- 10 Simple Things You Never Knew About Creating Powerful Websites!
Adding It All Up- BlogSpeak - Make the Most Out of Blogs in Five Steps
- Brother, Can You Spare Me a Dime? Pros and Cons to Online Giving
- Design: Changing the Way People See Your Site
- Everyman's Guide to the Perfect Website
- The Five Most Powerful Secrets to Getting Web Traffic
- Why the Worst Websites Are...Well, the Worst
- Your Web Sites Greatest Secret: Giving Yourself a Little Latitude
10 Simple Things You Never Knew About Creating Powerful Websites!
Number 1 - Use a newsletter "auto responder" to follow up email with your customers. This provides strong relationship building and generates positive feeling with real content instead of marketing or sales promotional material.
Number 2 - Use real content. Don't use filler. People are smart enough to know the difference, will become disinterested, and disengage right away.
Number 3 - Don't confuse people. If you ask people to do too much, you are asking for trouble. Asking them to click here, click there, fill out this and that, and register for this. All of it can be a large obstacle to successful name capture and loyalty building.
Number 4 - Communicate in short bursts of clear, lucid language. Yes, I understand you have a lot you want to communicate. And, yes, all of it is important. But if you overwhelm the person you are talking to, you will lose them.
Seth Godin says you need a Purple Cow to make a difference. I agree; however, it doesn't matter if your idea or concept is a multi-colored cow if you're grazing in the wrong pastures. Unclear communication will always trump good information.
Number 5 - And speaking of talking to a person, make sure you do that. Typically, people use language on the Web that appears as though you are speaking to a large, vast audience. Here is a news flash: A large audience isn't reading your website. One, single person (or two if a couple or work team is surfing the net) is reading your website. If I am on your site, write to me - and for me.
Number 6 - Track, track, track. It is not enough to know people are visiting your website. You want to know what their behavior is while on your site. What pages peaked their interest? How long did they spend on your site...and why?
Number 7 - Convert the tracking into results. Once you have information about your visitors, develop a strategy to speak back to their area of interest. Offer free articles or other promotions that will capture their particular interest. It will do wonders for your affinity and credibility.
Number 8 - Develop Credibility. There is one, easy solution to developing Web credibility. And it requires you to do one, single thing. Deliver consistently on the promise you give people. If you say you'll connect with them - do it. If you say you'll provide materials - do it. If you offer savings - give it.
Here is the takeaway: It takes a lot longer to rebuild trust you've broken than to hold on to the trust you have. Every time you don't do what you say you will do, you break trust.
Number 9 - If you don't understand Meta Tags, or Title Tags, or any of that Search Engine Optimization stuff, ask someone to explain it. But ask the right someone. There are various sources on the net, including Google, Yahoo and other ISPs that give out free info. Of course, Merge Left Marketing also provides guidance and direction in this area.
Number 10 - Nothing will happen unless you commit to doing it first, then do it. Once you have a plan (whatever it is), act on it. Rome wasn't built in a day - but it also didn't sit on the planning table for eternity. Get into your action plan, and sacrifice other items so that your company can to get to where you need it to be.
Copyright Merge Left Marketing 2009
Be sure to let us know what you think about this article: