10 Top Smart Web Design Tips

10 Top Smart Web Design Tips - When in the thoughts of producing a website, think hard on the some important key points you must deploy. To give you a few hints and tip I have set out below some useful sources of information that can help you to develop a good looking and profitable website.

1. Time is money, save both by managing and processing work carefully and logically. They say that an impression is made by the viewer in the first four seconds of reviewing a site. Thus it's this time that you have to make a good impact on your reviewer.

To miss this opportunity only leaves you with a large amount of ground to catch up on. So, you have only four seconds to persuade your visitor to continue navigating around your website, otherwise they may well already be thinking of trying the next one.


2. Convenient and simple menues guide your users. When first they enter the site, they examine it and look for the all important navigation aids. Again, these are features that must appear very obvious and in clear sight, users must see everything they need simply classified on the shelves as they would expect to see them.

Once you have grabbed the user's mouse pointer, they will have a desire to click further and drill down.


3. What is the most eye-catching place on a web page? It is a well recognised fact among web presenters that the upper-left corner is the most desirable position and it's where the eye tends to sink to. Why is this so? This is natural as in European countries people usually start reading books or writing articles from this position.

Of course, it will appear different for those that are surfing from and Oriental or Middle Eastern country. Thus your target market has to be well thought out before selecting the information starting position. Thus most Western websites and applications are mainly designed from the up-left corner. Here you can place a logo or slogan, search box or any other piece of information that you feel would benefit from such a position.


4. Other psychological studies say that web information is in fact scanned in an "F" way. What does this mean? The top area is scanned horizontally, and the middle area and lower one is scanned only on the left side- vertically. So again please consider this research when arranging content for your website.


5. Another interesting fact is that of advertising. In the whole users deplore adverts and their eyes will ignore all of them just by association, remember the brain is a very fast processing device and scans the page without you thinking and has already decided very early on what an advert looks like and will ignore if it recognizes a pattern.


So again remember that people are busy and have just small amount of time to devote to finding what they need. So respect their time and be patience but plan the your advertising carefully and not too aggressively!


6. Do you think that images are more alluring than texts? You are possibly wrong, as sometimes word can seize you more attention that any bright graphic. So, if you want to deliver an important message to a person, use a slogan rather than a pretty image!


7. What else can grab users' attention? Slogans, buttons, textual headlines...- they must be simple and bright and well thought out. Dirty childish graphics will turn people off very fast.


8. Text must be formatted in a proper way. Make it simple, understandable with continuity of size, font and colour. Different fonts and sizes of letters, paragraphs, underlined, bold, italics and other means of word expression can help you but must be used sparingly and within the overall look and feel of the site.


9. People faces in graphics will catch the users' attention. You can apply various ideas around this idea. especially if an image's look is directed straight at the reviewer...


10. White spaces are a worthy and not well used device. It can provides a web page with the necessary air to breathe as well as giving space between the elements, so use wisely and your page will be worth reading ( Entireweb )

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8 Reasons SEO Audits are Needed Before Sites are Built

8 Reasons SEO Audits are Needed Before Sites are Built - If you’ve worked in the SEO industry for any significant length of time, you’ve inevitably had a situation arise where a brand new site was being planned or an existing site was being overhauled and you were brought in to ensure the new (or new version) site would get SEO.

And unless you have magic fairy dust at your beck and call, you have also had to deal with the fact that you were called in after the new site was already planned. Or more likely, the build was already taking place. Or worse, already done and in launch mode. Unfortunately this is the wrong time to be doing SEO, let alone performing an SEO audit.

1. Keyword Focus

If you don’t know what keywords to focus on, you can’t truly know or understand the topical focus you need to convey across the entire site. Sure, you may have content already written – maybe even from a previous site. Except without current data on now-trending topics, your message could now be irrelevant. Or even if it’s relevant, it could be lacking the focus necessary to current search trends.

In an SEO audit, keyword research is paramount. Not only to hone in on timely relevance and trending, but to also help reveal who the true competitors are that are currently ranking for those main topics you need to focus on.

2. URL Structure

All too often, marketers or site designers or developers know there needs to be content related to services or products, and information about the company or business, yet without first having an SEO audit performed, URLs can’t properly be seeded without that keyword research being performed. And only after the keyword research is performed can you understand what the URL structure needs to look like.

3. Content Organization

URL structure is integral to content organization, and builds on topical organization. Without a proper SEO audit, you don’t know the best way to organize the content on a site. Sure, you can guess, or “think” you know, yet that’s like rolling the dice believing (falsely) that “good enough” is well, good enough. If you don’t get your content organization plan hammered out before site build or rebuild, you end up causing topical dilution.

4. Content Depth

Without a proper SEO audit, how do you know the amount of content you need, whether it’s on an individual page, an entire section, or the whole site? Only a proper audit can reveal the sweet spot in your goal setting plans for competitive success. And only the sweet spot, weighed against topical focus priorities, will reveal how much content you need.

5. Inbound Link Planning

Only a proper SEO audit can reveal the details of a link building plan, based on the combination of the previous four reasons you need to do the audit first. From what keywords you’ll need in your inbound link mix, to what the URLs will be you’ll be targeting, to which groups of content need how much link building effort to support, supplement or overcome content depth factors.

6. Social Media Needs

Without a proper audit, social media initiatives are another shot in the dark. Maybe you’re going to succeed at reaching your prospective clients or customers, yet even if you do, you won’t be able to maximize the value of your effort without that site audit.

