tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22959051385452261952011-11-27T16:03:37.391-08:00Our blog is about web development and we blog about how to build websites and develop them accordingly. We welcome anyone to our blog that has an interest in web development.Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06155002613522540407noreply@blogger.comBlogger21100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295905138545226195.post-47950623799246666732008-07-26T12:26:00.001-07:002008-07-26T12:26:42.541-07:005 Essential Traits Of A Home Business Website<br /><br /> by: Trent Brownrigg<br /><br />So you’ve decided to start an online work at home business and are just beginning to build your website. You probably have a million different ideas for what you want the site to look like. You will want to take into consideration that your idea of a great website may differ drastically from what a website designed to make sales should be like.<br /><br />In this article I have offered 5 very important traits of a professional home business website. Implementing these into your website will make it much more effective in getting visitors to do what you want them to do.... Give You Their Money!<br /><br />Here are 5 traits of great home business website (in no particular order):<br /><br />1) Build A Professional Looking Site – There are millions of websites on the Internet and many of them are very well designed. Make sure your website is as professional in appearance as your competition. You will be judged on the appearance of your site so make sure you don’t lose visitors because of a bad design.<br /><br />2) Provide Visitors With All the Info They Need – If a visitor to your website has to put any effort into finding the information they need, you will lose them fast. Everything should be easily available to them with clear directions on how to get it. Make all important information no more than one click away.<br /><br />3) Have A Newsletter Sign-Up – Having a form for people to opt-in to a newsletter is a great way to build a list of customers. It’s also a great way to build trust and a strong following. Pack it full of great information, resources, freebies, and more. You will bring them back for more plus they just might tell all their friends about you.<br /><br />4) Make It Sell – You are building a work at home business website so you can make money. In order to do that you must get your visitors to make purchases. Your site should have a direct call to action with your best products and/or services listed in highly visible places.<br /><br />5) Allow feedback – It’s important to have a way for your visitors to offer feedback to you. They should also have an easy way to ask questions and make comments. People will like this because they get to give their input about what they would like to see done. You will benefit by being able to know what your customers want or need.<br /><br />Ok, now you should be able to get a great start on that business website. Include all five of the things above then build some great information around them. You will have a wonderful website that should bring back visitors time and time again.<br /><br />Copyright © Trent Brownrigg<br /><br /><br />www.work-at-home-jobs-iowa.com<br /><br />I grant permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way (grammatical corrections accepted).<br /><br />About The Author<br /><br />Trent Brownrigg is a successful internet marketer, business mentor, and author of business articles. He will personally help you build a secure financial future. Visit http://www.work-at-home-jobs-iowa.com for more details.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2295905138545226195-4795062379924666673?l=webdevelopmentandwebdevelopment.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06155002613522540407noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295905138545226195.post-28625545442439125382008-07-26T12:25:00.000-07:002008-07-26T12:26:14.924-07:002 Tips On Effectively Organizing Your Navigation<br /><br /> by: Jamie Kiley<br /><br />Not all links are created equal.<br /><br />While all of your links may be important, you must sort and prioritize to come up with an effective navigation scheme. Here's what you should keep in mind:<br /><br />1. Sort your links<br /><br />Your links should be organized according to their relationship to each other. Any time you can find a way to divide your links into two or more categories, do so.<br /><br />If you have more than 5 or 6 links, categorizing becomes very important. Try to find some natural groups. For example, suppose you sell widgets, and your site has this set of links:<br /><br /> * Mini widgets<br /><br /> * Multi-colored widgets<br /><br /> * Discounted widgets<br /><br /> * Contact us<br /><br /> * About the company<br /><br /> * News<br /><br />Your major categories are:<br /><br /> * Products<br /><br /> * Company info<br /><br />When you separate the two sets of links according to those major categories, it becomes much easier to sort the available information.<br /><br />The simple reason is that a choice between two items is less complex than a choice between 6 items. It's the principle of dividing and conquering.<br /><br />Take a look at the following site:<br /><br />www.adobe.com<br /><br />Notice the four main categories--Products, Resources, Support and Purchase. These four categories help visitors narrow down at a glance which area they need to look in to find the info they want.<br /><br />Imagine if all of those links were lumped into one long list. How much harder would it be to figure out where to go?<br /><br />Often, you might not have clear-cut categories. For example, you may have three links that all go together in one category (such as "Products"), plus several more miscellaneous links. Even if the miscellaneous links don't fit conveniently under one category name, you can still group your links. Put the three product links together, then all the miscellaneous links in a separate place.<br /><br />2. Prioritize your links<br /><br />Hopefully, you have some idea of what you want visitors to do on your site. Your site should be designed to drive a specific action--in other words, get visitors to do a specific thing.<br /><br />Once you've decided what your primary goal is, your navigation should reflect it. The links that pertain most closely to your main goals should be emphasized the most. You need to guide the visitor in the direction you want him or her to go.<br /><br />Prioritize. Ask yourself the question, "What is most important?" What do you really want to accomplish? (I'll give you a hint: "About the company" should not be a top priority link.)<br /><br />Here are several examples of sites that prioritize well:<br /><br />www.fleet.com<br /><br />On the home page, you'll see three main links. These links are geared at attracting the company's major types of customers. All other links on the page are much smaller.<br /><br />www.atomz.com<br /><br />On this page, it's clear that the company wants visitors to click on one of their three product links: Publish, Search or Promote. The site does a good job of getting attention and guiding the visitor in a specific direction.<br /><br />www.columbiahouse.com<br /><br />Right from the beginning, it's obvious that the company wants visitors to join one of their three clubs. All other links are relegated to the bottom of the page.<br /><br />By carefully prioritizing, these sites are able to narrow down the choices and make it more likely that visitors will head in the direction they want them to go.<br /><br />About The Author<br /><br />There are 605.6 million people online. Can they find your business? Jamie Kiley creates powerful and engaging websites that make sure YOUR company gets noticed. Visit http://www.kianta.com for a free quote. Get a quick, free web design tip every two weeks--sign up for Jamie's newsletter: http://www.kianta.com/newsletter.php<br /><br /><br />jamiekiley@kianta.com<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2295905138545226195-2862554544243912538?l=webdevelopmentandwebdevelopment.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06155002613522540407noreply@blogger.com0