| |
| |
|
Web Design Information |
|
|
|
Successful Websites Don't Set Out To Sell
What are websites? Are they sales tools for vendors and service providers, or are they electronic guidance for potential customers? Put simply, are you selling or are you helping? Your answer to this question may determine the success of your website. So think carefully? How we define what a website is all depends on which side of the fence we're on. I suspect that most - if not all - vendors and service providers would say their website is a sales tool. But this is a fundamentally flawed perspective. Adopt this position, and sooner or later you'll pay for it. To really understand what a website is for, we need to think about who the Internet serves. It's tempting to think cynically and argue that it serves commercial interests, but that's getting the cart before the horse. The Internet serves buyers and information seekers. That's what most people use it for. What your visitors are really looking for is a website that helps them. A website that helps them buy when they want to buy. Helps them understand when they want to understand. And - most importantly - a website that helps them decide when they want to decide. So if you really want to build trust, credibility, authority, and site loyalty, helping visitors is the way to go. Of course, that's not to say you have to do it for free. We're all in business to make money after all. In fact, the main aim of many of your visitors will be to buy something. But it's important that you focus on them, not on you. For example, your visitors don't want to know what you have to sell. They want to know what they can choose to buy. If your primary focus is sales, your visitors will pick up on it. To generate revenue from our websites - either directly or indirectly - we need to build them to help our readers. Don't start by asking "How can I sell?" Instead, start by asking "How can I help?" (Even "How can I help them buy?" is a step in the right direction.) We need to build our websites from the ground up to be a form of online help. Think of your website as a cousin of the online help provided with Microsoft Office. (If you think of Microsoft's help as the slow-witted cousin, you're on the right track?) I worked as a technical writer in the software industry for 9 years, writing and managing online help for software programs. And the key to successful online help is to always try to answer one simple question: What does the reader want to know? We knew they wanted help, but did they want reference information or how-to information? Did they want to know how to get started or how to get out of trouble? Sure, when you're writing for a website, the subject material is different, but the question is still the same. What does your reader want to know? Obviously, the answer to this question will be different for everyone, but there are some common questions you can ask yourself which might help you decide? - Who is your audience? - What time of the day are they most likely to be searching? - Are they searching from home or their workplace? - Are they the business owner or do they have a boss looking over their shoulder? - Are they relaxed or in a hurry? - Are they spending their money or someone else's? - Are they looking for something which will make their job easier? - Or are they looking for something which will make their job possible? - Are they trying to solve a problem or avoid a problem? - Are they looking for a budget solution or a 'best of breed' solution? - Are they looking for something with all the bells and whistles or something which focuses on one thing only? - Are they looking to buy immediately (just as soon as they know they've found what they want)? - Are they comfortable with internet purchases? - Are they the final decision maker or do they need to convince someone else as well? - How much do they know already about your subject material? - How much do they want to know? Whether you do some real research or just make some educated guesses, it's important that you know your visitor very well. Then, and only then, can you help them. And only when you help them will you start to realize the true sales potential of your website. Happy writing! Related Articles: - How to get your customers to trust your website - http://www.divinewrite.com/trust.htm - Web Copy - How Much is Enough? - http://www.divinewrite.com/webcopyenough.htm - Engage Your Customer - Write About Benefits - http://www.divinewrite.com/benefits.htm - Writing Benefit-Driven Web Copy - http://www.divinewrite.com/webbenefitwriting.htm About The Author * Glenn Murray is an SEO copywriter and Article Submission Specialist. He is a director of PublishHub and also of copywriting studio Divine Write. He can be contacted on Sydney +612 4334 6222 or at glenn@divinewrite.com. Visit http://www.divinewrite.com or http://www.publishhub.com for further details, more FREE articles, or to purchase his e-book, 'SEO Secrets'.
MORE RESOURCES:
Web-Design - Google News |
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How To Use Color Effectively When You Create A Web Site Colors are powerful, and create strong feelings. They can also make your web site look professional - or look like a circus. 4 Things That Make A Web Site Great First you need original content. Content is the heart beat of any exceptional Web site. Your Website Visitors - Will They Stay? I'm sure you've all heard the saying 'Build it and they will come'. Although that may have been true a few years ago, now we must work, and work hard, to get visitors to our websites. 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. Why Should You Care About Your Web Site Colors? **How Colors are Used in web design:**Demarcates screen elements into groups- You can pu a blue background for your navagational bar and white for rest of your page. This tells the visitor that the blue area has different elements and grabs his attention. To Hire or Not to Hire a Website Designer In the early years of the internet the actual design of a website was either very basic or had to be done using a software package that needed a specialist to use it. Not surprisingly, website designers were in short supply and could command huge fees for their services. Top 10 Web Design Mistakes As a webmaster, you want to keep your visitors content so they'll come back again. Below you will find ten common mistakes made by webmasters that may deter people from returning. Make Artistic Graphic Designs Are you a student of graphic design? If you have taken time in extra reviews and put "graphic design" and "drawing" into any search engines, you'll get almost the same result = descriptions of graphic design programs at many design schools. Baffled? Well, it's like this: As a student interested in graphic design, you have to take drawing and not actually a degree in fine art. Building Your Website to Save You Money Does your website make you any money? Does it SAVE you any money?Websites are more than just marketing tools, out there in Cyber-Land effortlessly promoting you and your products. While that's great, why not use that same website to save yourself some money?How? Well, while I don't know your particular situation, I can provide you with some thought-provoking ideas that you can take back to your web designer for more input. Learn the Truth about Your Web Design Company by Its Portfolio When you start building your online business and search for a web design company that will implement all your needs for the web site you must understand that it is a very serious step because you are entrusting your business along with its reputation and future.That's why it's very important to make the right choice. Drupal Modules There are plenty of Drupal Modules that you can install for your site as add-ons. What we liked best about Drupal modules is that it already comes pre-shipped with several modules. 9 Ways to Gain Your Visitors Respect The internet is filled with sites and they are good and bad. Some have been known for a long time and some still struggle to get the respect and fame they think they deserve. Do You Want To Save Time With Your Web Design? It starts off simply; a few HTML pages, a few hyperlinks, some affiliate links. Your mother is proud of her clever son. Basic Graphic Design Wether you design your business brochures, flyers, web page, or ads there are some things that you need to know. There are some basic graphic design principles that those of us trained in the commercial art/graphic design field don't always share. Choosing the Right Web Designer Creating your web site can be a tricky process. Choosing the best web design company for your site is extremely important. Leave Those Links Blue! Don't mess with those links! When you're designing your site, you should leave your text links in their natural state--blue and underlined. We all want to be creative and not do the bland, expected, normal thing. Want to Increase Your Online Sales? Make Sure That Your Web Site Has a Unique Selling Proposition If you own a web site or if you are going to build a new one, the most important thing about your site is to achieve as high as possible visitors to sales conversion rate.Although they say that "the traffic is king online", if your website converts poorly, your online business will fail, unless you receive tons of free traffic which I doubt. Design Your Site For Your Customers The most important person that you need to please when you design your site is your potential customer. I can not stress that enough. Design vs Content: Who is KING? Well it is not Elvis, that's for sure.I am a firm advocate of good design but most of the time people tend to interpret design as amazing graphics and astounding visuals they tend to forget that design is the culmination of every aspect of good and effective presentation into one. Text Is King! Are you building your website? If so, STOP! Take a look at what you have done so far. How many images do you have? How much text do you have?If your website has more images than text then you could be in trouble.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2007 |