A properly performed audit will reveal details about your target market, competitive landscape and opportunities for social media initiatives. Again, the sweet spot grid will help identify some of these, as will an understanding of those topic priorities.

7. Production Costs

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been brought in to perform an audit after production has begun. Let’s just say “too many”. Given all of the issues I’ve described above, it’s going to inevitably mean some of that production effort will have to be scrapped if you want to get the full value from your SEO efforts. URL changes, content re-organization, topical messaging, starting link building campaigns…

All of these cost additional money that can always be saved by first having that audit performed.

8. Sanity

This is actually an important reason – not just for the sake of the person performing the audit. Every person involved in the process, whether they’re willing to acknowledge this factor or not, will suffer a lot less stress, a lot less chaos when an audit is performed first.

Real World Barriers

Quite often, you’ll find key players in the web initiative will have a vested interest in having the site build started or even completed before SEO is considered. Usually it’s a financial issue – “we have to get the new site out there sooner – we can’t afford to wait a week or a month…”

Sadly, that’s usually because people have made promises or commitments they are unwilling to break. Sometimes its fear based, other times its more subtle fear – pride, stubborn thinking, ego-driven need to maintain control of a process. And yes, sometimes its even a matter of “any site is better than no site”.

Nonetheless, when taking a detached view of everything involved and the ramifications of failing to have that audit performed before the site build, everything points to the sequence needing to be audit first, build later. ( searchenginejournal.com )

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Seven Tips to Maintain Your Website Reputation

Seven Tips to Maintain Your Website Reputation - In order to succeed and combat the competitive online world, you need to maintain a good reputation online. A good reputation does not only require a good website design but a lot more to build confidence, to grow sales and ultimately leads to better revenues and higher profitability.

In today's Internet buzz nasty rumors, wrong opinions and incorrect news spread rapidly and if not taken timely action to handle the news properly, you may face a serious threat to your online business and credibility.

Here are some simple measures you can take to maintain your website's reputation:

1. Respond to customers

Being open and responsive to customers is an important part of creating a positive impression and managing your website's reputation. If someone asks you a question, answer it there or through e-mail. Be quick in addressing your customer issues before the word spreads.

2. Answer the negative comments humbly

Be real, not everyone is satisfied with your work and services. If these people are among the ones spreading negative comments about you for whatever reason like delayed service or unfriendly attitude, answer them instantly to terminate the issue right there!

Be very polite when putting your point of view in front of such people and you'll sure succeed in saving your reputation. Answering negative remarks modestly can be a great way of turning a bad situation into positive one.

3. Create official online profiles

Create your own platform for users to share their experiences they've had with you. Create your own profiles and websites complete with the kind of information you actually want to be available about you. Let users communicate with each other and comment about your products or services, whether positive or negative.

4. Report stolen material from you

It's very well possible that online competitors may steal material from your website to increase their ranking and traffic. This may lose your credibility among your users, making you "not-so-unique" in their eyes. To control such theft, you can report their site through strict action.

5. Write blogs

Writing blog posts are extremely effective in promoting your business. Through blog reviews and blog comments, you even increase your chance of getting high traffic volumes to your website.

If you or any of the experts in your business have important knowledge like instructions, guidelines, tips and trick that can be useful for the users, share them through writing blog posts, let say you write blog for "basic tips for web design". This will greatly enhance your online reputation.

6. Optimize For Search Engines

Majority of the internet users accept results from Google searches or any other search engine as highly credible. Therefore, to maintain a good website reputation, don't forget to optimize your website. You can consult professional search engine optimization services for this purpose.

7. Using the social media

Setting up social media networks in order to maintain your website's online reputation is a great thought. To begin with, set up your profiles on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and MySpace. Once you have your accounts setup, you will need to do the following things:

• Create a complete profile by putting all the information
• Engage and Interact with the members
• Monitor comments for both positive and negative remarks

You might have spend good time and money for your website design and building up your website's good reputation, so it's important not to let anyone drag it through the mud. Follow the above given tips to maintain your positive reputation among the online community. ( entireweb.com)

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What Is CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization)?

What Is CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization)? - Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is a methodology designed to help website owners turn visitors into paying customers. There are two main approaches to CRO: one is researching before launching a website, and the other is launching the website first, and then testing different strategies to see which is most successful. Both strategies have their merits-and their drawbacks.

Approach # 1: Market Research before Website's Launch

Proponents of this approach would say that in the process of making a website, the creator should do extensive research about the makeup of her potential client base and incorporate that research into the website design.

By knowing what prospective clients are looking for, you can craft a more targeted message, making sure that everything from your content to your web page design appeals to your client base, thus increasing the rate of conversion among website visitors.

Pros

1. Less risk of diluting your brand.

Trying new strategies on the fly can be appealing, but as the saying goes, "measure twice; cut once." By switching strategies to try and find the "perfect" solution, you risk turning off those customers you have-and if your first iterations fail to impress, your earliest visitors may leave and never come back.

2. You'll have to do the research anyway-why not do it upfront?

Any good marketing campaign succeeds or fails based on how well the marketers know their customers. Even if your initial website rollout is successful, at some point you're going to want to expand and will have to do CRO research. Why not do it upfront, and increase your chances of having your initial website be successful?

3. You're already building your website for your customers.

As you build your own website, you're undoubtedly gearing it towards who you think your customers are-this CRO method is just a way of researching whether your assumptions about your customers are correct.

