Have Others Review Your Web Site

Writen by Tim Priebe

In the past, I've found that looking at a site for long periods of time during development caused me to overlook simple errors and other items that could be improved. Having a third party review your site prior to publishing or updating can help out greatly.

There are a few different types of people you can and should get to take a look at your site.

1. Someone who is not strongly interested in the content of the site. By having this type of person look at your site, you are representing the average web surfer who happens across your site. My wife is normally the one who fits the bill for this one.

2. Someone who is interested in the subject matter of the site. This represents someone in your target audience. If you are running a comic book site, this would be a comic book fan. If you are running a wedding clothing website, it would be someone who is about to get married. You get the idea. For me, this person (obviously) varies each time.

Even if I'm fortunate and working on a website that interests you personally, you should still get a third party that is also interested in the subject matter to take a look at the site.

3. A fellow webmaster. While you may not consider yourself having mastered the web, you are the master of the website you are working on. Have other webmasters and web designers take a look at your site.

One good resources for this is The Webmaster Forums (http://www.webmaster-forums.net). Just review a few sites yourself first, and then you can post a site for others to review. (This is subject to the rules on their site, so be sure to read any and all guidelines first.)

Having some other people take a look at your website before you upload it (or upload changes to it) is a great idea. Not every little change will require that you do this, but at least have it checked out a couple of times a year.

Tim is the owner and senior web designer at T&S Web Design. His company has developed and maintained website for dozens of small businesses and organizations. Tim also maintains a blog with free website advice for small business owners, GetASiteOnline.com.

Catch The Wave Building Web Sites For Fun And Profit

Writen by Alyson Mead

It was Andy Warhol who said that, "In the future, everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes," spawning countless imitation quotes, and secret wishes that certain people's fifteen minutes would be shortened to, say, seven and a half.

At last count, there were around 36 million web sites on the Internet, and one of them could be yours, without too much work.

If you have a product or service and you don't have a web site, you're leaving a lot of potential money on the table. Consumers spent more than $2 billion on Internet shopping in 2005, and are poised to do even more than that this year.

If you want to build a web site for fun or profit, the first step is to register a domain name, and look for a place that will "host"' your site. That means that the "hosting" company will allow your site to remain on their servers for a certain fee paid monthly or yearly. Interland Hosting Solutions offers one of the best deals around. Domain names run about $7.95 per year, and come with a free web site when you register. If you already have a domain name registered somewhere else, small business sites run from $9.99 per month to 49.99 per month, depending on the level of support you require.

If you're not HTML-savvy, and don't trust your ability to build your own web site, Net Objects makes a great software called Fusion. For not too much money, you can get started with a simple download using the button below. With tons of templates, and the ability to import Flash animations with the touch of a button, it's not going to get any easier than this!

If your product is a little higher-end, and you want the utmost in professional web sites, try Atomic Shops. They can create an online store for you, and with over 1,150 templates to choose from, you're sure to find a design that perfectly complements what you're selling. Add a shopping cart function for just a little more each year, which will pay for itself once you're up and selling! And check out their testimonial page, if you need some further convincing.

Once you've got your business up and running, you'll need a way to stay in contact with people who buy your products and services. Since the CAN-SPAM law can get pretty restrictive about who you can and can't email before being considered a spammer, it's best to go with Aweber Autoreponders. These guys are the go-to source when you want to stay in touch with your customers. If that doesn't sound important, you don't understand the nuances of Internet marketing. Once you have developed a web site, you'll need to include a box where people can sign up for email updates from you. You can include specials, coupons, or a newsletter of interesting information related to what you do. There's a 30-day risk free trial, and all kinds of additional ways to ensure more sales for your business, and more traffic to your web site. And isn't that why you're in the game to begin with?

Copyright 2006 Find Your Prosperity.com

For more stories like this, visit http://www.FindYourProsperity.com

Alyson Mead is founder of http://www.FindYourProsperity.com In her 18-year career as an award-winning writer, she has published hundreds of articles in over 25 outlets, including Salon, AOL, MSN-NBC, BUST, New York Daily News, Bitch, The Sun, In These Times and more. She has received the Columbine Award for Screenwriting, the Roy W. Dean Filmmaking Grant, and a Writer's Digest Award.

Mambo A Fullfeatured Content Management System

Writen by R.Bhavani Vijay

Content management systems (CMS) store and manage an organization's electronic document and Web content so that even the non-technical authors and employee of the company can reuse the information across different applications which is otherwise done by technical programmers. The web published content can also be distributed to customers and business partners outside the organization. The core application of the CMS is to manage content during its entire lifecycle i.e. from creation through publishing. The content of the CMS can also be shared by e-commerce and customer relationship management systems (CRM).

It also reduces the daily stream of calls to the IT department for changes to the website. Content management system enables you to establish a consistent look and feel throughout your site, but gives your non-technical content authors the power to publish and update their own content using simple, but powerful, browser-based tools. Some of the CMS systems integrate with content delivery applications to deliver the content via a web site.

Mambo is a full-featured content management system that can be used for everything from simple websites to complex corporate applications. Continue reading for a detailed feature list. Mambo is a feature-rich dynamic portal engine/content management tool capable of building sites from several pages to several thousand. Mambo uses PHP/MySQL and features a very comprehensive admin manager. Mambo uses a modular framework for component/class extensibility. With Mambo there is no need for HTML, XML, DHTML skills. Just enter your content, add a picture and then through the easy to use administrator web-interface click Publish. Mambo can be hosted on Linux, Unix, Windows and Macintosh OS X servers - in fact as long as it runs PHP and MySQL, it can run Mambo. Mambo is the perfect solution for developers and novice users alike who demand a simple yet elegant way to deploy professional websites rapidly.

http://www.templatemuseum.com/ is the successful company's best choice! Already over 50 Mambo-ready templates! Adobe Photoshop layered PSD and Macromedia FLA source files available for nearly all templates! A new unique template added to the file base each day! Get access for a very nominal price! They charge for the value they add and not for the hard work that Miro, the Mambo Development Team and the Mambo community have put into it. They have a large and healthy user and developer community and provide a basic level of content approval for registered users. They provide online help. Their templates are Search engine friendly and are simple but powerful template system written mostly in HTML, no complex templating syntax to learn.

Author and Administrator R.Bhavani,M.C.A,M.B.A., explains Content Management System concepts and thus helps readers to resolve specific problem,rather than simply providing templates for readers to use.Template Museum can be viewed as a destination place for retrival of information regarding Open source Templates and its true identity is linked with her best work.

