I often wonder how serious people are when it comes to their websites. I thought that most everyone knew that the phrase "Build it and they will come" no longer applies but I'm not sure how many people really believe it.
I visit websites everyday and I can't tell you how many of them violate the obvious elements of good web site design.
Do yourself a favor and attempt to apply the following web site design tips to your site. They won't cost you a thing except a little time and effort to apply them.
** Avoid Flashy, Contrasting Website Design **
Choose a color scheme that blends well. Keep your text on a white background, it’s much easier to read. Keep advertisements to a minimum and don’t force audio or video on your viewers. Keep your navigation in plain view either on the left or right of your pages and keep it consistent throughout your website.
** Create an About Page **
Always include an about page on your site. Don't be afraid to tell your story and let people know who you are and how you arrived where you are.
Additionally, let your visitors know that you are available. Encourage questions, email and phone calls. Include your name, address and phone number. If you can, it's also helpful to place a photo on your site. Familiarity is an important part of doing business and letting people know who you are adds an element of trust. It exposes your personality, capabilities and knowledge. These are things that clearly indicate to your visitors that you are genuine
** Use Your Best Headlines **
Create compelling headlines on each page of your site. Peak the interest of your readers. This is your chance to grab their attention and incite them to read on.
Don't be flashy or obnoxious. Simply tell it like it is. Capture their attention with descriptive, informative words. Get your readers involved in your information. Ask questions. Make them think.
You might be surprised to learn that just one compelling headline can bring instant sales almost overnight.
**Create Meta Tags **
This is the first place I look when people tell me they aren't getting visitors. I often see sites that have no title or description tag or the tags don't follow the suggested guidelines for proper setup.
Here's an example of how the tags might look for a site that sells hummingbird feeders:
<title>Hummingbird Feeders: Shop For Hummingbird Feeders Online</title>
<meta name="description" CONTENT="Hummingbird feeders.
Shop For hummingbird feeders online">
<meta name="keywords" CONTENT="hummingbird feeders,
hummingbird feeder, bird feeder, bird feeders">
Each page needs to have it's own set of tags. I recommend focusing on one keyword per page, two at the very most. Too many keywords can confuse what your page is about.
Always make sure that your keywords are scattered throughout your text, however never sacrifice good content for nonsense. Your text should be easy
to understand, flow logically and should not sound redundant.
** Provide Testimonials**
Solicit feedback from buyers you've had. Ask them to write a small testimonial that you can place on your site. This goes a long way to help convince your visitor that your products and services are sound. When getting testimonials request that customers highlight the benefits of what your product or service provided them.
** Establish Beneficial Links **
Links coming into your website from other sites is what weaves you into the world wide web. Reciprocal linking is still a common strategy for helping build incoming links to your website but it is not as preferred as it once was, however if done correctly it can still improve search engine ranking. The bad news is reciprocal linking is the most time consuming. It requires making contacts, following up with contacts and frequent site updates.
One way links coming into your website from other relevant websites is the most preferred. Establishing one way links is best achieved by writing and submitting articles to article directories, newsletters and other related websites. The more people that link to or reference your content the more links you will receive.
** Offer Guarantees *
If you sell your own products include a guarantee. This is often the extra boost a buyer needs to make the purchase.
A quality, customer centric website will offer 100%, no-questions-asked, money-back guarantees. If you offer a quality product that meets customer expectations, people will rarely take advantage of such guarantees, but it's this statement that often tips the scales in favor of a purchase.
** Submit Your Site **
Last, but not least submit your site to the search engines. Many of them are no longer free but the fees are often worth the expense when it comes to generating relevant, targeted traffic. Google still offers a free submit, simply type in your URL address, and make sure your meta tags include a title and description tag.
For the free search engines I don't recommend using automated submissions. Instead submit your site manually taking care to compose accurate titles descriptions, keywords and take care to submit them under the most appropriate categories.
Build a website that incorporates all the elements of good website design, structure and and also provides the training needed to bulid a successful sales business. Sitebuildit has all of those things and more.
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