Why create a microsite?
While your main website serves as the central hub for all general company information, a microsite can have a narrower focus and often targets a specific goal such as launching a new product, running a specific campaign, or capturing leads.
A microsite is a branded, standalone web page that exists separately from your company’s main website and usually has its own domain or subdomain and distinct design and messaging.
So what are the key benefits of a microsite?
- Focused Messaging:
Microsites allow you to craft highly targeted content for a specific audience without the distractions of a full website.
- Enhanced User Engagement:
With fewer links and clearer calls-to-action, microsites can drive deeper engagement and better conversion rates.
- Faster Launch:
Because of their smaller scale, microsites can be designed and launched more quickly than full websites.
- SEO Advantages:
Microsites built around niche keywords or campaigns can help improve search visibility and rankings in specific topic areas.
- Creative Freedom:
They offer more flexibility in design, allowing for innovative and immersive brand experiences.
- Ideal for A/B Testing:
You can experiment with messaging, layout, and calls-to-action without impacting your main site.
- Campaign Longevity:
Even after a campaign ends, a microsite can continue to serve as a resource or landing page for related content.
When should I consider launching a microsite?
Microsites are ideal for:
- New product or service launches
- Seasonal promotions or events
- Targeted marketing campaigns
- Contests or giveaways
- Educational content or resources
- Online magazines
Are microsites good for SEO?
In a nutshell, yes, especially when optimised with focused keywords, relevant content, and a clean structure. However, it's important to maintain quality backlinks to your main website.
How do microsites support brand strategy?
Microsites can help reinforce your brand by showcasing specific values or messages, engaging new or niche audiences, creating buzz around campaigns or experimenting with new branding or tone without altering the main site.
What are the potential downsides?
There’s always a catch! But the potential challenges presented by a microsite are far outweighed by the potential for quality and relevant audience engagement.
When creating a microsite, we should always consider if we are dividing your web traffic, as you may be directing people away from your main site to more relevant content. This is where defined user journeys are crucial and a clear brand relationship so that your organisation is always part of the story.
To maintain the additional website, you will need to consider separate maintenance and update costs. This includes the need for additional hosting.
These points can be packaged in a way from Oyster so that you see an economy in shared hosting or a planned maintenance programme.
How can I get started with a microsite?
As with any project, it’s all in the brief. We can either take a brief and propose how we can help, or hold a discovery session where we talk through the aims and objectives with you in order to form the project brief.
However the initial project brief is created, we would always consider the following:
- Define your goal (e.g., lead generation, awareness, sales, engaging a new audience)
- Identify your target audience
- Outline any brand guidelines for the design
- List key functionality required
- Plan the content structure and user experience
- Choose a domain or subdomain
- Outline which channels the microsite will be advertised through (Social Media, Google Ads)
Is a microsite right for every brand?
Not always. Microsites are most effective when you have a clear, specific goal that justifies a separate digital presence. If your campaign can be served well by a landing page on your main site, that might be more efficient and is also a huge part of the consultancy that we at Oyster offer our clients.