Five Questionfive Minute Web Makeover Quiz

Writen by Judy Cullins

If you haven't made the sales and built your clients to an income you want, then you may need a Web Site makeover.

What I mean by that is, most people contact a web master to put up their site. They can connect the links but not all are copywriters that bring in new customers and clients. You may have written your own material, but often it lacks the promotion know how to make your words sell.

Score the below questions from 0-5. Add up the total and see recommendations at the end.

1. Does your home page include headlines that compel your visitor to click to product or service sales letter?

The number one mistake Web site owners make is not to give their valuable visitors a reason to buy. While mission statements and bio talk about you, benefit driven headlines make the difference--showing your potential buyers what outcomes they will receive..

2. Does your site offer a sales letter for each product or service you want to sell?

Visitors want you to help them make an informed decision. Educate them about your service in this piece whether it's in a long or short sales letter. Include benefits, features, and of course testimonials.

3. Do you make it easy for your visitor to buy?

At the end of your sales letter, include a page on how to buy. Include each step because many people online are non-techie like your online marketing coach is. Include the call the action link that takes your visitor straight to the order page. Check out a professional's site to see these skills in action.

4. Do you give your visitors what they want--free information?

Not only does a list of articles, ezines or tips on your site give free service and make you look like the expert, it also helps your site become number 1 to 10 in the search engines meaning more consistent monthly sales. Your non-techie Web coach is still number one in Google and 35 others after three years. Be sure to announce you update material every 2 weeks or even daily. That's what brings your potential clients back again and again.

5. Does your Web site bring you all the income you want?

Your site may be attractive and colorful, but check you monthly sales and make sure they increase to the income you want. It's not the hits; it's the sales that really matter. Naturally, your site brings new contacts and develops an image too, but remember to measure your web site's success by the income it provides. Otherwise it's not worth a dime.

Recommendations

Score 0-4

If your score less than 5 you are ready for a complete makeover. Get help now.

Score 5 to 7

Your site is not doing much for your business. It needs improvement. Get a comprehensive Web site evaluation.

Score 8 to 10

Your site is doing well, but a web strategy could make it more successful.

Score greater than 10

Your Web site works. Get ongoing feedback for adding new content and making link changes. Realize your site cannot be static, and must keep growing and service your particular audience.

Judy Cullins ©2004 All Rights Reserved.

Judy Cullins, 20-year Book and Internet Marketing Coach works with small business people who want to make a difference in people's lives, build their credibility and clients, and make a consistent life-long income. Judy is author of 10 eBooks including Write your eBook or Other Short Book Fast, Ten Non-Techie Ways to Market Your Book Online, The Fast and Cheap Way to Explode Your Targeted Web Traffic, and Power Writing for Web Sites That Sell. She offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, "The BookCoach Says...," "Business Tip of the Month," blog Q & A at http://www.bookcoaching.com and over 185 free articles.

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Email her at Judy@bookcoaching.com or Cullinsbks@aol.com Phone: 619/466-0622 -- Orders: 866/200-9743

5 Reasons Why Your Club Or Group Needs A Website

Writen by Martin Coleman

If you are a member of or in charge of a club or user group and you don't have a website, you are missing out on many benefits!

First, if you have and hand out information pamphlets and brochures, you obviously need people to hand them out. If your material is on the web, you have a permanent delivery method that is handing out your info 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Second, The information contained within your brochure is bound to change from time to time. That would mean having to scrap all your inventory and re-print everything whenever something changes. With a website, you can have shorter print runs and your web version is very easily updated whenever it needs to be.

Third, You can add extras to it. You don't have to have just a static page, but you can if you want to. But you could also add feedback and survey forms, add community forums, picture galleries and share other files and updates between members.

Fourth, It is a reliable contact point. Including a form and/or publicity officer's email address means that whenever someone is interested in contacting your group (for example, if you are in a computer user group and some member of the public is interested in donating some hardware or software), the information is always available, always current and always convenient.

Fifth, It shows you're up to date. Many may not want to show off technologically, but it's fun to have it there anyway. It's fun to show off and you can demonstrate your excellent design and organisational skills using it.

So whether you're a non-profit, social or church group, you can always benefit somehow with a website. They don't have to be expensive and they can be put up much quickly than you might think.

Martin is the author of "How To Get Your Website Up for Free". He is available for writing assignments of any size and can be contacted via his website at http://www.martincoleman.com

Analyze This Web Analytics

Writen by Donald Lee

So, you think you're off to a good start because you finally got your new Web site up and running. You even have one of those counters at the bottom of your homepage so you know exactly how many people visit your site. Done patting yourself on the back yet? When you are, it's time to move your site to the next level. It's time for Web Analytics.

Web Analytics may sound like some sort of complex configuration for your web site, but for amateur Web page developer and internet retailers, Web Analytics is actually an incredibly useful, and easy, tool. In one fell swoop, Web analytics can help you figure out all the important information about people who visit your site. Put simply, it's a way to study who visits your site, what they do while they are there, and why they leave. We're talking about, all the Whos, Whats, Wheres, Whens, and Whys.

If you're looking to sell something on your site, Web analytics can tell you what product pages are attracting the most viewers, which ones the least. The tool can even tell you what parts of your site are confusing to your visitors. And it can tell you where your biggest customers are coming from.

If you're looking to market yourself on search engines, there's no better way than Web Analytics. The tool allows you to figure out which keywords work best to drive traffic to your site. It can help you figure out how many hits you're receiving from your advertising campaigns. That way, you can build your Web content to focus on those keywords and campaigns, and to drive even more traffic to your site.

The benefits of Web analytics are many, so here is just a short list of the main ones.

Web Analytics can:

• provide a traffic count. But unlike those basic counters on the bottom of a homepage, Web Analytics can breakdown your visitors by how many are new, or "unique," visitors, and how many are repeat visitors, along with what pages, and how many pages, they viewed.

• track down the IP address of your visitors, which is like their numerical address on the Web where the visitors are coming from. Not only that, you can track them down to their geographical, real-world location, too, as well as the time of day that they came.

• breakdown individual visits by the entry page, where the person first landed at your site, and the exit page, the last page they visited before they left. Entry pages generally show that the visitor may have bookmarked your site on that page, probably because of its valuable content. Exit pages, on the other hand, could be your site's most boring content.

• count the total time that visitors spent on your site, and exactly what path they took through the site. This can give you the better idea about how well-designed your Web page is, so you can learn how to better design your site's navigation to direct visitors where you want them to go, and get them to stick around your site longer.

