For many marketing firms, “Free Web Site Assessments” are just a sales tool. They give you boilerplate criticisms, then offer to “fix” your problem — by building you a new Web site.

The Idea Grove takes a different approach: we provide an in-depth assessment that delivers real value. It’s a standalone report that you can use to quantify your site’s business value for senior executives — as well as to establish your priorities for the near term.

We use objective criteria, leavened by our unique insight and decades of experience, to evaluate your Web presence relative to that of your peers, and with an eye to your company’s broader business objectives.

We assess your Web site based on the following six criteria:

1. Business Requirements

We start with a simple premise. What does your Web site need to accomplish? All Web sites exist to address specific business needs. They function as tools for lead generation, information dissemination, brand awareness, reputation management, or a combination of these. We work with you to understand your Web site’s primary function and assess your current site to measure it against your stated goals.

2. Brand Alignment

What does your Web site say about your company? Does your Web site accurately reflect your company’s brand? Or does your Web site contradict your brand positioning? We work to understand where your brand is positioned in the marketplace, and then assess your site to see if it aligns with your positioning.

3. Content and Design

What are you saying about your company and products — and are you saying it in a compelling way? Does your site’s content clearly communicate your company’s offering, and does it differentiate you from your competition? We assess your site’s content based on its ability to communicate the fundamentals of what your company does, why it matters and how the visitor can benefit. And though design can be subjective, the look and feel of a Web site can either contribute to, or detract from, your message.

4. Conversion

A corporate Web site is the single most important marketing tool in your marketing toolkit. Beyond communicating basic product offerings and features and benefits, your Web site must function as a conversion tool to entice prospective customers to contact you. We look at the overall efficacy of your site for converting visitors to prospects.

5. Search Position

If your site cannot be found, what good is it? A prerequisite for any high-performance Web site is a strong organic search position. We analyze your site’s rankings for top search terms relative to those of your peers. Then, we assess how your site can optimize its search-engine performance.

6. Social Media Integration

Are you engaged in open dialogue with your customers and prospects? An active social media strategy can be highly effective in building brand value. Social media can heighten awareness, position you as a thought leader, or build a community of followers. Search and social media work hand in hand to drive traffic to your site. When we assess your site, we examine your site’s integration of social media tools including blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn.

The end result of our assessment is a comprehensive, standalone deliverable that tells you how your site is performing — relative to your business objectives, your competitors, and the latest best practices in Web marketing and design.