“This website is bland. It has no personality.”

Recognize that criticism? You probably have heard it, said it, or at least thought it when visiting a B2B website. Who knows? It might even have been your own company’s site.

With all due respect, that comment is simply not true. Every B2B website has a personality. They can be bold or geeky or verbose—some are even a little schizophrenic.

In short, lack of personality is never the problem with B2B websites. The trouble starts when the site’s personality doesn’t match the brand you want to project. If that’s the case, your website will be an awkward representative for your company and it won’t speak to your prospects and customers on their terms.

Thankfully, you can mold the personality of your B2B website to ensure it makes the right impression when important visitors unexpectedly pop in. All you need to do is answer the following question.

If your B2B website was a person, who would you want it to be?

That sounds like metaphysical nonsense, but it’s actually a common sense starting point. Before you do the deep dive into the sitemapping, content strategy and design options, it pays to select a role model to base the website’s personality on.

This person can be real or fictional, but he or she should have distinct personality traits that you want to see reflected in your website.

Here are a few personality examples that translate into very different website approaches.

 

Dr. Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory.

This website has character—but it’s not warm, charming or stylish. Doesn’t need to be. Instead, it’s whip smart, direct, clinical and always ready with an answer. You don’t want to have dinner with Dr. Cooper, but he would be your first choice for solving a truly complex puzzle. If your market is complex, no-nonsense and just wants a quick and accurate solution, this may be your geek.

 

Your best salesperson.

What makes your sales leader so strong? Chances are it’s a combination of traits: an industry expert who knows the customer’s pain points; a problem solver with practical products ready to go; a trusted advisor that customers rely on in a pinch. All of that can be translated into a B2B website. And here’s a tip to make it happen: Sit down your best salesperson before you ever get started on the website planning. You’ll leave that meeting with ideas and insights to shape everything that comes next.

 

Martha Stewart.

What? Why Martha? Because she personifies the value of useful information. Martha knows how to explain simple or complex processes and keep an audience captivated. She answers questions before you even think to ask them, and she always makes her audience part of the experience. Of course she has products to sell, but her customers want them because they want to do things right. And remember, any B2B website that emulates Martha Stewart will need to have videos and infographics to support the educational mission. It’s a good thing.

 

Tony Stark from Iron Man.

If you have ever seen this Marvel superhero in action, then you know all about Tony Stark’s mojo. He’s inventive, resourceful and loves to go for the “wow” factor moments. Despite all of that, Tony doesn’t come off as arrogant or condescending. Instead, he uses a wry sense of humor to be more genuine and approachable. If you’re in technology or software products, watch “Iron Man” and see if you want to capture a little of that wow for your website.

 

Spartacus.

Listen up all you startups and underdog brands, this B2B website personality might be a good fit for thee. Let’s start with the backstory: An unknown Thracian slave acts decisively, gathers followers and shakes the might of the Roman Empire. How? By being bold, tactical, opportunistic and confident in his own beliefs. A website patterned after Spartacus would openly challenge any competition and win supporters in the process. Now here’s the catch: you have to back it up. If your offering has the goods to shake the empire, go full on Spartacus.

 

See, that was fun after all. And you get the basic premise. Even if none of these choices was close, there is a good fit out there for your B2B website. Once you determine the personality, it will give everyone involved in creating the website a real representation of the tone and attitude you desire.

If you want to talk about optimizing your B2B website, we’re here for you. Simply contact Boomm. We think you’ll find we have the right personality for the project.