• trace your visitors back to the links that brought them to your site. The more links other Web sites have to your pages, the better. On the other hand, visitors may have come straight to your site, which is also not too shabby. It could mean that word-of-mouth on your site is working.

• weigh the value of search engine keywords in your Web content. You could find out what search terms visitors are using at your site. And you could also analyze which terms people are using at search engines to find your site. Either way, it's a great way to optimize your content to what your visitors are looking for.

The ultimate benefit of Web Analytics is to make your site more worthwhile to its visitors. But of course, you want to make it more worthwhile to you too.

Don Lee is an Internet and eCommerce enthusiast. To get FREE web analytics and statistics for your website, please visit http://www.eWebcounter.com - Free Web Counter

Ten Quick Tests To Check Your Website For Accessibility

Writen by Trenton Moss

The Disability Discrimination Act says that websites must be made accessible to disabled people. So how can you check that your website is up to par? There are a number of basic tests you can make to address some of the main issues that provide a good start in increasing accessibility to your site visitors:

1. Check informational images for alternative text

Place the cursor over an informational image, for example, the organisation logo. Does a yellow box appear with a brief, accurate description of the image? For users whose browsers do not support images, this alternative text is what they will see (or hear) in place of the image.

2. Check decorative images for alternative text

Place the cursor over a decorative image that does not have any function other than to look nice. Does a yellow box appear with a description of the image? It should not. There is no reason for users whose browsers do not support images to know that this image is there, as it serves no purpose.

Be careful though as this is not a foolproof test. If a yellow box does not appear, this could mean one of two things:

- The alternative text of the image is assigned a null value, which means that it will be ignored by browsers that do not support images. This is the ideal scenario.

- The alternative text of the image is simply not set at all, which means that users whose browsers do not support images will be alerted to its existence but will be unable to find out what purpose it carries – something which is very frustrating! This is certainly not the desired outcome.

3. 'Listen' to any video or audio content with the volume turned off

If you turn your speakers off, you are clearly unable to listen to, or follow, any audio content. This situation is faced by a deaf person on a daily basis. Ensure your website supplies written transcripts, so that deaf people can understand the message that your website is conveying.

4. Check that forms are accessible

Usually there is prompt text next to each item in a form. For example, a contact form might have the prompt text 'name', 'e-mail', and 'comments', each one next to a box where your site users will enter the information. When you click on the prompt text, does a flashing cursor appear in the box next to that text? If not, your forms are inaccessible.

5. Check that text can be resized

In Internet Explorer (used by over 90% of Internet users) go to View > Font size > Largest. Does the text on your website increase in size? If not, then your website is inaccessible to web users with poor visibility.

6. Check your website in the Lynx browser

The Lynx browser is a text-only browser and does not support many of the features that other browsers such as Internet Explorer have. You can check how your site looks in this browser with the Lynx Viewer, available at http://www.delorie.com/web/lynxview.html. If your website makes sense and can be navigated through the Lynx browser, then it will be fulfilling many of the web accessibility guidelines.

7. Check that you can access all areas of your website without the use of a mouse

Can you navigate through your website using just tab, shift-tab and return? If not, then neither can keyboard- and voice-only users.

8. Check that there is a site map

Can you find a site map? If not, then neither can people who are lost on your website.

9. Ensure link text makes sense out of context

Blind Internet users often browse websites by tabbing from one link to the next. Does all the link text on your website make sense out of context? 'Click here' and 'more' are two common examples of non-descriptive link text.

10. Check your web pages with an automated program

Two programs available for free on the Internet are Bobby ( http://bobby.watchfire.com ) and Wave ( http://www.wave.webaim.org ). They are unable to provide you with all the information that you need, as some checks must be done by humans, but they can tell you some of the areas where your site might be going wrong.

This article was written by Trenton Moss. He's crazy about web usability and accessibility - so crazy that he went and started his own web usability and accessibility consultancy ( Webcredible - http://www.webcredible.co.uk ) to help make the Internet a better place for everyone.

Oscommerce Customization And You

Writen by Gordon Petten

There are a lot of services on the internet that offer templates and applications for oscommerce customization. When deciding on how to customize your website with the solutions that work best for you think about the aspects that you would like to see on the website. Items such as an easy viewable order history, product reviews, a display of what other customers have ordered with that product will aid in creating an oscommerce system that is customized to the needs of the user, which will bring about more business for you in the long run.

In regards to running a business there are certain aspects of oscommerce customization that as a business owner you want to keep in mind to keep the business running smoothly. For starters never loose touch with customers. Keep the website in their minds by sending them newsletters regarding products and services that your business offers. If they are reminded that your business is around it will make you their number one choice to come back to when they want to buy more products.

Oscommerce customization can be designed to offer statistics on customers. Tracking what the most frequent product being sold is. As well as what your customers are interested in. One of the best options to add in is showing what other items customers purchased when they bought the same product. To advertise other products that could have been missed may bring about more money for your business. To make things easier have a program that can print packaging lists and invoices directly from the order screen. It will save time and time is money.

Of course to allow any business to run smoothly and professionally you have to have good support and in the case of oscommerce customization good technical support is a must. For both the company and it's users. The importance of templates should never be underestimated to keep everything looking organized and uniform. Also be sure to have a system that allows for easy backup and restoration of a database. In a global economy such as our multilingual customer service agents is a must in aiding communication for any problems that could occur.

Oscommerce customization has many more options available than what is talked about here. The potential is as limitless as ones imagination and innovation.

OsCommerce Solutions

Credibility 10 Ways To Build It On Your Website

Writen by Laurie Winslow

If you have your own business website and you are trying to sell something, then it is imperative that you are able to establish and maintain credibility. Why is this important? If you are going to ask someone to make a purchase from you, then you need to show them why they should purchase from you rather then your competitor on another site.

If you are able to achieve credibility then you will be miles ahead of your competition. So many websites are missing this vital element of doing business. A fancy website with bells and whistles is nothing if it cannot make a sale. I will show you 10 simple things that you can do on your site to establish credibility.

10 Credibility Tips:

1. Be consistent in everything you do and say on your website. If you change your policies all the time people will mistrust you. State your values and policies clearly on your website.

2. Put your customer first. This is done by writing specific text geared toward your customers about satisfaction guarantee, refund policies, frequently asked questions, and any other pertinent information. Tell them why they should buy from you and not someone else. What do you have to offer that the others do not.

