Archive for Website
Websites With Flash Intros
Posted by: | CommentsYesterday I was talking to one of my clients who is in the entertainment industry. The entertainment industry has the idea that their website need to be flashy and have a big impact as soon as someone lands on their page. I disagree and think that the rules of online marketing still apply and flash introductions are bad – not only for search engines but they just annoy people.
I told my client that I don’t like them but at the end of the days it’s their website and if they want a flash intro we can build it. Just after having this conversation I was on Twitter, clicked on a few links and found this image.
It’s part of an article on the 8 websites you need to stop building. Whilst I don’t agree with all areas they are discussing I do believe about the flash intros. The image really sums it up.
Have a flash intro is like having someone standing out the front of your retail door, harassing your clients before they come into the store. Making people do something before they are allowed to enter. This is exactly what a flash introduction does. If you were at the front of Borders and a sale person said you need to watch this video/intro/see our specials before you can come in – what would you do? If there was another book store next door, I would just go in there. This is what happens when people do a Google search – land on your website, are confronted with an introduction. They click back and find another website which doesn’t have this introduction.
People are searching Google to find solutions to their problems, so make sure your website solves their problems and don’t confront them with flash.
What do you think about this? Does your website have a flash introduction? Do flash introductions annoy you?
9 Essential Elements to a Successful Website
Posted by: | CommentsWebsites are becoming the new business cards, vital for first impressions and to give clients more information than you business card can. There are so many web designers around with pricing ranging from a few hundred to several thousands. You need to make an informed decision and know what you want and don’t want on your website. Ideally it should be build with by an online marketer instead of a web or graphic designer. Generally web and graphic designer will make your site look fantastic’s, however that doesn’t guarantee any success with your site. Below are 9 essential elements your website should include.
1. Clean and Simple Design, Layout & Navigation
A confused mind says NO. What does this mean for you? If your website is too busy, has things flashing at people, they are not sure where to click or find information, they will leave your website and find your competitors. As with your business card, simple is best. With lots of white space. Don’t over crowd your page. Keep the navigation in the obvious places – left panel or top. Include a return home button on each page.
2. Capture Form
People do business with people they know, like and trust. Online this can take some time to establish especially for service or higher price items. This is why an capture form is vital to your online success. Once you are able to capture visitors details you can send them a regular newsletter and build a rapport and trust with them and hence gain more sales. Your capture forms needs to be located above the fold (in the top part of the website which users can see without scrolling) and ideally give away a free report, audio or video as an incentive to sign up. People don’t like giving out their email address but they love receiving free information.
3. Content Management System
The world is changing quickly and you need to be able to edit your website quickly. The easiest and most affordable way is via a content management system. Using a web based system you can edit the text on your website when ever and where you like. Most systems are as simple as using Microsoft Word and require no programming skills. With a content management system there is no excuse for having out of date information on your website. You may pay extra for hosting however the extra per month in the long run will be cheaper than getting a web designer to make changes.
4. Contact Us Form
Unfortunately SPAM (unsolicited emails) are a fact of live in the technology age. SPAM spiders crawl the web for email addresses, so for this reason is very important to never, never, never have your email address on a website. This is why a “Contact Us Form” is vital on your website. It allows users to contact you via email and saves you the SPAM headaches. On your contact us page make sure you provide as much relevant information as possible. By relevant I mean, don’t put your home phone if you don’t use it for business and it could be answered by your 5 year child. If you only have a mobile for business then only include your mobile.
5. About Us Page
Often the most overlooked page, but one of the most important pages is the “About Us” Page. Many users use this page to find out more about the company ie Do I trust this company enough to hand over my email address, credit card or contact them. Include your experience, why you started your business, how you work, etc. Even online people still buy from people, so make your website personal about you and your company. Don’t make it a big corporate front. Use your “About Us” page to express this.
6. Testimonials & Case Studies
No one wants to be the first. Make sure you include testimonials or case studies of previous clients and their experience. This relives buyers fears and will increase your sale. When you are just starting out, ask a trusted friend or business associate to trial your product or service (for free) on the condition that they write you a testimonial. Ask every client to provide you with one. To make then as real as possible, include: name, location, website (if relevant), and photo.
7. Blog
A blog is an online journal generally written more casually than a normal web page. They can be used for informing clients of new products/services, industry changes, interesting information. The reason I like them so much is they are excellent for increasing your search engine rankings. Search engines love fresh content, and the quickest and easiest way if via a blog. Post regularly can really improve your rankings and also provide more interaction with your clients as they can make comments on what you are say.
8. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is one of the best things you can put on your website and it’s absolutely free. Google Analytics will allow you to track your results. Once you know where you are starting from you can work to improve your websites performance. Google Analytics can tell you a host of things including; number of visitors, number of pages visitors, how long on each page, how they found your website, number one referring websites. You can also set goals and it will track performance and produce a report for you. Many web developers provide you with basic statistics, however Google Analytics has everything you will need.
