The 4 Deadly Sins of Business Web Design1. Designing a site with large slow loading pictures and fancy flash presentations. 99% of people surfing the internet are looking for information quickly. When you place large fancy pictures, midi music, and slow loading flash presentations this simply keeps your potential client waiting for the information that they are looking for. Most likely they will not wait but click off to another site. Why should your prospect have to choose between an html or flash site? Why should he have to download software just to view your site? All this delays your customer from getting the information he wants and from buying. Keep the pages simple, easy to read, fast loading and to the point! If you do not believe me check out Yahoo's or Microsoft's web design. It is very simple and these guys are billionaires. 2. Designing a site with no central theme or focus. You cannot be everything to everybody. Have you ever seen those sites with dozens of different affiliate programs none of which relate to each other? They look like a flea market! Stick to your topic. The more specific the better. The internet contains so much information that you are better off being an expert in your niche than trying to appeal to everyone. If you have no focus the value of your site is diluted and it will actually appeal to no one rather than everyone. 3. Not placing your phone number and contact info conspicuously on your site. The internet is great but lets face it. Way more money is made off line than on line. Many people, including myself, want to make sure that there is a real person behind that website before parting with the green. If your clients can pick up a phone and contact a real person you have gained instant credibility. You also have distanced yourself from your competition. I love seeing my competitor's fancy websites with no phone number! More business for me! 4. Using free web hosts. If you are serious about your business you should run from the word free! Yes you heard me. Free is a bad word if you want to make money. First of all most free web hosts have ads all over them. It takes a good deal of effort to find a qualified prospect. Do you want your prospect to click on the free web host banner and never return to your website? They should pay you for those banners and ads! Also it is very unprofessional not to have your own domain name. Are you going to do business with someone whose website is http://www.geocybercities.com/members/community/id23989?/homebiz. html? Probalby not. 5. Not following up with your customers. If you do not have a follow up autoresponder system on your website your are losing most of your sales. It has been absolutely proven that most people must hear a message at least seven times before buying. A good autoresponder service will capture the names and email (even the phone numbers) of those who visit your website. The autoresponder will then send out a series of 10 timed messages to your prospects about your business. The messages are personalized with the prospect's name so they are more likely to be read. After the 6th or 7th message your prospect will begin developping a relationship with you. You might even get a call from someone saying " Hi this is Bill I am ready to buy!" Bill thinks you have been hand writing individual messages to him and he feels like he knows you personally but you have no idea who he is! An autoresponder turns what would have been just one quick visit to your website into 7-10 exposures to your site. A quality autoresponder system will also serve as a mailing list manager. After your prospects have received all your messages they will be put into an archive list in your autoresponder control panel. If you have any specials or announcements you can just type one email message in your control panel and send a message to everyone in your list. In many ways a good autoresponder system can be more important than the website itself. You may find such an autorepsonder service here. http://www.realreply.com About the author: Matthew May is the owner of Realreply autoresponder service. You may contact him through his website at www.realreply.com Copyright 2001 Realreply.comRead similar articles: Nine Effective Tips For Improving Your Website’s UsabilityLove at First Site: Giving Your Website Visitors the right Impression Other Ways to Look at Things Don't Make Your Website User-UNfriendly! Moving Things Around So Much About META Tags! Turn Benefits Into Sales with Streaming Media Through The Looking Glass 10 Ways Web Site Text Can Impact Your Reader's Buying Decision Graphic Design Using Color wakacje narty warsaw nightlife Cialis Cialis
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