3. Only offer high quality products and services. You do not want to sell substandard items as although you might make an immediate sale you will not gain repeat business. Repeat business is the key to profits. Offer guarantees and refunds.

4. When advertising state the truth. Do not embellish and make claims that are false. If your customer is not satisfied at the end of the sale because of overstated claims you will loose trust and future business.

5. Use testimonials. Contact past customers and ask for their opinion and post it on your site. Testimonials add validity to your products and make it easier to justify the purchase.

6. Establish yourself as an expert in your field. One way to do this is to add a discussion board on your site and be a regular contributor. Another is to post articles weekly on your site related to your topic.

7. Make your presence known. Create your own ezine and offer valuable tips, articles and insights into the topic your website specializes in. This gives people free valuable information, and will keep your business in their mind so when they need another product they will think of you.

8. Make sure you have prompt delivery of your products. People who make purchases do not want to wait long their items. If you are selling a digital product offer immediate download. If you are shipping an item get it in the mail within a day or two. You can even offer different shipping methods- its all about customer service.

9. Make sure your site has contact information. Include a valid email address, and/ or a contact form, business address, and phone number on your site so if your customer has questions or concerns they can contact you. Make sure you respond back in a timely manner.

10. Include an about me page. Tell them about yourself and how you got into the business. Include pictures. This humanizes you and makes the potential customer feel more at ease in purchasing from you.

Remember strong credibility takes a long time to be developed. It can take seconds to destroyed. Be honest, personable and put the customer first. By following these 10 ideas above you will beat out your competition and on your way to having a successful business.

Laurie Winslow is the owner/ webmaster of http://www.internetmoose.com, a website business dedicated to helping other online internet businesses succeed by offering free webmaster tools, articles, wholesale directories, auction tips, ebooks, and software.

The Wonders Of Content Management Systems

Writen by Halstatt Pires

As you get serious about your web site, your time will become invaluable. A content management system is the best way to maximize your efforts

What A Content Management System Does for You

A good CMS system will allow you to update can entire site by making a change one time in the admin that can carry over to all pages of your site. This means you can change the menu, side bar, page bottom, site design, or other sections of your site all at one time. So while some webmasters are changing every page, others can have the task completed in minutes.

Includes, Style Sheets and Content Management Systems

For the do it yourself webmaster, or a professional web designer looking to easily improve update efficiency, there is a middle ground between plain HTML pages and full-blown CMS.

Includes

By simply using an include on your sites, you can allow your entire site to be updated with one change. Includes are files that are included in a web page with one line of code. This allows all pages with that file included to be updated by changing the include file one time.

Style Sheets

Style sheets operate in much the same way as includes. One line of code calls a file capable of determining the look of text and graphics on the site. Entire site designs can be created with style sheets. An example of the power of style sheets can be seen at http://www.csszengarden.com/. Using style sheets can allow webmasters to change the entire look and layout of the site by changing one file.

In Closing

Manually changing a web site is for the birds. Use a content management system and you'll actually have time to have a life beyond your site.

Halstatt Pires is an Internet marketing consultant with http://www.marketingtitan.com - an Internet marketing firm in San Diego offering automated web site systems through http://www.businesscreatorpro.com

Developing A Website 10 Tips For Getting Started

Writen by Juliet Austin

1. Be clear on your purpose.

Building a website can be a long and arduous procedure if you are not sure what you are doing. However, if you have a clear focus as to what you expect your website to do for your business/organization, things will flow much more smoothly. The purpose can be anything from selling widgets online to keeping members of your soccer team updated. Regardless, figure that out before setting sail on your journey.

2. Establish your target audience.

Your target audience will affect what sort of content your site includes as well as how it will look and function. Obviously, writing for kids will be much different than writing for adults. For business websites, a narrow and specific target market, will not only make it easier for you to market your product or service, it will also make it easier for customers and clients to find you.

Also, consider how many graphics and "bells and whistles" you'll want. If your audience is not very computer literate and generally includes people with slow Internet connections, it doesn't make sense to include large, slow-loading graphics, animations, and video clips. You want your site to be user friendly and don't want your visitors to leave because they've become frustrated with the navigation or because your website loads too slowly. Conversely, if your audience is the younger generation, including flashy graphics and other "fun" elements might be more appropriate and even necessary to grab their attention.

3. Determine your budget.

One can spend anywhere from $99 to $10,000+ dollars on having a website developed. Your purpose should help you decide on your budget. Remember, a website should ideally be a work in progress. Don't worry if you can't do everything you want with it initially — you can always add to it later, and it will work better for you and your customers if you keep it up-to-date and fresh.

4. Assess the value of your time.

Many people have undertaken to create their own websites, especially with the advent of desktop publishing programs. Still, they expend a huge amount of time and energy and end up unsatisfied with the results. While it may be true that "anyone" can design a website, the same could be said about any type of work. If it takes you hours and plenty of frustration to cut your own hair, wouldn't you be better off going to a barber or hairdresser?

If you have a flair for design, feel confident in your writing and marketing skills, and have the time, knowledge, and passion to build your own website, go for it! If your time would be more productive doing your own work and contracting out the web creation, that might be worth considering.

5. If hiring a professional website designer, make sure you are comfortable working with him/her.

Do you feel he or she understands your vision? Does he or she provide useful ideas and solutions you hadn't thought about? Have you looked through his or her past work? Do you feel like you're getting professional service? Is the price right for your budget? What is included in the fee you will be paying?

6. Think about how you'd like the website to look and function.

Often you will have a logo and/or other graphics you'd like to build a design around. You probably have some colour and style preferences. Perhaps a certain font has caught your eye. If you're stumped and lacking ideas, go surfing! Look through a wide variety of websites — both your competitors' and other successful businesses/ organizations. Write down (or bookmark) the sites you like and what appealed (or didn't appeal) to you. Do the same with magazine ads. You'll get a lot of inspiration.

7. Organize and formulate a layout for the information you'd like to include.

Assign page names to each distinct "chunk" of information and, if the total number of pages is sufficiently high (over 12, as a rule of thumb), group them into sections. This will make navigating through your site that much easier. Your designer should be able to make some recommendations in this area.

8. Make sure you understand the importance of effective website copy (text).

Your website copy will be determined by your purpose and your audience. On the Internet, people have very short attention spans. If they don't get the information within a few seconds they'll usually move on to the next website — possibly your competition's. Furthermore, the more you know about writing web copy, the more customers you will draw in. You can learn some basic copywriting skills yourself, or you can hire a professional copywriter to write it for you. Always make sure you know what you want to say and say it concisely. If you have the need for a lot of text that can always follow further down the page or on another page.

