, because the copy is unconvincing.” Finley states. “If your website is confusing, that means you’re losing sales. If it’s unconvincing, you’re losing sales.” Finley continues: “Usually, it is an otherwise top-notch company that is committing these mistakes.”

The way Finley sees it, websites are a miniature business, whether or not you have an E-commerce site; that is, whether or not you are actually selling products on your website. In fact most of Finley’s clients sell only themselves on their websites.

Finely began by simply redesigning websites and rewriting unclear copy. He soon found he had a knack for solving business problems, for increasing his clients’ sales, and for coming up with key strategies.

“A web strategist can work hand-in-hand with your design team, your writer, your manager - and make sure that the website is set up for financial success,” says Finley. “Many of the websites of the world fail for one reason: because business owners have been letting web designers, programmers and graphic artists make business decisions.”

Finley believes that a website designer is not the best person to decide a website’s organization, for example. “When you allow a web designer to decide such things, you are essentially allowing them to design your business too.”

In other words, tech types may be fantastic at designing and programming, but they don’t have the business expertise to make a business website flourish. They spend their time and effort learning how to build reliable, functional and perhaps even gorgeous websites. But they’re not sales or business experts. "When geeks attack" - as Finley puts it - the results are not usually top-notch business strategies.

So how, exactly, is a web strategist different? In Finley’s case, he meets with his clients to get a general idea of their business goals. Then he applies those goals to their websites. The process could include a complete refocus, reorganization, or redesign. It usually involves new writing for the website. Sometimes, only a few minor organizational tweaks and some gentle editing is all that is required. His efforts seem to work wonders. Finley’s most recent client at the time of this writing, WedClean.net, saw sales jump 186% once the new strategies took over.

“When people are browsing the Internet, they’re distracted and rushed,” says Finley. “They’re looking for good, clear info and they don’t want to work to get it.” Web strategists like Finley know how to nab fickle Internet customers with a crystal clear website.

“Every website is different, just like every business,” says Finley. “I figure out what will work best for my clients. That could be more writing, less writing, more graphics or fewer graphics, new organization of the pages. It depends. But I always make sure the website is doing what it needs to increase business.”

Finley’s business, too, has been a success. He has formulated successful strategies for more than a dozen businesses. In each case, he has managed to increase sales, contracts or requests for service. With perhaps 80% of websites being flawed, good web strategists are in demand - and Finley knows it. “Considering the state of websites today, I have a lot of work to do,” he says.

-Copyright Web Pens, 2007