Cons

1. It can be time consuming.

Researching potential customer behavior can be a prolonged process, and figuring out how to act on that research can take even longer. That's time that you may not have: the longer you take, the longer it will be before your websites start generating revenue, and the more time your competitors have to horn in on your client base.

2. You'll never be 100 percent certain.

All the research in the world can't predict human behavior, so the only real way to know whether a particular strategy-whether it's a particular headline or image or the wording of your content-works is by testing it.

Approach # 2: Launch Your Website, then Research Your Market

Adherents to this CRO strategy would argue that you need to test your ideas on your websites in order to find what works.

Once you begin to get a sense as to what works, you can optimize everything from your web page background to your Flash intros based on actual input from customers.

Pros

1. You can adapt to a changing marketplace.

The way customers shop changes due to outside influences that you can't control: the economy, the weather, new technological development. By constantly working to improve your website, you can stay on top of emerging market trends and ride that wave as long as possible.

2. Your website can be up and running quickly.

By forgoing significant advanced research, you can make your website live weeks or even months earlier. That's a serious leg up on the competition-and a serious head start on generating revenue.

Cons

1. You might turn some customers off.

Even though customers change their behaviors all the time, they still like stability: just think of all the "We want our old Facebook back" pages that spring up every time Facebook tweaks its system.

2. At some point, you'll have to do customer research.

It's the cornerstone of good marketing strategies, and whether you want to broaden your base or just convince your current customers to buy more, at some point, you're going to hit a wall and need to do customer research. Whichever methodology you prefer, CRO is a vital tool to making your websites successes. ( entireweb.com )

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Nine Tips For Effective Website Content - Giving Visitors What They Want

Nine Tips For Effective Website Content - Web readers may be a difficult bunch, they may take a while to digest information and they may need convincing of every single point you deliver but they are essential. They can become long term, loyal customers, as long as you give them what they want.

Writing for the Internet is a different skill to writing for paper print or paper publications. Website readers digest smaller amounts of information in less time when compared to reading from paper.

This means that website content needs to be very well organised, concise, well formatted, and appealing. Throw in the proper use of search engine keywords, a powerful Call To Action (CTA), your Unique Selling Proposition (USP), and the natural scepticism of web users and it's easy to see why many website owners use professional content writers.

1 - Use An Inverted Pyramid Style Of Writing

The inverted pyramid style of writing means getting your point across early in the text. Web readers are an impatient bunch and they need to know that the page they're reading is relevant. Include a summary or conclusion of the page's main points at the beginning of the text and then elaborate on this as you progress.

2 - Make It Concise

As well as being impatient, web readers aren't able to digest and process information as well on a computer screen as they are on paper. There are masses of studies and numerous sets of data giving statistics on this, but the general point is that basic pages need to be between a third and a half of the length they would be on paper. Try to aim for 300-500 words for web pages, with longer pages for technical articles, newsletters, and other web based publications.

3 - Use Headers And Sub-Headers

Headers and sub-headers not only enable you, as the writer, to properly structure the page; they also enable the reader to scan through and find the information that is most pertinent to them. Don't try anything too clever with your headers and do ensure that they are relevant and informational.

4 - Use Bullets And Lists

Bullets and lists are another method of enabling readers to quickly navigate around a page and grab the most important information. Many readers will simply scroll down a page and if no information jumps out at them then they won't read anything. Prevent these readers from clicking away from your website by offering bite sized chunks of information.

5 - Use Simple Language

Another area where statistics and figures differ is in the comprehension level of website readers. No matter which figures you listen to, though, one point is clear - we simply can't process information as well when reading from a computer. Use simple language, avoid jargon that isn't necessary or clearly defined, and engage your readers using language that everybody can understand.

6 - Use Short Paragraphs And Shorter Sentences

A paragraph should contain text relating to a single, simple idea. When you reach the conclusion of that idea, you should also reach the end of that paragraph. Paragraphs should contain no more than 70-80 words where possible. If a paragraph requires fewer words then make it shorter. The same goes for sentences.

7 - Make It Easy To Scan

Shorter paragraphs, more concise pages, and good headers make a page easy to scan. So too do bullets and lists. Add formatting such as bold and italicised text, quotes, and even hyperlinked text to make the page easier to scan. Remember to use a degree of caution, however, because a page that consists of different formatting techniques will be very difficult to read and understand. Many readers will simply close your page and move on.

8 - Write Objectively

We've already discussed how Internet users are impatient and find it difficult to digest information; they're also a highly sceptical bunch that will take convincing of virtually anything you have to say. Use objective language and avoid the use of too much marketing fluff. Avoid exaggerated claims such telling readers that yours is the best product in the world and instead show them why - convince them to come to that conclusion on their own and you will enjoy better results for your effort.

9 - One Idea Per Paragraph, One Subject Per Page

A single paragraph should contain a single idea and a single page should cover one topic. If a page is becoming too wordy because it includes information on other subjects, then break it down and hyperlink to those other pages. For longer pages remember the bookmark function and use it wisely to help readers navigate their way around your site and take in all of the information that you have to offer. ( entireweb.com )

Giving Visitors What They Want ... !!!

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The Importance of Keywords and Keyword Placement For Your Website

The Importance of Keywords and Keyword Placement For Your Website - You've made the decision. It's now time to either build a website for your business or do a redesign on your current website that just isn't bringing in the business you would like.

One of the first steps in the process is identifying keywords or keyword phrases that potential customers would use to find out about your business and the services you provide.