9. Choose a domain name and find a hosting company.

Your website will need to reside somewhere so that others will be able to access it. And, you'll probably want to register a domain name, such as www.mybusiness.com. Doing so rather than using the long, awkward name (and free web space) provided by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), sounds much more professional and is much easier for customers to remember. Choosing a good domain name can also help you get found in search engines, such as Google. You'll also get related email addresses, such as info@mybusiness.com, which, again, sound professional and reinforce your domain name. There are plenty of hosting companies out there at a variety of prices. Find one that suits your needs. Your web designer or marketing consultant should be able to help you with all of the above.

10. If you have a business website, develop a strategy on how you will market it.

Having a website without visitors will get you nowhere. An analogy is writing a fantastic book, hiding it in the library, and not telling anyone about it. You will need to drive traffic to your site. There are numerous ways to do this. You can either learn to do this yourself, or hire a marketing professional to help you. Although hiring someone will increase your initial costs, it can pay off in the long run when you have more potential customers visiting your site, and ultimately increasing your sales.

© Juliet Austin & Nathaniel Richman, 2005.

Juliet Austin is a Marketing Coach, Consultant & Copywriter who assists counselors, healing professionals and socially responsible business owners in marketing their practices and businesses. Juliet can be reached at: http://julietaustin.com/

Nathaniel Richman is a Web Designer/Developer who assists socially responsible businesses and organizations to promote themselves by creating unique, professional websites and other multimedia applications, such as CD-ROMs and newsletters. Nathaniel can be reached at: http://nrichmedia.com/

Together, Juliet and Nathaniel provide a unique website design and promotional service to help professionals, businesses and organizations make the most out of their websites. Visit their blog at: http://www.websitedesignandpromotion.com/

The authors grant reprint permission so long as the article and contact by-line remain intact.

Nonprofits Successful Online Strategies

Writen by Wendy Maynard

More and more non-profit organizations are developing websites to help share information about their mission and programs. This involves strategic planning about the best way to present your image and message online. Once your site is up, your organization also has to be ready to keep information current and to maintain consistent outreach activities. If your group is planning a Web site, consider:

1. How does your organization plan to use your site? Is it for marketing your organization, raising funds, providing information, announcing events, attracting volunteers, starting a discussion group, or something else? Answering this question will help you to develop a site that best suits your group's needs.

2. Who is your group trying to reach? Think strategically about the audience you are trying to target. Are they current or potential clients? Are they donors? Volunteers? A particular group in the community? Tailor your website to speak to that audience.

3. What information do you want to include? Some of the components you can incorporate on your site include: your mission, a list of programs and goals, contact information (staff list, e-mail addresses, mailing address, phone and fax numbers, and directions to your organization), list of special events and dates, organizational history, links to other websites, volunteer opportunities, and press releases.

4. If your NPO wants to engage in online fundraising (and you should!), then carefully consider the following: How will online giving be managed internally? What online forms will you use to gather donor information? How will you ensure security for donor information and credit cards? What offline options will donors have who do not want to give online? Which giving options will be included on the site (ex: planned giving, current campaigns, future projects, etc.)?

Once you've decided on your content, speak to a web designer about the "look" of the piece. The impression that you give offline should be carried into your online presence. Your website is an important tool to reinforce your identity, image, and credibility. In addition to text, you can include full-color photography, your logo, and graphic images. Keep the copy simple and include interesting visual images that show the work you are doing in the community and the audiences you serve.

Marketing your site is as important as designing it. There are many ways to promote your website, both online and offline. Most people who visit your site learn about it from printed material, not from looking it up on a search engine.

For offline marketing, add your URL address to business cards, stationery, newsletters, brochures, fax cover sheets, and so on. List your website on any materials that you hand out at conferences, seminars, and workshops. Put it next to your organization's mailing address and phone number. Send out a card or letter to announce the launch of your site and include an article about it in your newsletter. Send press releases to the local newspapers and to professional publications announcing your website. Make sure that your staff, Board, and volunteers know the site address and can discuss the content.

Online, you can register your home page with Web announce sites, directories, and search engines. Send e-mails to other related websites asking for a link. Send an e-mail to your clients, donors, partner organizations, and volunteers with a link to your URL address. Have staff and board members include this link at the end of the e-mails they send. Announce your site on relevant Internet newsgroups and lists - if you participate in these groups on a regular basis, you will help build an online reputation for your organization.

Another important online marketing strategy for non-profits is to list your organization with Internet charity portals. These websites offer a directory of non-profit organizations. Charity portals include CharityNavigator.com, GreaterGood.com, FreeDonation.com, NetworkForGood.org, 4charity.com, and WorkingForChange. Donors often peruse these sites to help them with their research, so it's important to keep your listing up to date.

Internet marketing is a never-ending process. It requires a commitment to send out regular e-mails, keep your site information timely and accurate, update your staff on the latest Internet technologies, and learn about other Internet resources that can benefit your staff and clients. There are countless ways to use your website to bring in and send out new information. As you learn more, you can also use your website as a means to recruit volunteers, raise funds for your current campaign, and encourage activism.

Wendy Gray Maynard is the co-owner of Kinesis. Kinesis specializes in marketing, graphic design, and business writing. Visit http://www.kinesisinc.com for more articles and free marketing wisdom.

Want to harness the power of kinetic marketing? Sign up for Kinesis Quickies, a free bi-monthly marketing e-newsletter: http://www.news.kinesisinc.com

How To Listen On The Web

Writen by Bette Daoust, Ph.D.

When building a relationship, listening is more important than talking.

A website can reveal a great deal about your business, even answer questions about whom you have done work for in the past. It is a great place to put testimonials, and quotes from current and past customers. The web is also a good place to sell your products or services. There have been many articles about how the web has been disappointing for the number of sales as compared to regular sales venues such as a retail location. Even though this may be true, it is still an excellent forum for putting in your sales pitch in a manner that the customer can better understand. To promote yourself and also look extremely professional, you can toot your own horn and explain what a good job you are doing. In doing the promotion, make sure the customer can cut through the extraneous materials and get to the heart of the matter.

I hate going to websites that spend their whole time giving me the hype and the giant sales pitch. I usually go to a site to get more information about a company, see who the players are, what kind of business they do, where they are located, and how they can help my business. If a site is obviously only there to pitch me, I usually go on to the next company that gives me the information I want. People go to sites for information and advice; they will not read the hype. Put your support materials online and drive them to the site.

