|
|
Got Web Traffic but Still Low Sales? Ten Ways to Selling Success - Part 2
Part one of this article is available at www.bookcoaching.com/freearticles/article-34.shtml.
Have you put a lot of effort, time, and money into your site and are frustrated with lackluster sales? Are you planning to put a new Web site and don't know where to start?
If you are like many business professionals out there, you know your subject, you are an expert speaker or coach in your field, and you are even passionate about it. You have great products and services to sell.
But do you translate those into benefit-driven headlines that pull sales? If you have already put your Web site up did you address your purpose? Do you want to inform, communicate, and help? That's fine, but if you want to sell something, you will drive your potential customers away with such non-effective phrases as "welcome to my site," Here's by product " long paragraphs of your bio on the home page, your book's introduction, or "subscribe to my ezine."
You have only 10 seconds to impress your Web visitors. They don't care about anything except what you can do for them.
Give them a reason to buy.
It's never too late to refresh your home page and others with "marketing pizzazz." Your home page deserves time, effort, and money. You will need to edit it several times before landing on just the right phrases. Without these and continuous maintenance, your unguided efforts are wasted.
Instead, write compelling, emotional, benefit-driven copy to inspire people to take out their credit cards to buy your unique, wonderful creations. You can when you apply the following power "Marketing Pizzazz" techniques.
6. Make your layout clear, clean, and consistent. You need to organize each page in the same lay out-such as left centered, right centered, or centered. If you mix designs, your would-be client or buyer will think you unprofessional. Go to other Web sites and choose a design that resonates with you. Keep every page in the same format.
7. Use color, font changes, and small graphics to spice up your site, but remember to use a lot of white space. Too many large graphics make your site load slowly, and your visitors will leave before seeing how you can help them. Without easy-to-read copy and clear navigation they will also disappear. Remember the "10 second" rule.
If you are like me, and have a content-dense site, it's OK to include long copy as long as you divide it into bite-size pieces with plenty of headlines. A good idea is to ask your friends and associates to visit your site to report glitches and feedback. What turns them on or off? They often see what the creator is too close to see. Of course, give them a reward for helping you, such as a free report.
8. Put your information in short paragraphs. Visitors love free content, but when they see a long line of print, they get discouraged because they want their information fast, clear, and concise. Make each paragraph only 4-6 lines. Online readers want easy-to- read material they can get the main points from, and they want it faster than light rays.
9. Be consistent with your headlines and body fonts. Do not use all capital letters in your articles or headlines, unless you use a few words for emphasis, such as "FACT," or "TRUE," because they are hard to read. Do not use the same font for headlines and titles as you do for the body of information beneath. This mistake makes it hard to distinguish the two.
If you are a non-techie like myself, you can use primarily two fonts:
"Times Roman" for headings, and "Arial" for the body. Notice the no tails in Arial (called sans serif), good for short copy.
In your book, you'll reverse the above font uses. Use "Times Roman" for the copy and "Arial" for titles and headlines.
10. Use dividers such as ======, or ++++++ when you change topics. These can add variety and help your visitor to see your message more clearly. These are often used on business ezines. Each publisher makes their ezine their own by their personal choices.
Remember your home page must give your visitors a reason to buy. Use these "Marketing Pizzazz" techniques throughout your site. Think right now, what is it I need to act on next to manifest more dollar success on my site?
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com
No More Jargon! Pamper Your Audience!
When your company built its website, did you think about the content (the text) of your site? Did you write it for your customers? The answer to these questions is often 'No.'
Wording Up Your Website
Back to basics. Forget funky design, good copywriting is the key to a clear and intuitive website.
Questions to Ask When Designing a Website for Clients
Questions to ask when designing a Web Site for your client (s).
Creating Your First Website
Building your first website can be very frustrating. It looks fairly easy, but almost always turns out to be more complicated than you expected.
Cascading Style Sheets for Better Web Design
In cascading style sheets you can specify how your web pages will be presented on the screen by simply predefining page elements such as fonts, headers and links.
Is a Web Site Builder Right for You?
A web site builder can be a real life saver to someone without advanced HTML knowledge or tools. Web site builders allow a relative newbie to the internet create a professional website in very little time. How can you know if using a web site builder will meet your needs? Here are some things to consider...
Creating A Quality Web Site Design!
