Before They Ask, Let Your Website Answer

December 5, 2025

In our modern world, artificial intelligence is all the rage, using computers to predict human thought, save time, and increase efficiency. But what if your website could serve a similar purpose – answering questions your website visitor has before they ask, in turn reducing phone calls and email inquiries?

Turns out, your website can be an extremely powerful AI tool, bringing a humanized experience, with the right steps. If you have a goal to reduce phone calls and emails and increase self-service options, let your website be the information hub for topics of importance to your members/customers.

Review Your Data

Our world is driven by analytics, so leverage the data you have available like website analytics and member/customer service data. Website data can come in many forms, with Google Analytics being common. However, any information you have on how visitors access your site is valuable. Likewise, any information from your member/customer service team can be helpful, especially when it comes to understanding why your members/customers are contacting your office.

Google Analytics: Questions To Ask

What pages are visited most?
How long are website visitors spending on your website each session and the most visited pages?
What is the average number of pages your website visitors access while on your site?
Do you have any campaigns that are driving visitors to your site, and how successful are they?
What are website visitors searching for on your site?

Member/Customer Service Data: Questions To Ask

Does your member/customer service team have any analytics to review?
How are members/customers reaching out to your utility?
What questions are members/customers asking?
Are there any common questions or trends?
What questions are members/customers not asking that may be helpful?
How long are phone conversations when a member calls your office?
How many emails come a day?
How many phone calls come a day?
What is the average hold time for phone calls?

The MidSouth Electric Co-op team place common member questions and tasks front and center on their homepage.

Considerations

Review various time periods – weekly, monthly and yearly data.
Look at periods throughout the year to compare seasonal trends and event impact, like how your site views change by spring storms, annual meeting season or scholarship promotion.

Using these questions as a guide, formulate key finding and prioritize common trends to aid in the next phase of organizing your site.

Strategize your Content

Once you have your data and key findings identified, it’s time to put your data to work and create your strategy. Think of the strategy as your roadmap to help you navigate placing content on your website.

First, look at your site with a fresh set of eyes. Using your data, make note of what is currently on your site that your members/customers are asking for, and where is it located. Additionally, what topics were identified in your findings that are not currently on your site

Considerations

Easy to Find. Is the information your members/customers looking for easy to find? Are the most visited pages easy to find directly from the homepage? Can website visitors find information to commonly asked questions on your site? If this information is on your site, but not easy to find for your members/customers consider finding an alternate location or direct your website visitors to these pages in more ways. If the information is not on your site, it may be time to curate content to fill the gap.
Easy to Understand. Do you use plain language when it comes to topics that are commonly asked about? Our industry is full of jargon, so it is important to ensure your website visitors can understand the valuable information you have that they are seeking. If common topics and questions currently live on your site in easy to find locations, consider reviewing the content with a fresh set of eyes to make sure it is digestible.
Easy to Plan. You have a lot on your plate, so make your strategy work for you. When it comes to seasonal initiatives, programs, and events, have a plan on when and where this information will be placed on your site. Will programs, initiatives, and events need to bump content placed to help reduce common questions? If so, can this information be found elsewhere? Make sure to include a plan to go in and remove this seasonal information when the program or event ends. Calendar reminders help keep you on track with managing topics, especially during the busy times.

Leverage Your Homepage Real Estate

Think of your website’s homepage as your digital lobby. Just like you would make your office’s lobby welcoming to visitors, placing information and resources in easy to access locations, your homepage needs to do the same as it is typically the first page your website visitors land.

Use your data and strategy to place the information your members/customers are looking for in prime locations on your homepage, leveraging your promotional spaces and action buttons.

Promotional Spaces: Your top promotional space is a key location to put your most important information, as it is the first thing your site visitor sees when landing on your site. We have an entire blog dedicated to maximizing this prime real estate on your homepage.
Action Buttons: These buttons are strategically designed to have the top tasks your website visitors search for high up on your site and readily available. Action buttons can be updated as top pages visited change, programs or initiatives start, or communication strategies are adjusted.

Make the most of the top promotional space by spotlighting relevant and up-to-date programs and initiatives.

Real Intelligence. Real Connection.

With a little bit of planning and strategy, your website can be the information hub for member/customer self-service. After all, who needs AI when you can bring a powerful, humanized digital experience locally to your members/customers, placing answers to questions members/customers may have – before they are asked!