Flashy may be good for some websites but when you re doing business, you need to get to the point. Give out information freely, do not expect anyone to add their email address to your list before you give something out. Otherwise, more often than not they will leave your site.

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. has been networking with others since leaving high school years ago. Realizing that no one really cared about what she did in life unless she had someone to tell and excite. She decided to find the best ways to get people's attention, be creative in how she presented herself and products, getting people to know who she was, and being visible all the time. Her friends and colleagues have often dubbed her the "Networking Queen". Blueprint for Networking Success: 150 ways to promote yourself is the first in this series. Blueprint for Branding Yourself: Another 150 ways to promote yourself is planned for release in 2005. For more information visit http://www.BlueprintBooks.com

Web Based Application Developmentweb Applicationsweb Application Servicesweb Development Resource

Writen by Meenu Suri

The World Wide Web (WWW) has changed how today's businesses communicate. WWW is not anymore only used to get and disseminate information but employed as a tool for performance. Today's websites are not just static pages but interactive tools that enhance your business capabilities in real time. These responsive sites are powered by the web-based applications that are capable of responding and interacting with the user and allow skimming the information that is relevant and is up to date.

To be more precise, a web-based applications is the one that uses a website as a front end and you can access this website viz application from any computer connected to the internet. The web applications is delivered to users from a web server. The most common web applications you must be using almost everyday is an e-mail like hotmail, yahoo etc. Other web-based applications that are used frequently to interact with clients, partners and other businesses are:

Custom Relationship Management
End-to-end web based recruitment
Online customer support software
Online data collection, analysis and reporting
Online quote software
Online product database development
Online ordering systems
Personalization of web page content
SMS messaging integration
Secure client areas

Secure areas to allow collaboration with business partners Web Content Management Systems

Web based applications are all about convenience and getting the combined power of desktop and server applications with the accessibility of 24 hrs, anywhere and anytime.

Let's see how they become the most strategic business tools: No installation and maintenance of the software: These web applications run on a web server, which you can access through internet. You don't have the hassles of installing and configuring a program. So, one does not need to worry about the maintenance and troubleshooting or on heavy backups on the disk space.

Cost effective: Since you are running the program from someone else's computer and no license and space management on your disk is required, so save heavily.

Latest updates available: Since someone else is hosting the program and maintaining it remotely for you, so whenever there are latest updates you just need to click on your web browser as usual and avail the latest features of a web application.

Readily available data: To access your data you just need to be connected to internet through your PC, which is no more a novelty. So, wherever you are, you can get connected to your data anytime. So the accessibility to your data is 24x7.

Multiple platforms: Almost all the web based applications are suitable for every web browser like Internet Explorer, Netscape etc or whichever operating system you have on your PC. The web application will always look and function uniformly.

Hope you guys will find the above article resourceful, For more info kindly visit our website http://www.bluent.co.in

BluEnt eSolutions-your one stop destination for all your professional web related requirements catering to website design, web development, SEO, corporate training, web hosting, VoIP services, flash presentation and other web related applications.

Five Reasons You Have To Stop Your Web Site

Writen by Mahmood Bashaash

That's right. Your method, behavior and strategy you are now using to manage your website may be justifiable reasons to stop it as soon as possible.

Right now, there are millions of websites on the Internet, many of them are dead static pages with not or very few visitors. The owner of websites are paying lots of money and effort to make the website up and running and are giving service to visitors. From within these much of website owners, a little of them are earning money from their website or their website is beneficial for their business, most of the others are wasting their time and money.

However if you do not have a web site on the Internet, your business is under a very serious risk to be bypassed by your competitors, but if you are not running your website in a right way, then it would not only be a useless but also a threat to your whole business. If you ask why, just read just five more important reasons that you have to stop your website.

1-Your website is not well designed.

People trust to their eyes more than their other senses. So, if your small website is not well designed, it is crowded, bad colored and improperly written text, so they might think that your real store or your office should also be something like that. Having technical problems like JavaScript error messages, run time errors on loading pages, slow page download, useless graphics and flash animations are also factors that should be considered.

2-Your website is not up-to-date.

If you have put old and obsolete data and content on your website and you do not pay enough time to make it up-to-date, then how visitors could trust on your knowledge. How could you prove you and your team's knowledge is not obsolete too? There are millions of websites that deliver very new information and are updated daily or even hourly. Visitors would not tolerate with old content. If they reach to useless and out of date information on your web site, then they leave your website to visit your competitors' web site.

3-You do not reply your e-mails regularly and without delay.

If you do not pay enough attention to your website visitors and their e-mails, then you may have the same manner in your real world business with your customers. Replying e-mail is the simplest routine that you should have put in your daily tasks. You are not expected to reply e-mail immediately. Replying every 24 or even 48 hours is also acceptable. If you delay in response, then your competitors would win in reaching hopeless visitors that have sent you a price quote weeks ago and still are waiting. Even they have not received a simple auto responder to be sure you have received their e-mail.

4-Your website is not optimized for search engines.

So, all your potential clients that search for your services and products would be captured by your competitors who have invested to be on top in search engines. If you are paying a lot of money for your website hosting, design and support, if you make your website content up-to-date and pay time and energy to reply your e-mails, but have not a good ranking in major search engines, then you are losing your money. Being visible in the huge world of Internet is vital for your online business and search engines are very useful for this purpose. However, you should target your audiences in many other promotional methods rather than search engines, like, banner ads, e-zines, e-books, articles, forums and newsletters.

5-Insufficient information and facilities in your website.

If you have not mentioned your complete postal and contact address or you have not included price list of your services and products on your website, then you won't be able to capture visitor's interest. No pricing information means no path for decision. Visitors decide on many parameters, price is the most important one. Besides, a very intuitive shopping cart that could be easily managed and online credit card processing with security considerations would be the next thing your visitors would search for on your website. Not having these items, better to stop your website.

There are lots of reasons you could find in articles that having a website is vital for your business. There are also check points that you can follow to make a good website. You can use those check points to run a very successful web site to help your business and who knows, you may some day stop your real world business and just rely on your website, like many other businesses that you can find them just on the Internet. eBay, Amazon and Yahoo!. But if you are deciding to have a successful business online, you have to consider that not having set a strategy for your online business means losing reputation, money, energy and resources both on your online and real business.

This article tried to make you aware that, some day you may reach to a point for a hard decision that is, stopping your website or your very expensive website just because of your incorrect management methods. Hope you never see that day.

