The conversation usually goes exactly the same way. "We are doing a show/festival/project and as a key element part of the campaign we will be building a microsite." I am supposed to be thrilled by this news. Yet another arts microsite. A microsite it will probably take months to build and sign off and that probably won't be ready until just before the show happens. A microsite that won't have any significant traffic and will have a low page ranking on Google. A microsite that will use up budget and resources that could be better used elsewhere. A microsite you will expect me to promote and drive traffic to from my site, just so they can come back to me to actually book tickets. And all this for an event that may last just a few days. And when it is all over and the show/festival/project is long forgotten? It will sit there, a graveyard site in internet limboland.
There are of course times when building a microsite may be a good idea. Just not many. Unfortunately the desire to build one often does not come from anyone who knows anything about the web or marketing. So next time someone says "we think a microsite will play a key role in the campaign" ask them, "how exactly?" And then get them to dig out the web stats for the last one they built.
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