This is a critical step because these keywords or keyword phrases are what will identify you to potential customers. For instance, you wake up and your foot hurts, normally you'd get online, do a search for a podiatrist or foot doctor, make a couple of calls and be on your way. What if you just put in "doctor" and went to the first one that came up?

Well, next thing you know, you're bent over an examination table, pants around your ankle, while the person behind you tells you that you may experience some pressure and you're thinking either this is some new age medicine or I've made a terrible mistake. Where did you go wrong?

When identifying keywords or keyword phrases it's important to be as specific as possible. Analyze every possible service or product you provide to potential customers, and think of all the ways someone could do a search for those services.

For instance, in our example for the podiatrist, you could do a search for "podiatrist", followed by the location you live in, or you could put in "foot doctor, location" or maybe "foot diagnosis, location". Phrases regarding your foot and or care of your foot would be a good start.

The same applies to your business. Think to yourself, who am I marketing to? Ask coworkers, how they would look us up on the web, same with friends and family. Then take into account variations of those keywords. What if I make them plural, can I abbreviate them, and are they frequently misspelled? Also, think in two and three word phrases, too few words and you might not be specific enough, too many words and it's overkill.

After you've identified and exhausted all the possible keywords you might think there are regarding your business you can test out your theories.

Google has a keyword tool the enables you to put in all the keywords regarding your business, and then they'll provide you with the number of searches each term generates for the last month and gives you a monthly average. From there you can determine which keyword phrases or most relevant to your business and maybe you'll even discover a niche that your business can service that you can use to your benefit.
Now that you've designated your keywords, it's time to begin the process of creating your content.

Placing your keywords can be just as important as identifying them. A good plan is to have one or two keyword phrases that you will associate with each page on your site.

Also, things like putting your keywords in a bold font can also be helpful. The first assumption most make is thinking you can just repeat the keyword, not so. Most search engines will penalize you because they consider this spam.

When creating your content, it's important to use your keywords so that the flow freely in the description you are providing. The content must read well.

When discussing your website design with the company you are using, make sure that they also place keywords in the title, headers, and intra-site links. These important tidbits should help you have a greater understanding of the importance of keywords and their placement. ( entireweb.com )

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What's in Store for Websites in 2011

What's in Store for Websites in 2011 - From mobility to scalabilty, here's a look at the top trends in ecommerce for the coming year.

What’s in store for online businesses in 2011? There are several changes on the horizon, but one common thread through them all is the need for flexibility. Your customers are accessing information in more ways than ever, and their expectations are high. To meet them, you'll need to be nimble.

From mobility to scalability and security, here's my take on the most important trends influencing online business technology in the coming year and what they could mean for your website.


Mobility

The use of mobile devices will continue to grow. Your customers may be reading your emails and visiting your website on smart phones, netbooks or iPads. Are you meeting their needs?

It’s time to start planning for a mobile rollout for your website. First, identify the types of information your customers want to access on the go. These are likely to include your home and contact pages, but each business is different. Restaurants, for example, may want to consider making their menus and events pages accessible. Online stores may consider a mobile commerce version. If your clients are business customers, you may consider offering support and other resources from a mobile device.

Next, find out which mobile browsers and screen resolutions that visitors are using by analyzing your website traffic data. Use this information to decide on the various options for your mobile version. You'll generally want to roll it out in phases and make time to test your updates. Eventually your entire website will need to comply with common standards, but tackling the project in phases will help you budget and gain customer feedback.

Scalability

"Scalable" is a techie term for being able to handle increasing volume and add-on features. Your website needs to be built with a scalable technology so it can change with the times. You may not be able to implement all the changes yourself, but it's a good idea to be able to add new technologies when they become available. For example, many content-management systems have add-ons or plug-ins for mobile or social applications, such as a program that allows visitors to use their saved profile to register with your website rather than creating a new one. If you’re building an online store, be sure that the shopping systems can expand and tack on new features as your customers' needs change.

Interactivity

You'll want to give customers more tools for connecting and interacting with you. These features will be different for every company. Options range from integrating more social-media platforms to adding videos. For some businesses, 2011 may be the year to create a mobile application. For example, you may want to create an app that makes it easier to motivate or consult with clients. While ideas vary, the goal is the same: Engage your customers and build greater loyalty.

Security

Websites have become a target for malware through security holes. Even if your site isn't an online store, it may be vulnerable. Talk to your developer about the recent threats and how to prevent them from harming your site. Just as you run updates on your computer, you need to run updates on your website. Setting permissions on your content management system will not be enough. Online stores also have new security standards to which to adhere called Payment Card Industry compliance. If you have not heard about these standards and you sell online, call your merchant-service provider to discuss the upgrades your site will need. ( entrepreneur.com )

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The web has changed a lot since Marc Andreessen revolutionised the internet with the introduction of his Netscape browser in the mid-1990s

The web has changed a lot since Marc Andreessen revolutionised the internet with the introduction of his Netscape browser in the mid-1990s. That's why he's betting people are ready to try a different web-surfing technique on a new browser called RockMelt.

The browser, available for the first time Monday, is built on the premise that most online activity today revolves around socialising on Facebook, searching on Google, tweeting on Twitter and monitoring a handful of favourite websites. It tries to minimise the need to roam from one website to the next by corralling all vital information and favorite services in panes and drop-down windows.

"This is a chance for us to build a browser all over again," Andreessen said. "These are all things we would have done (at Netscape) if we had known how people were going to use the web."

Andreessen didn't develop the RockMelt browser the way he did Netscape, whose early popularity waned as Microsoft bundled its Internet Explorer browser with the Windows operating system.