About The Author

Mahmood Bashaash is the owner of SGNetway Company in web address of www.sgnetway.com which is focused on developing web sites and web applications and is the author of MahmoodB web site and newsletter that reveals hundreds of killer Internet marketing tips and tricks. To access his articles, visit: http://www.mahmoodb.com; mahmoodb@sgnetway.com

Top 10 Webmaster Challenges

Writen by William Nabaza

Webmasters deal with a myriad of complex design challenges every day. This article will discuss the top ten challenges and provide solutions and tips for solving each problem.

1. Browser Compatibility You must design your Web site so that it is viewable on both browsers: Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE). Netscape Navigator is very strict when it comes to HTML tag completion, but IE isn't. You need to view your site first using Macromedia Dreamweaver before publishing to the Web. Make sure you've run the command convert to ensure your site is version 3.0 browser compatible. If you're using Netobjects Fusion to create the layout of your site, make sure that all layer objects are converted into tables. This is highly recommended if you want to reach a broader and wider audience.

Online resources:
A) Dr. HTML, located at www2.imagiware.com/RxHTML/
B) Web Site Garage to check your links, located at websitegarage.com

2. Graphics Optimization

Web graphics play an essential part in your Web design, because it conveys the emotion and impact of your site. Always make sure that all of your graphics are in .gif and .jpg format. Unless your site deals with photography, minimize the use of the .jpg format. You can use Macromedia Fireworks to minimize the file size, especially the slicer feature if you need to place a large photo on your site. Another option is the export preview of Macromedia Fireworks. This allows you to remove unwanted colors in your graphics, thus decreasing file size.

You can also do this online by using one of these online utilities:

A) GIF Optimizer by Media Builder, www.gifoptimizer.com

B) JPEG Cruncher and GIF Cruncher, www.spinwave.com/crunchers.html

C) Windows-based graphics optimizer, CyberView Image Lite (JPEG Compressor), www.cyberviewcd.com/cvimage/index.html

D) Advanced GIF Optimizer, www.gold-software.com/ago.html

E) Photo Crunch (JPEG Compressor), www.imroncorp.com/photo.htm

F) JPEG image compression FAQ, www.faqs.org/faqs/jpeg-faq/part1/

3. Keeping the Site Fresh

I think this is the bulk of a webmaster's work, if you want your site frequently visited. You can keep your site fresh by really working on new content on a daily or regular basis and by making it interactive. As with content, you can make use of www.moreover.com, www.subportal.com, www.newshub.com, and other content syndication sites to provide the content for your site automatically. Let them do the hard work for you! If you place a tag, they will email you with new content. As for the interactivity, offer your visitors web-based email accounts, a message board with a chat room, a search engine crawler, and banner ad rotation. This is easy, and provided by Everyone.net. Searching your site is another way to easily provide information to your visitors. You can get a site search engine from www.picosearch.com and www.atomz.com.

4. Pushing Information to Your Visitors

A Web site is a "pull" promotion, but as a webmaster, you also need to be thinking about how you can "push" information to your visitors, users, or subscribers. You can publish an ezine on a weekly or monthly basis just to let your users be informed about the latest technology you've added to your site. As for the mailing list, you can get a free mailing list from www.egroups.com, www.topica.com, or you can choose a paid service such as www.aweber.com or www.getresponse.com. As for the content, you can get lots of articles from bbs.weblord2000.com, or try one or more of my articles that can be found on the same Web site.

5. Driving Traffic

Webmasters shouldn't forget to announce your Web site. Accomplishing this is easy for Web sites that already have a lot of traffic, but even sites that are starting out with 5 or 10 members can benefit from the viral marketing of online recommendation software. Services include www.Nabaza.com/refer.htm, www.evite.com, and www.ewomp.com.

6. Dealing with Spammers Unfortunately, the reality of the Internet is that people will spam and flame on a daily basis. Web-based email addresses like the ones set up by www.everyone.net are spam-proof. You can set up your account so that any emails sent without your address in the "to" box can be directed automatically to the trash or spam folder. However, flames and hate emails are a different field. You shouldn't try to get even or retaliate. These people are not a joke. It might cost you your ISP or your e-life. Instead, check out www.spamcop.net. It does the nitty-gritty work of automatically reporting misbehaving people to their postmasters. Usually, it's helpful to get the ISP, or at least the IP address of the suspected person.

7. Stickiness!

Webmasters are also faced with the challenge of keeping their site sticky. CBSMarketwatch.com is a good example of a sticky site. This stock/investment related site contains timely news and excellent company data. The vast amount of information results in a good number of page views per visitor. Plus, visitors return on a daily basis to get the latest-and-greatest market news and stock data. Lots of page views per visitor AND repeat visits. now that's what you could call really sticky.

Here are some additional suggestions:

A) Make your site a portal of information. It encourages your visitors to return and stay. Hotsheet.com is one example of a one-page portal.

B) Add games to your site. You can get some here: www.uproar.co.uk or at www.pogo.com/affiliates.

C) Make your site interactive with a guest book, forum, tell-a-friend link, webring, customizable news, contests, polls, e-card, and free for all links. Bizland.com allows you to sign up for an account and place the code on your site.

D) Provide links to freebies, get-paid-to-surf sites, contests, incentives, jokes, quotes, mp3, and gnutella. Just don't forget to opt in for at least their email address before they can actually download stuff from your site.

8. Find Your Web Host

It's critical to find the right Web host. Although you may need to get your own server when your site gets one million page views per month, most sites that are starting out do not require the complex and expensive task of managing your own servers. There are many Web hosting providers that are willing to provide starting at 40gb of Web space. You can also look and compare different Web hosting providers on these sites: www.webhostdir.com, www.hostfinders.com, www.hostindex.com, www.hostsearch.com, and www.findahost.com. I always recommend the advanced search, which allows you to specify your budget and the specific features you will need.

9. Think Globally

Keep the site international in its appeal. Babelfish.altavista.com allows you to place snippets of code into your site that will automatically translate your English site to a different language, such as Spanish, Italian, German, or Polish. As webmasters, we must remember that we cannot filter countries on our site. We must be able to communicate with them.

10. Search Engine Submissions

Webmasters love to promote their sites on message boards, newsgroups, link exchanges, and even email, but they often forgot the best source of traffic. Submission sites like www.Nabaza.com/traffic.htm, www.Nabaza.com/submit.htm, and www.beseen.com can be used to submit your site for free. You don't need to submit to all of them, only to the major ones, like Yahoo, AltaVista, Google, Hotbot, Infoseek/Go.com, Lycos, and Northern Light.