In this article, I will attempt to cover the basics of creating a great quality web design template for your site. Now it's a known fact that the layout or "eye candy" as I put it will determine whether your visitors will stay more than 15 seconds or they will just become another statistic.
Build Web Pages from the Top Left Corner Down
There are two important reasons to build your website from the top left hand corner down.
Be Inspired to Create Better Websites
Being a writer, when I was asked to do some research into what makes a good website, of course I straightaway went to check out all of my favorite authors. After sifting through a few standard sites I remembered to look at one of my all time respected writers-Paulo Coelho. Judging by how many books he has sold he is obviously a lot of people's favorite, and his website is exactly what you'd want to keep the fans happy.
Stop Sabotaging Your Sales
Do your web pages, sales letters or personal presentations include subtle distractions that unnecessarily cause you to lose sales?
Web Designing Tips
Easy That's how you'd like life to be, right? Especially when you're creating a website on your own. But that doesn't mean you want the site to look severe and just functional. you want it to be pretty , smart and also respond and move when you interact with it, while saying all that you want to say to its visitors . There are little tips and Features incorporated into software just for people like you.
How To Write An Effective FAQ Page
Websites that have multiple pages usually have a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. There are several good reasons why you should have one.
How Your Business Can Win Online
There are lots of websites out there that do little to encourage their customers to stick around or buy their products from them. In this article i'm going to show you a typical example of where a small company has gone wrong with its website.
10 Nifty Ways to Prolong Your Visitors at Your Website
Increasing the length of time a visitor is on your website will dramatically improve your conversion to sales. Use these ten points to check you are prolonging to stay of your visitors.
Put Up A Website And Start Promoting In About An Hour
I can't figure out people who have products or information to sell who do not have a website. With some people, it's fear of technology; others just haven't realized that we've entered the electronic age. If you are not in the latter category, and you are reading this article, put up your website today -- it will take you about an hour!
Looking for a Web Design Company? Use a Web Design Directory
Your business website tells a lot about your company. A poorly designed website will have your visitors questioning the quality of your business. A well thought out elegantly designed site would instill confidence in your visitors that you are a credible business to deal with. There is a saying in advertising, "It is better to not advertise than to advertise poorly". The same holds true for web design. There are so many Web Design companies now. How do you make an educated decision on which one to choose? Like every market that is saturated, you always see ads that read, "Hire us we are the best". Well how do you know that statement is true? Wouldn't it be great if you had a resource available to you that pre-screened Web Design Companies to narrow down your choices? To answer that question, yes there is, use a Web Design directory. Web Design directories are usually run by companies in the Web Design Industry. Using their knowledge to pre-screen the Web Design companies that submit their contact information to the directory insures that only quality Web Design Companies are listed. Most Web Design directories are categorized by region. Some use states, some use countries all in hopes of making your search that much easier. If you live in Alabama then you simply click the link that reads, "Alabama Web Design". Some Web Design directories will also allow you the customer to submit a quote request. Then they take your information and forward it to Web Design Companies that meet your criteria. This can be very helpful, as it eases the process of finding the perfect Web Design Company for your project. Along with a directory of different Web Design Companies, you may also find helpful articles to educate yourself, and help make the decision process a little easier. Look for articles that answer your questions, "What is PHP", or "How do colors affect your visitors' experience". Articles like these can give you a little incite as to what makes up a high quality website. Your business website is very important to help strengthen your image. It is often the first impression a potential customer will have about your company. Using a Web Design directory can ensure your visitors have a positive first impression that causes them to contact you to do business.
The Psychology of Color in Web Design
Persons engaged in website design, here's a scoop for you! Would you just like to know that by understanding the basics of cognitive psychology around color and patterns, we could further improve our Web design!
Testament To Testimonials
We have all seen websites showcasing their testimonials either spread strategically throughout the site or all together on their own glorious page. They're there with the intent of leading us toward that high dollar purchase or convincing us of something's legitimacy. Sometimes we read them and sometimes we won't. Sometimes we believe them and sometimes we don't. Well, are they really worth all the time and effort?
Designing Professional Web Pages
If your Web site doesn't project a professional and polished image to your visitors, your credibility and that of your products and services will suffer. Image is everything -- especially online where your competitor is only one mouse click away!
Creating the Perfect Website - A beginners Guide
Are you looking to create the perfect website? A complete novice when it comes to HTML, CGI, FTP and all the other associated pieces that make up the website puzzle, then this article is definitely for you.