The RockMelt browser

RockMelt is the handiwork of Tim Howes and Eric Vishria, who formerly worked with Andreessen. But Andreessen's seal of approval has been stamped on startup.

The biggest chunk of RockMelt's $US10 million in funding has come from the venture capital firm that Andreessen runs with his partner, Ben Horowitz. Andreessen also sits on RockMelt's board of directors, and his advice has been called upon frequently.

"When you are trying to reinvent the Web browser, who would you rather run your ideas by besides Marc?" said Howes, RockMelt's chief technology officer (Vishria is CEO).

Facebook's imprint also is all over RockMelt, although the two companies' only business connection so far is Andreessen. He also serves on Facebook's board of directors.

RockMelt only works if you have a Facebook account. That restriction still gives RockMelt plenty of room to grow, given Facebook has more than 500 million users.

After Facebook users log on RockMelt with their Facebook account information, the person's Facebook profile picture is planted in the browser's left hand corner and a list of favourite friends can be displayed in the browser's left hand pane. There's also a built-in tool for posting updates in a pop-up box.

The features extend beyond Facebook and Twitter. RockMelt includes a tool that shows results from Google searches in a drop-down box that can be scrolled through to peruse the recommended websites in the main part of the browser. The browser's right-hand pane is reserved for listing favourite websites, with automatic notifications whenever they get fresh information on them.

RockMelt stores each user's preferences on a remote server, making them available on any computer that has the browser installed on its hard drive.

Although its backers hail the browser as a breakthrough, RockMelt is borrowing some technology and ideas from other sources. Its foundation is built on Chromium, the same open-source coding that spawned Google's Chrome browser two years ago. Another browser called Flock has been trying to tap into the online social scene for the past five years.

No browser has come close to surpassing Internet Explorer, despite various challenges through the years. Internet Explorer still holds a roughly 60 per cent market share, according to the research firm Net Applications. The Mozilla Foundation's Firefox, which drew upon Netscape, ranks a distant second at 23 per cent followed by Chrome at about 9 per cent.

RockMelt is starting off with a modest goal: it hopes to attract 1 million users as it extends invitations to people interested in trying the browser. Requests can be made through http://www.rockmelt.com.

Andreessen is convinced Internet Explorer's lead remains vulnerable, even after more than a decade of domination and repeated upgrades.

"I don't believe in mature markets," he said. "I think markets are only mature when there is a lack of innovative products." ( Associated Press )

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Launch Your Site on Schedule

Launch Your Site on Schedule. If you want a website that's both on time and on point, you'll have to plan accordingly.

Every time I give a presentation on developing a website, a popular question always comes up: "How long does a website take to create?"

There are many factors that come into play when developing a website, and each element can have an effect on the time it will take to design and build your website.

Sitemap, Planning and ResearchBefore you begin designing your website, you need to outline the sections you'll need on your website. We call this your sitemap. This process will help you outline the content and the flow of the website. Next, I recommend creating a wireframe to illustrate where you want your information to be placed and the functions your website will need. Before you start picking out images or writing your text, it's a good idea to research your competition and identify the right keywords for your website. Depending on how much time you can devote to them, these steps can take a few days or a few weeks.

Design and CopyHave you ever heard the saying "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" When building a website, you often have to ask a similar question--which comes first, the design or the copy? I don't have a hard and fast rule on this because everyone works differently, and some people need a design to write their content to match. Another approach is to sit down write all your website content first, and through this process you'll find the inspiration for the design in the words. The important point is that you have an alignment between the two areas. Your copy and design need to feel cohesive.

You don't have to have all your copy finished to start the design, but having a sizable percentage will help you have a strong idea of the direction you want for your design. If you're doing all of this yourself, commit to tackling your content for an hour or two every day. Use your wireframe and sitemap as a guide to help you cross-reference the material and create marketing call-outs for the design.

If you've decided to use a pre-designed template instead of a custom designed look for your website, you may want to spend time finding some fresh stock photography to add to your website to help differentiate the look and enhance your content.

Coding and ContentCustom-designed websites will need to be converted to the code that makes them work online. This process may take a few days to a few weeks depending on the complexity of the code for your custom website. The next step is to drop in all the content. This isn't just copy and paste, but also styling the text and creating cross-links within the copy.

When using pre-packaged solutions you'll still want to spend some time looking over your content and finding ways to make it work on the screen.

Don't Forget to TestNo matter how your website is built, you should always make time to test its functionality. Browser testing is one of the most important items to check--is your website looking and acting correctly on Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari and Chrome?

If your website uses security, is it working correctly? Do three or four test orders and make sure the transactions are working properly.

How much time does it take to build a website? As you can see, it depends on many factors. Set dates and milestones, and be sure that they're realistic. Remember to leave time for revisions and testing. Most important, a website is meant to change, so it's OK to launch your website even you feel like it's not completely finished, provided all the function and testing is done. You can always add more content or products as you go. This will keep you motivated and give you some new things to e-mail your customers about. ( washingtonpost.com )

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This is absolutely delightful news

This is absolutely delightful news - The nonprofit body that oversees Internet addresses approved Friday the use of Hebrew, Hindi, Korean and other scripts not based on the Latin alphabet in a decision that could make the Web dramatically more inclusive.

The board of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers — or ICANN — voted to allow such scripts in so-called domain names at the conclusion of a weeklong meeting in Seoul, South Korea's capital. The decision follows years of debate and testing.

