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Web Marketing Strategies For Home Business Promotion
Sun 4th Feb '01
In this issue:
1. INTRODUCTION
==>Death of a familiar name.
2. PLACES TO VISIT
==>Web sites for you to visit.
3. TOOLS AT NOW SELL!
==>Useful tools to make your life easier.
4. FEATURE ARTICLE
==>"Ten Rules For A Winning Homepage"
By Azam Corry.
Scroll to the end for subscription details.
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X INTRODUCTION X
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Hi,
I've written another new article for you today. But before you
get to that, I thought I'd mention a familiar Net name that bit
the dust earlier in the week.
After struggling for months, Alladvantage has finally ceased
operations. Launched in 1999, it was the first, and arguably most
widely known of the companies that pay people to view ads as they
surf.
Way back in September last year, I reported that AllAdvantage had
not only postponed its planned IPO, but was losing money and
laying off staff. I said then that I was pessimistic about its
chances of survival, so the news this week came as little
surprise.
From the AllAdvantage web site:
"We are sad to report that the major changes in the marketplace
that occurred during the last year now require that we close the
AllAdvantage Viewbar and our pay-to-surf, sweepstakes and other
incentive programs."
The sharp decline in dot com investments and resultant fallout
has dealt companies like AllAdvantage a severe blow. Not only are
they finding it hard to secure direct funding themselves.
Hundreds of companies have closed over the last nine months.
Fewer companies means fewer advertisers. Those particularly eager
to spend investor dollars were amongst the first to go, making
the effect more pronounced than might otherwise be expected.
For those those still in business, cash is tight. Advertising
budgets have been drastically reduced, in turn driving down ad
rates. Investors are demanding accountability from the companies
they fund. With limited budgets and a need to show results,
traditional Web advertising models with a proven track record
will be the preferred choice of most.
Though unfortunate that repercussions have been so severe, this
tightening-up and weeding-out is good for online business in the
long term. Take it as a sign that the Internet is growing-up.
If you're an affiliate, AllAdvantage won't be paying you unless
credits in your account reach the payment threshold (I assume
affiliates know how much that is). Apparently this is stated in
the Viewbar Agreement, so I can't comment much, although I don't
like it. Visit the AllAdvantage site for further details.
AllAdvantage also suggest you uninstall the Viewbar, as it's no
longer supported, and may become unstable. Instructions on how to
remove the software can be found on the Web site.
BB
Tell me what YOU think! Send your feedback, comments, what you
like, what you hate, etc., to me at: mailto:azam-nowsell.com
TTFN
Azam
PS - How did over a million people get free money grants last
year for their businesses? Click here right now and find
out how you, too, can be the recipient of free money.
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X PLACES TO VISIT X
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News and information for Internet marketers and e-commerce
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X TOOLS AT NOW SELL! X
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Promotion Tools: Click Here
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"Ten Rules For A Winning Homepage"
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By Azam Corry
First impressions of your Web site are extremely important. When
a visitor arrives, you have only a few seconds to convince them
your site is worth investigating further.
With Web sites at least, people do tend to judge the book by its
cover. A significant factor in online success today is looking
the part. You might have wonderful products or services, but if
you don't create the right image, many people won't be around
long enough to learn about them.
Once you have won your visitor's attention, you need to hold it.
Continued stimulation is crucial. Presenting information in a
format that can be accessed quickly and easily is the key. If
they are to remain for any length of time, the experience must
also be pleasant, and the visitor feel comfortable.
Below are ten essential rules for the design of your homepage:
1. It must have a clean, sharp, professional appearance. Little
imperfections you could perhaps get away with a year or two ago
aren't acceptable today. Thanks to the money sloshing around
during the dot com boom, and a general growing-up of the Net,
surfers have become accustomed to hi-quality, professionally
designed pages.
Whilst a sophisticated design is not a prerequisite for success,
rough-edges will label you an amateur. Better to have a clean,
simple page which displays perfectly, than a more complex one
with alignment errors, or images that aren't quite "right," etc.
2. It must be orderly and uncluttered. Build space into your
design. Not only will this improve aesthetic appeal, it also
makes the page more accessible. To the first-time viewer, an
overcrowded page is like a brick wall. Too many elements
overwhelm them. Struggling to find something to focus on, many
will decide they can't be bothered, and make a swift exit.
3. The page must be easy on the eye. Colors should be considered
carefully. What image do they create? How do they blend? There's
nothing wrong with strong colors in moderation, and they can
breath life into a page. However, a background color of anything
that's not white, or something close, is almost always a bad
idea. It simply makes reading hard work. And who needs more of
that?
4. All the most important information should be located in the
top portion of the screen, (often termed "above the fold"), where
it's immediately visible without scrolling. Don't assume people
will see anything below this point before deciding whether to
stay or not.
5. Make it obvious what your site is about. If possible, have a
clear statement of its purpose. You only have a few seconds in
which to tell a visitor you have what they want. Use a strong
headline above your main text to grab attention. Building one or
two keywords into it will score relevancy points with both search
engines and surfers alike.
6. Use sensible fonts like Arial or Verdana, which the majority
of surfers have on their computer. This ensures they see the page
as you do; particularly important when you realize different
fonts consume varying amounts of space, even at the same size
setting. Avoid serif fonts (the ones with feet) like Times. They
are harder to read on screen than sans serif - without feet -
fonts like Arial. Don't use a very small size setting, it will
appear even smaller on a Mac and be almost illegible.
7. Present your copy properly. Restrict the width of text blocks
so they don't stretch across the entire page. On reaching the end
of a line, the narrower the column, the easier it is for the eye
to locate the start of the next row. Text requires breaking up
into short paragraphs for easy reading and scanning. Summarize
sections with sub-heads to catch the visitors attention. Keep
sentences short and focused. Convert sentences containing several
items of information into bulleted or numbered lists.
8. All copy must be visitor orientated. People are interested in
themselves. Not you. The only thing I might want to hear about
you is a fact supporting a benefit you claim to be able to offer
me. Nothing else. And talk to ME, in the singular. Not to the
masses. I don't care about them either. I'm different, so if you
want me to listen, you'd better talk one-to-one. Just tell me why
I shouldn't leave right now. And be quick about it. What benefits
can your product/service/site offer me?
9. Don't use too many graphics as they significantly increase
page download time. Just select a few quality images to improve
visual appeal and add interest. These should blend into the
layout for an overall effect, rather than dominate. Smaller
dimensions and fewer colors reduce file size (which translates
into load time), so split large graphics up into like-colored
sections wherever possible. All images MUST be compressed. Use
the GIF format, except for photographs. JPEG is more suitable for
images like these, which typically contain thousands colors.
10. Links to an "About us" page and contact details should be
clearly displayed. Making this information obvious is not only
professional courtesy - it benefits you. Pages like these, and
even the links to them, help reassure visitors. Making this
information easy to find sends the message that you're up-front
and honest. It shows you care, and are accountable.
Print this article out, grab a pen, and head over to your Web
site. Go through and see how many rules you're breaking right
now. Note down the improvements you can make. And then do it!
© 1999-2001 Azam Corry "Do it Better. Do it Faster. Do it Right!"
Azam Corry owns Now Sell! Bursting with inside information, tools
and resources to help you profit online. Top Rated by Go.com and
Recommended by About.com. Visit: http://www.NowSell.com/?10Homep
==> Get Azam's Biz Bits, viewed a "must read" ezine by thousands
of online business owners: mailto:BizBits@NowSell.com
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