Your Web Site Is Published, Now What?
EDITOR'S NOTES:
Take a moment to scan this week's contents. The 10 minutes you take to read this week's issue may be the best investment you will make all week.
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whatUseek Weekly Contents
1) Article: Your Web Site Is Published, Now What?
2) Contest: Enter To Win - Your Ad In 3 Issues ($238 Value!)
3) Weekly Marketplace: Exceptional Products and Services
4) Article: How To Function On A Committee
If you have an informative article that you would like us to feature, please email your article to editor@whatuseek.com. If we use your article, a link to your web site will be featured as well.
1) YOUR WEB SITE IS PUBLISHED, NOW WHAT?
By Debra Triplett
OK, so you found something that you feel will sell over the internet. You have a computer, a phone, a fax, and you are now searching for a way to accept credit cards for your business. You are almost ready to sit back and let your web page become your money machine, right?
Well, don’t start counting your money just yet. You have a lot of work remaining. You have continual reading, and ongoing testing and searching for cost-effective ways to advertise your site. Remember, there are thousands and thousands of other entrepreneurs out there with the same idea as you! Plus, as you already know, the Internet and Internet users change rapidly, including tastes, technologies, user sophistication, business models, and relationships, as do customer behaviors.
And once you’ve attracted visitors to your site, the next challenge is how do you persuade these potential buyers to buy from you? Here are a few web basics to keep in mind.
Present a professional appearance. You've got a tough job: You need to have a professional-looking website that lets customers know you are real and credible. Even though you may be working out of the basement of your home, the appearance of your site needs to be sharp, professional, and coherent. Does it look like it was done by an expert or pieced together by a bunch of kids? That's one unique aspect of the web: it puts the one-person shop on the same playing field as any large company, in terms of how you present yourself to the world. Make sure you take full advantage of it.
Focus on providing high-quality content. Visitors judge the value of your business by the content presented. People go to the web looking for information. You can meet this need by providing high-quality information that's topical and readable and engages the customer and gives them a reason to come back again. Keep your content up to date and build content resources at your web site around specific themes that visitors may find interesting. Choose your words and statements carefully, and most of all, proofread your site! Spelling and grammar errors on a web page are e-commerce suicide!
Keep it simple. You website’s job is to convince people to buy something based solely on its visual appearance and content. When people are surfing the web, they generally don't want to spend more than a few seconds on any page until they've found exactly what they're looking for. Too much text on your home page will cause visitors to move on. Provide introductions using short sentences and display clear and enticing links to more detailed information. If your site looks complex and confusing, it will be a turn-off to customers. Creativity is great for any webpage, but don’t load your site with outrageous headlines, too much animation, and gaudy, mis-matched color schemes. Look for ways to sooth and inspire your potential customers. If they feel comfortable and you have something worthwhile to offer, they’ll likely come back again.
Identify yourself and provide customer service. With all the hype and scams these days, visitors need signs of credibility, especially if you are hoping to engage them in e-commerce. Easily accessible contact details, including telephone, fax numbers, postal address, and automate email links build trust. It's amazing how many companies do not include this basic information. And don't forget about servicing the customer. I’ve seen plenty of incredible sites only to be dismayed at their complete lack of customer service. If you receive an e-mail, respond promptly. If you get an order, fill it accurately and quickly! Be sure the customer knows of your product guarantees and return policies up front. Don’t surprise them down the road. Show the customer that your company does things right. You may be on the Internet, but you still have to apply the same principles of good business that have always been important for long-term survival. It will keep your customers coming back and ensure steady traffic to your website. Then you can relax a bit and wait for the orders to roll in!
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About the author:
Debra Triplett has over 20 years of marketing and sales experience, currently specializing in public relations and web marketing. To take a look at Debra’s newest venture, visit her web site at: http://www.sixfigureincome.com/free/?155997.10
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3) WEEKLY MARKETPLACE
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4) HOW TO FUNCTION ON A COMMITTEE
1. BE PREPARED. Prepare your presentations well ahead of time and simplify as much as possible. Make copies for other members and include your name, date, and phone number.
2. ARRIVE ON TIME. This shows respect for other committee members and discipline on your part. Arrive ten minutes early and call the chairperson if you will be late.
3. PLAY YOUR ROLE. Whether you are a Bold Leader, Keen Observer, Critical Thinker, Diligent Worker, or Ardent Supporter, stay within your primary role and play it well.
4. LISTEN CAREFULLY. Not only to the "words", but to the "music" of members' responses. Look for alliances, hidden agendas, power plays, dissatisfactions, and undermining behaviors.
5. BE BRIEF. Unless you are making a prepared presentation, keep your responses brief, that is, less than one minute long. Encourage others to do the same.
6. REMAIN RELEVANT. Irrelevant meanderings reduce the effectiveness and efficiency of committee functioning. Stay relevant yourself and help others to do so.
7. COMMUNICATE CONSTRUCTIVELY. Expressing requests, concerns, and suggestions is generally constructive; expressing exclamations, demands, and complaints is generally destructive.
8. COOPERATE WITH OTHERS. Competition with others on a regular basis breeds contempt. Try to understand another's point of view, and if it differs from your own, compromise.
9. SUPPORT IMAGINATIVE IDEAS. Unless creative ideas are produced and supported continuously, the committee will lose much of its adaptability and vitality.
10. RECOGNIZE SUCCESS. Reward responsibility, cooperation, and achievement with respect, admiration, and appreciation, both publicly and privately.
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About the author:
Robert Dato, Ph.D., NCPsyA
President
Dato Development Institute
www.datodevelopment.com
radato@datodevelopment.com
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VISIT NOW: http://weekly.whatuseek.com/buyad.shtml today to reserve a space for your classified ad today! Direct questions to
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Published weekly by subscription only. Read by intelligent web marketers.
If you have an informative article that you would like to share, please email your article to editor@whatuseek.com . If we use your article, you will get great exposure and a link to your site.
Have a great week!
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