The decision clears the way for governments or their designees to submit requests for specific names, likely beginning Nov. 16. Internet users could start seeing them in use early next year, particularly in Arabic, Chinese and other scripts in which demand has been among the highest, ICANN officials say.

"This is absolutely delightful news," said Edward Yu, CEO of Analysys International, an Internet research and consulting firm in Beijing, emphasizing that the Internet would become more accessible to users with lower incomes and education. Yu spoke ahead of the approval, which had been widely expected.

Domain names — the Internet addresses that end in ".com" and other suffixes — are the key monikers behind every Web site, e-mail address and Twitter post.

Since their creation in the 1980s, domain names have been limited to the 26 characters in the Latin alphabet used in English — A-Z — as well as 10 numerals and the hyphen. Technical tricks have been used to allow portions of the Internet address to use other scripts, but until now, the suffix had to use those 37 characters.

That has meant Internet users with little or no knowledge of English might still have to type in Latin characters to access Web pages in Chinese or Arabic. Although search engines can sometimes help users reach those sites, companies still need to include Latin characters on billboards and other advertisements.

Now, ICANN is allowing those same technical tricks to apply to the suffix as well, allowing the Internet to be truly multilingual.

Many of the estimated 1.5 billion people online use languages such as Chinese, Thai, Arabic and Japanese, which have writing systems entirely different from English, French, German, Indonesian, Swahili and others that use Latin characters./AP

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Annoy Visitors At Your Website

Easy Ways to Annoy Visitors At Your Website. this is a satirical look at usability. Although it reads like a "Do" list, it is really a "Don't" list. If you follow it literally, your site is history.

1. Place some (or all of) your content in a small frame and force your visitors to read the content through that window. Don't worry about what constitutes "small" here, since most of the time, even if you create a big frame, it'll be considered too small by most visitors. This trick has a high annoyance value since your visitors have to view the information through that small little box and scroll continuously to see the text while the rest of the browser window is filled with information they don't really want to read at the moment. With this strategy, visitors cannot resize or maximize the window to make their reading more efficient or pleasurable. This method will allow you to frustrate those hapless souls and, as a bonus, make them leave your site.

2. Disable the right click menu of the browser. Nevermind that people need the right click menu for many purposes, and that they can access the same functions through the main menu bar even after you've disabled it. After all, if your aim is to annoy, you might as well make their visit to your site as unpleasant as possible.

3. Play background music when they arrive at your page. If that's not enough of an annoyance, make sure you loop the music so that the visitors are plagued by it continuously while they are on your page. If you're feeling particularly sadistic, place automatically-playing music on many (or even all) pages of your site. You don't have to worry about choosing a horrible tune - choose your favourite piece if you like. Since one man's meat is another man's poison, any sort of music tends to annoy most visitors.

4. Make every link on your site opens in a new window when your visitor clicks on it. That is, put a target="_blank" to every link. This will annoy visitors since every time they click on a link in your site, a new window or tab will open. Another benefit of this technique is that it makes your site look amateurish.

5. Force your visitors to navigate your website using Flash. That is, place all your content in a Flash file - text, pictures, links, etc - even if Flash is not ideal for such content (a straight HTML page is best for those types of content). Make sure that visitors who don't have the Flash plugin enabled or installed cannot see anything or do much on your website. This effectively drives away all mobile users, a group of users that is growing in size, as well as cripple your visitors who have come to expect certain facilities to always be available in their browsers (such as the BACK key and the ability to bookmark specific pages) when they visit websites. Now they will be forced to work through the more limited Flash plugin of their browser with whatever subset of features you deign to provide. In fact, exclusively using Flash for your site content might even help you to drop to the bottom of search engine listings too, thereby reducing the number of visitors to your site. After all, if you don't have visitors, you don't have to think of new ways to annoy them.

6. Load your site with pop-up windows that open when your visitor reaches your page as well as when they leave the page. In fact, if you want to annoy them even further, open a pop-up window when they click on links on your site.

7. Reduce the navigational usability of your website. Don't put site maps or navigation bars with shortcut links to pages that your visitors will usually want to go such as the "Download" page if you're a software author. If you can annoy your visitors by forcing them to read whole pages of your text before they can find a link to move on to do what they really want to do, so much the better.

There you have it. Seven quick ways that you can use to annoy, frustrate and irritate your visitors. They may even be effective in driving them away permanently. There are undoubtedly many other ways, but the methods listed above are easily doable by new webmasters.

WARNING: remember, the above is satire. It is a "reverse tutorial" if you will. You don't want to follow it.

[ thesitewizard.com ]

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This Trick Don'ts for SEO Copywriting

This Trick Don'ts for SEO Copywriting. There is no shortage of don'ts when it comes to SEO copywriting. It seems this niche got off to a rough start many years ago when early comers somehow misconstrued the core principles of the trade. Allow me to elaborate on how not to write SEO copy.

1. Don't shove as many keyphrases into the copy as humanly possible.

It's not about the sheer volume of search terms you include. Yes, Google and other engines should be able to follow what the page is about. Yes, engines are looking to match a searcher's query with search engine optimized content on your web pages, but which pages land at the top is decided through a series of calculations far more complex than any simple ratio. When you overload copy with keyphrases you sacrifice quality and user experience.

2. Don't lose site of balance.

If SEO copywriting isn't about the percentage of keywords within the copy, then what is it about? Balance. You have two audiences with SEO copywriting: the search engines and your site visitors. But surprisingly, the balance doesn't come with serving both masters well. The balance comes in how much you cater to the engines. You see, your site visitors always come first.