9. Sitemap
Sitemaps are primary navigation. A user can click on your sitemap and find a link to each page. If you have lots of pages some users will use them to find what they are looking for, however I like them for increasing search engine rankings. You can submit your sitemap to Google and it will increase your chances of being found on the search engines quicker and higher. A sample sitemap can be found at www.brilliantblog.com.au/sitemap
Want to use this article in your e-zine or website? You can as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Natalie Alaimo is a Small Business Marketing Consultant and Online Marketer. Natalie provides small business owners, women and entrepreneurs with straight forward marketing and branding services including one on one coaching and do-it- yourself marketing products. Natalie is a published author and runs several websites, including www.nataliealaimo.com. If you are looking to kick start your business, go online now to get your Free e-book at Brilliant Web Design
What is a landing page?
Posted by: | CommentsAs mentioned in my previous post, I believe all businesses should have at least three websites. One of them is a landing page. So what is a landing page?
A landing page is a page people are directed to from some form of advertising. It might be from online or offline marketing. It’s generally not your main website and normally it’s an easy URL for people to remember.
If the Australian online book store, Fishpond, was running a promotion on Dan Brown books – their usual URL is www.fishpond.com.au – the ads featuring Dan Brown’s books may use the URL www.danbrownbooks.com.au. (this is a made up URL). As it’s easier for people to remember and more relevant to what they are looking for straight away which is Dan Brown books.
The best type of landing page will direct the readers to only one decision – generally to sign up for a free report/audio and join the database, however it can also be used for direct sales. Sales are generally for a lower price, low commitment purchase, however I have seen some for products up to about $10,000 – not sure how successful these are.
Once you know what landing pages are you will begin to see them everywhere. Since you only want people to take one direction they don’t have too many buttons or options for anything else.
One example is http://www.internettrafficmastery.com/ where you get a bit of information and are directed to enter your details. In this example you don’t get a free report or anything, just to access the next page.
In this example http://www.productivityqueen.com/ – Lorraine Pirihi has a video explaining all the information and is giving away a free report and CD once you complete your details.
In both these cases you can see how the landing page has one purpose to get people on the list. There are no other distractions, no other buttons, just the one purpose. The URL is also easy to remember and simple.
One important element to remember when designing a landing page is that as soon as a potential client lands on the page they must immediately feel like the information is talking to them.
I was recently listening to a an online marketing CD and they were discussing landing pages. They gave an example of an autism coach. She has over 8 landing pages. Why? Many parents were given different diagnosis’ – or forms of autism. These parents would then Google their child’s specific diagnosis. Since the landing page they landed on spoke directly to them they signed up for the free information and a very high rate became clients. However, if she had only one landing page that outlined all the diagnosis’ potential clients would have felt that she was generalised instead of a specialist and would be less likely to sign up and hence become clients.
So what would I suggest for your business? This depends on your business of course, however, as a general rule – develop a free report or e-book about your area of expertise. Set up a landing page which gives away the free report in return for an email address. Then send your clients a weekly or monthly newsletter.
If you need any help with this please contact us
Want to use this article in your e-zine or website? You can as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Natalie Alaimo is a Small Business Marketing Consultant and Online Marketer. Natalie provides small business owners, women and entrepreneurs with straight forward marketing and branding services including one on one coaching and do-it- yourself marketing products. Natalie is a published author and runs several websites, including www.nataliealaimo.com. If you are looking to kick start your business, go online now to get your Free e-book at Brilliant Web Design
Three Types of Websites – Do you have them all?
Posted by: | CommentsThere are three main types of websites which every business needs, ideally as three separate sites, however combining them together will work also.
If you are serious about making money online then your business must have these three types of websites:
1. Landing Page
2. Brochure Site
3. Blog
I will explain each of these in more details in their own post, but I wanted to give you a quick overview of what each one is.
1. Landing Page – a landing page is used for directing paid traffic to – it has a single purpose and is generally used to build your database. It’s focus is on one particular product/service to a particular target market.
2. Brochure Site – this is what most business currently have. It includes information about you and your company and lists all your products and services. This is used for people who find your website via general searches or referrals. It can cater to a wider range of your market.
3. Blog – blogs are a quick and easy why to update your clients and search engines on your industry, company or services/products. They are indexed quickly by the search engines and can be used to build creditability and rapport with your readers.
Have a look at your current online marketing strategy;
Which of these sites do you currently have?
Which do you need?
Want to use this article in your e-zine or website? You can as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Natalie Alaimo is a Small Business Marketing Consultant and Online Marketer. Natalie provides small business owners, women and entrepreneurs with straight forward marketing and branding services including one on one coaching and do-it- yourself marketing products. Natalie is a published author and runs several websites, including www.nataliealaimo.com. If you are looking to kick start your business, go online now to get your Free e-book at Brilliant Web Design
