| Nothing can be more frustrating than visiting | | | | Different colors mean different things to |
| a web site and notbeing able to find what you | | | | different peopleand cultures. Keep that in |
| are looking for. | | | | mind. |
| | | | |
| Maybe the site is just plain ugly, or looks | | | | It's very easy to find color charts online |
| like it was done bya kid attacked by a box of | | | | that tell you whatthe different colors mean. |
| Crayola crayons. | | | | |
| | | | 4. Include original content Your visitor is |
| If you're going to do business on the | | | | only going to stayabout 10 seconds if he/she |
| Internet, you need aprofessional web site. | | | | has seen the same content somewhereelse. |
| This is your business card and thevisitors' | | | | |
| introduction to who you are. | | | | Whether you are a writer or not, you can |
| | | | create useful content. |
| First impressions count. You want to make a | | | | |
| good firstimpression, and you want to get | | | | Use your unique perspective to create a free |
| your potential visitor tobookmark your site. | | | | report or ebook orarticles your reader can |
| | | | read on your site. |
| Here's how to create a good first impression | | | | |
| and keep your newvisitor coming back for | | | | If you're offering affiliate programs, create |
| more. | | | | a review. Tell thevisitor something about |
| | | | that product that's not included in thesales |
| 1. Give your site a purpose. Do you know what | | | | letter. Let him/her know what you liked about |
| you want your website to do? | | | | the productand how it has helped you. |
| | | | |
| Maybe your goal is to make the sale. If this | | | | 5. Give the visitor a free offer One of the |
| is your goal, thenyou want to make sure that | | | | easiest ways to winthe heart of your visitor |
| you include useful content for yourvisitor to | | | | is to offer something free. This willnot only |
| read. | | | | help you establish credibility in the mind of |
| | | | thevisitor, but if you give before you get, |
| Make it interesting, and emphasize the | | | | your visitor is morelikely to consider your |
| benefits of your offer. | | | | offer. |
| | | | |
| Give him/her useful information. | | | | Unfortunately, freebies abound online, so |
| | | | getting your visitorto accept your freebie |
| 2. Make it fast loading I have cable modem, | | | | can be tough. |
| so if I'm reallyinterested in the site, I'll | | | | |
| wait around for it to download sothat I can | | | | There are several things you can do to make |
| look at the content. | | | | your freebievaluable. |
| | | | |
| Unfortunately, most people are using dial-up. | | | | Again, you want to create original content. |
| If your site takesmore than 10 to 15 seconds | | | | It could be a freeecourse, an ebook or |
| to load, your visitor will just clickaway and | | | | report. Just make sure that the |
| go somewhere else. | | | | informationyou are offering can't be found |
| | | | anywhere else. |
| The easiest way to make sure your site is | | | | |
| fast loading is to goeasy on the graphics. | | | | Write it from your perspective. Offering your |
| Although graphics can make your sitevisually | | | | unique perspectivecan go further in winning |
| appealing, they can take forever to load. | | | | the heart of your visitor than greatwriting. |
| | | | |
| If you must include graphics, then use a | | | | You can also offer a sample of your product. |
| graphics compressor toshrink your graphics so | | | | This could beseveral chapters from your book |
| that that they load more quickly. | | | | or or a demo version ofsoftware. |
| | | | |
| Below are some sites online where you can | | | | You can also offer a free newsletter, but |
| shrink .gif and .jpg,your most common graphic | | | | make sure you includesome content that's your |
| files, for free. | | | | own. There are hundreds of thousands |
| | | | ofnewsletters online, and your visitor won't |
| Now I've seen some pretty terrific | | | | stay subscribed verylong if he/she is reading |
| interactive sites online. | | | | the same thing over and over. |
| | | | |
| They may use flash or some other kind of | | | | 6. Capture contact information Before you |
| scripting to make theminteractive. | | | | give away thatfreebie, make sure you get the |
| | | | visitor's contact information. Iknow you've |
| Although these types of sites can be fun | | | | heard this a million times, but it takes |
| places to visit, if youhave a business site, | | | | repeatedexposure of your message to your |
| you want to skip creating this type | | | | visitor in order to finallymake the sale. |
| ofinteractivity. You'll have slow load times, | | | | |
| and you'll losevisitors fast. | | | | It's very important to build your list. You |
| | | | want to create amarket that is hungry for |
| 3. Choose a good design | | | | your products. A list of people whoare |
| | | | interested in what you have to say gives you |
| Keep it simple. Stick to the same color | | | | a better chanceof making the sale. |
| scheme. You don'twant something that looks | | | | |
| like it was painted by a two yearold. | | | | A good, clean, professionally designed web |
| | | | site can go a longway towards building your |
| Think about what works well on screen. Have | | | | reputation online. First impressionscount. |
| you evertried to read yellow type on an | | | | Make your first impression keep your visitors |
| orange background? Thinkabout your reader. | | | | coming back. |
| | | | |