However, if you write with too little focus on the engines, you won't see good rankings. If you put too much focus on the engines, you'll start to lose your target audience. Balance... always balance.

3. Don't let someone else choose the keywords.

If keyword research isn't a service you offer, an SEO firm, keyword specialist or some other professional that your client hires will have to conduct the research. Don't just accept keyphrases these folks toss your way. Ask to see the entire list with recommendations as to which terms would be best strategically. Then you, as the professional writer, can decide which will also work best within the copy.

4. Don't sacrifice flow for numbers.

This is a follow-up to number three and is a major issue with bad SEO copywriting. SEOs or clients sometimes insist on using hacked-up search phrases that simply don't work in a normal sentence. An example? "Candies samples free." Many copywriters will just grin and bear it, sacrificing quality and flow for the sake of competitive values or other numbers. The result is often some obnoxious sentence like, "If you're looking for candies samples free, you've come to the right place!" Forcing a phrase into the copy at all costs never turns out well.

5. Don't use keyphrases that don't apply to the page.

If you operate a site about wedding receptions, don't try to force a search term about wedding dresses into the copy just because it pulls a lot of traffic. (A) Unless you sell, alter or design wedding dresses, it won't be applicable. (B) Even if you manage to get the page ranked well for the phrase [wedding dresses], once the visitor clicks to your site and realizes you have nothing to do with wedding dresses, they will leave. It's a waste of time and effort and it creates a poor user experience.

6. Don't use misspellings and correct spellings on the same page.

I fully understand that the misspellings of keyphrases can be valuable search terms. However, to mix correct spellings and misspellings within the same page of copy looks like you've got a bunch of typos in the content. It's just not professional. Some writers will go for the old, "We rent limousines (sometimes spelled limosenes) for the most affordable prices in town." I don't care for that approach. It's just not natural. Would you ever see brochure or newspaper copy that reads that way? I think not.

7. Don't use keyphrases the exact same way every time.

This is how we end up with horrible SEO copy that sounds like a 4th grader wrote it. (See #4.) There are lots of ways to use keywords in copy, not just one. In order to sound natural, you have to get creative with your keyphrase use. One way is to break up phrases using punctuation. Since search engines don't pay attention to basic punctuation marks, you can easily write something using the search term [real estate Hawaii] that reads like this: "Currently there is an impressive selection of available real estate. Hawaii listings can be..." See? "Real estate" is at the end of the first sentence and "Hawaii" is at the beginning of the second sentence. The engines ignore the period so there's no problem.

8. Don't use all types of search phrases for every situation.

There are many ways in which this "don't" applies. One quick example is that of an ecommerce site. It wouldn't be advisable to use specific, long-tail keyphrases on the home page of your site. They are much too specific in most cases and are better suited for individual product pages. Broader terms are typically best for an ecommerce home page. If you don't understand the best applications for the various types of keywords, you're likely to have lackluster results.

9. Don't neglect ALT tags/image attributes.

These tags are the ones associated with images on your pages and they carry a good deal of weight especially if the image is used as a link. The ALT text counts the same as anchor text in a text-based link. Depending on a few different factors, ALT text may be a good place for those misspellings mentioned in #6.

10. Don't forget the chain of protocol.

There's a method to the SEO copywriting madness. The idea is not to get as many different keyphrases onto a page as possible. Just the opposite, in fact. Rather than having 12 different search terms used only one time each, you need to use two to four keyphrases (depending on the length of your copy) per page. The title, META tags, ALT tags, other coding elements and on-page copy need to support each other as far as keyphrase use goes. Your goal is to let the engines know that you have original, relevant content about a narrow topic.

Unless you have an exceptional number of back links built up, just mentioning [dark chocolate], [chocolate strawberries], [chocolate chip cookies], [chocolate cake], [chocolate desserts], [organic chocolate] and [chocolate cheesecake] once each on a web page isn't likely to do a lot of good. Instead, pick two or three terms which are closely related and use them several times each along with mentioning them in your tags.

When you avoid making common mistakes, you'll find your SEO copywriting flows much better, is more natural-sounding and ranks higher, too

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Tips for Managing the Website

Tips for Managing the Website. Tips for a Successful Website. A successful website is something that everyone venturing into the new arena of Internet marketing and communications wants to have. Your website will often be a potential client's first impression of you and your business. That being said, it is vitally important that your website represent you in a favorable manner. Your website is a component of your overall marketing strategy and should be reflective of your business and current marketing presentation. Just as your brochures and other print materials represent a level of quality and professionalism, your website should also represent that same level of quality and professionalism. As a point of comparison, you most likely wouldn't have just anyone design your company's marketing materials or for that matter, prepare your tax statements. Similarly, it is important that the person creating your website know how to effectively communicate both your message and style, and be able to create an effective experience for those visiting your site.

What does it really take to have your website be successful, and what are some of the most important steps you can take to make that happen?

1. If you intend to have a unique domain name for your website, you must first check to see if it is available. You can check to see if a domain name is currently registered at http://www.internic.net.

2. Set a budget for your website. It is important to know how much you can spend on your project. In considering costs, remember that a website is a complex matrix of text and images and a professional execution is very important. As a generalization, the larger your investment, the greater your return. In order to spread your investment over time, you can also grow and expand your website gradually. Don't forget to include costs for promotion and advertising.

