Increasingly, the search for a professional services firm is beginning on the Internet and ending after a sales call – not the opposite. It is therefore very important that companies such as Atos Origin present information about their services in a clear, informative and professional way.

Many professional services firms view their websites as an important sales and marketing tool – a tool whose importance is only increasing. And, as more and more executives turn to the Internet to find professional services firms, these websites are becoming integral to driving demand for services.

Therefore it is very pleasing to report that Atos Origin’s Corporate website, www.atosorigin.com, has been ranked 3rd in a global survey of the effectiveness of IT services company’s websites. The survey, carried out in early 2006, looked at the effectiveness of professional services websites (largely, those of consulting, law, IT services and accounting firms) in providing useful information to potential clients – information that would encourage them to contact the firm (i.e., to generate leads). Atos Origin was ranked 3rd in the IT services category and 10th overall.

The Bloom Group evaluated the websites of 80 of the largest professional services firms on several criteria:

• Whether they allowed potential clients to rapidly understand what expertise the firm provides
• How well they enabled Web viewers to determine whether the firm had expertise on their specific issues
• The degree to which the sites helped to establish the professional services firm’s expertise.

The research shows that there is considerable work to be done in improving the way many companies organize their websites, clarify their expertise, and supply content that increases the chances that potential clients see these firms as true experts in their fields. Other findings were that clients and prospects need to be consulted more about what they want to see and expect when looking for expertise on the Internet, and companies need to put more thought and resources into designing their websites to make them easy to use and informative.

The report was featured in the July/August edition of Consulting Magazine and is available in full on The Bloom Group's website: http://www.bloomgroup.com/assets/research/bg_prof_svcs_website_study.pdf.

About The Bloom Group

The Bloom Group was founded in 1998 to meet the needs that are unique to the marketing of professional services. It specializes in helping consulting, law, training, IT services, accounting and other firms that sell expertise to identify their best market opportunities, focus their offerings, attain “thought leadership,” and significantly increase awareness of and demand for their services through effective marketing. Its principal offices are in Boston and Cleveland, as well as having a network of affiliates in major US cities.