3. Determine the purpose for your website and the intended results. Does this purpose support the mission and vision for your company? The number of options and variables that are possible in the design of a website are virtually endless. Without a clear idea of the purpose for your website, you may end up putting time, energy, and money into a project which doesn't meet your needs. If you know in advance the results you intend to achieve, you will be better equipped to create a website which will achieve those results.

4. Consider the design and layout of your website. Is it easy to use? Does it take too long to down load? Is it easy for Internet visitors to find information? Does it meet the needs and expectations of your visitors? Several smaller pages eliminating the need for scrolling are often more effective than one long page. If an Internet visitor doesn't have a positive experience of your website, she/he probably won't return, or won't tell someone else about it. An effective website often creates a reason for the visitor to return. This reason can take the form of unique information that changes on a regular basis, interesting and useful resources, or a way for visitors to communicate with you or with each other. Use your website to build a relationship with your Internet audience.

5. Promote, promote, promote. No one will find your site if you don't let them know about it. Your site must be posted to search engines such as Lycos, Yahoo, and Excite. There are approximately 20 to 30 main search engines and several hundred that are smaller or specialized. You can find an extensive list of website submission sites, services, and resources at http://dir.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/ world_Wide_Web/Announcement_Services/

Include your website address on all your marketing materials; business cards, and advertising; you can even paint your address on the side of a company vehicle. The idea is to have as many people see your site address, and thus your website. You may also consider hiring a publicist to help you get the word out.

6. If at all possible, begin your website now. The companies which have been on the Internet the longest are those which achieve results sooner. If you are in an industry which isn't widely represented on the Internet yet, so much the better - you'll be able to start off with a larger market share. It's estimated that there are about 200 million people using the internet with 75% of the in North America. Start your Internet presence today!

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The Crucial of Web Design

The crucial of Web Design. Professional website developers know the importance of web design and the role it plays in making a website successful.

Designing a successful website is no easy task, especially for someone who is new to the world of web development. With the help of web development applications many people can and do create decent websites. But decent in most cases is not good enough to make a site successful from a traffic or financial standpoint.

There are five crucial components of web design that you must focus on in order to make a site valuable to its visitors and successful for you.

- SEO - Getting free traffic to your site.

- Usability - Ease of navigating around the site and finding desired information quickly.

- Aesthetics - Visual appeal.

- Content - Valid, up to date, relevant information.

- Graphics - Eye candy that relays relevant visual information to the visitor.


SEO

Before you ever lay down a byte of HTML code for a site you have to know and understand at least the basics of SEO and how it fits into the design. SEO is the art of designing a site in a fashion that gives the site an advantage for obtaining free and abundant traffic.

The number one aspect of SEO is selecting keywords relevant to your site. The keywords you select should be based on high usage, low competition and relevancy to your topic. Once you select keywords you can then begin the development of your site. Keep in mind keywords are a critical aspect of the design. The keywords you choose will be applied within the design in strategic fashion to benefit the flow of traffic to your site. To understand more on how to implement SEO you should read and learn more about this important subject. If you don't, your website success will be difficult to achieve.

Usability

Your website must be easy to navigate and designed in a way that makes it easy to find information. Visitors will not stay long if it takes more than one or two clicks to get the information they want or if it takes brain power to figure out how to get the information they want. One of the goals of your site design is to keep usability easy, and simple. To do this, apply the following three fundamentals of usability.

* Provide a site search tool.

A visitor in a hurry can quickly find the info they desire then move on to the action they desire.

* Provide simple, intuitive and consistent site navigation.

This provides visitors the tool they need to leisurely explore their way through your site.

* Provide logical and simple to follow content.

The message of a site should start off in a simple and basic fashion with well defined links pointing the way to more detailed information or explanation as needed.

In the cases above the goal is to make it easy for your visitor to find the information they want without frustration or difficulty. Doing this well will have a positive effect on increasing the return of your visitors.

Aesthetics

A website has to look clean, uncomplicated and strike a balance in layout that is pleasant to the visitor. Pleasing aesthetics come about when the colors of a site complement each other, the graphics blend and lend continuation of the theme and the layout brings unity and openness to the page.

Often overlooked by novice designers is the color palette of the site. While you can select color in a willy-nilly fashion and still provide a visually appealing site, a better idea for color selection should be based on an understanding of the color wheel and proven color strategies.

Many web designers often view a web page as an opportunity to blast a visitor with lots of information in hopes this will convince the visitor to take action. Usually this results in a quick exit due to the overwhelming visual effect and complicated look. A better approach is to provide less content and open space (referred to as white space) to allow visitors eyes to scan and explore with ease.

Content

An important feature of any website is the quality of the text content. Visitors come to a site expecting to find answers to their questions, solutions to their problems or for entertainment value. The content offered at your site must be well-written, without grammatical or spelling errors. It also has to be relevant to the theme of your site, with valid, up to date information for your visitors. Content is King!

Graphics

You can have a functional and usable website without graphic elements. However, if there are similar sites to yours that employ graphics, guess which site will get the most traffic. The necessary companions to any well-designed site are the images and illustrations that grace its pages. The images can't be any willy-nilly graphic that you might think is cool. Graphic imagery has to support your branding, and communicate the message you are trying to convey. Before you incorporate graphic elements into your site, take some time to look around the web. Notice what looks good and how elements are laid out. These same layouts techniques can be used as models for your site.

The Internet is a highly competitive business arena. To be successful with a commercial website, you have to keep these five crucial web design elements in mind. Contrary to what many will tell you, it is rarely possible to have commercial success without the benefit of a professional website. This is not to say that you must hire a professional, however you must implement professional design elements to improve your chances for success.

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