I hope that you have found these tips helpful. For more information, please visit my site www.MoreFreebies.info. Nabaza.com provides solutions to everyday webmastery task like search engine submissions, internet promotion, and sticking your visitors to your site. Become a member now for as low as U.S. $100.00 a year.

Nabaza.com specializes in building, designing, implementing, managing and maintaining corporate website to boost sales of your company. Email william@nabaza.com for information on functional, dynamic webpage designing with affordable packages. Subscribe for free!

http://www.nabaza.com/sites.htm
http://www.nabaza.net
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Why You Really Need Your Own Web Page Inorder To Make Online Business

Writen by Oliver Troll

How many Web Sites did you stumble over telling you that you don't actually need your own? Now, this is true to a certain extend but not if you are heading for the real scoop.

What we all aim for is to go from point A to B in the shortest time. A stands for where we are now and B stands for where we want to be in the future.

Why would you take the bike when you could take the car?

Or why would you take the car if you could catch an airplane?

Alright that was maybe a little too much but you understand where I'm getting at?!

Not having your own Web Site will do but not if you want to have fully control of you business. Since you 'always' keep a copy of you Site on your hard drive or on CD there is hardly no risk of loosing the information. There is no need of starting all over again if you have your own Site and your Web hosting company suddenly goes bankrupt or anything similar to that. If you don't have your own Web Site then your are in the hands of the service that provided you with the site.

-You can't change service when ever you want

-You can't improve your site whenever you like

-You can't simply manage you subscription list's since you can't collect the subscribers!

-You can't put you own links on your site

If we summarize this then I think the conclusion is really clear. Your best of with your own Web Site

Best Regards

Oliver Troll
The Croftbiz Team
Croftbiz

Top Tips For Setting Up A New Website For Your Small Business

Writen by Robert Kingston

So you have a new business and are ready to either create your own or employ someone else to create you a shiny new website. Here are a few top tips which you should follow in order for the site to work as hard for your business as you do.

Keep it simple
A website is fundamentally either a source of information or another vehicle for selling your products and services. Your customers are highly likely to want a pleasant experience and most importantly, not get frustrated with a highly complex site. Therefore, whatever you do, please don't have a site using flash animations all over it, search engines find it difficult to find these, users generally hate them and worst of all, they make me want to throw stuff at my screen.

Make the site search engine friendly
This is really not that difficult. Optimising your site for search engines such as Google can be achieved with the following steps (don't worry if bits of this gets technical, you can skip pass this - but do look at the first point, it's the most important) :

• Content, content, content – Generate relevant, keyword rich content and the search engines will love it, just as much as your users do.
• Titles – If you are familiar with H1 tags then make sure the titles on your pages are H1! These again should be keyword rich and relevant.
• Meta data – Long gone are the days when you can stuff a load of keyword into the meta tags, but optimising the titles, keywords, and descriptions should still be filled in as search engines do still use them, even if it is to a lesser extent than a few years ago.
• Include a sitemap - Users can use this if they get a bit lost whilst wandering round your site and search engines spiders use them when…well..wandering round your site.

So once you have your beautifully crafted, simple to use website, you need to do a bit of promotion so people actually come to it. I will very briefly describe 3 ways of attracting customers (there are many more articles which explain these in more detail.

• Pay Per Click – basically this is getting to the top of search engines such as Google as a sponsored link which you will only pay for once a user clicks on the ad. This is a great way of instantly generating traffic to your site and if set up correctly, the return on investment can be great.
• Link Building – getting other websites to link to your site will eventually propel you up the search rankings and give your users other avenues to getting to your site. Submit to as many free directories as you can and ask relevant websites for a link. Alternatively you can make your site so good that people will want to automatically link to you. Be wary however of companies offering to submit you site to link farms, this rarely works and search engines are likely to punish you for trying to trick them.
• Promote your site as part of your traditional marketing – sounds obvious but many small business don't promote their website on office stationary such as letter heads or at the bottom of their e-mail sign offs. Your website could well be your best marketing tool so make sure you promote it at every possible opportunity.

Robert Kingston is marketing manager of Brighton Stuff, a brighton sports directory providing information on everything brighton.

http://www.brightonstuff.co.uk

The Birth Of A Professional Web Site Part Six Search Engine Preparation

Writen by Shelley Lowery

An important part of developing a successful web site is attracting a steady stream of targeted traffic.

A significant amount of web site traffic originates from the major Search Engines. A Search Engine is a web site that indexes web pages. These sites run software programs called "Spiders" or "Robots" that continuously crawl the Internet in search of new web pages to index.

When you visit a Search Engine and you're looking for something in particular, you type in a few words that best describe what you're looking for. These words are known as keywords. The Search Engine will return a list of web sites that are most relevant to your keywords.

When a Search Engine indexes a web page, it scans the page in search of specific keywords. The pages that rank high when a search is returned are the pages that are most relevant to the search query.

If your page doesn't rank in the top 10 or 20 results when doing a keyword search at the Search Engines, your target audience won't be able to find you.

When designing your web pages, you must specifically optimize each page of your web site. Each page should target one specific subject and be optimized with keywords that best describe the subject.

Optimizing your web pages will include all of the following:

• Selecting the most relevant keywords for each page

• Placing the META keyword and description tags within the head section of each page

• Using your primary keywords as your page title

• Placing keywords within your image ALT tags

• Placing your primary keywords within heading tags

• Using your primary keywords as image names

• Using your primary keywords as page names for hyperlinks

• Using keywords within your body text

Keywords/Keyword Phrases

A keyword is a word that best describes your web page. For example, if your web page is focusing on dogs, your best keyword will be "dogs."

A keyword phrase is two or more words that best describe your web page. If your web page is focusing on grooming a dog, your best keyword phrase will be "dog grooming."

When optimizing your web pages, you should concentrate on just a few keyword phrases for each page. These keyword phrases should directly relate to your subject. Avoid using general one-word keywords, as you definitely won't rank high in the Search Engines.

When you begin optimizing your web pages, each page should be optimized for a different primary keyword phrase. For example, if you're selling dog grooming products, your main page would of course be optimized for dog grooming products. However, you might have another page that targets dog grooming tables. And, another that targets dog grooming kit.And, another that targets dog grooming scissors. See how that works? A highly targeted keyword phrase will attract highly targeted traffic.

The key to ranking high in the Search Engines and driving highly targeted traffic to your site is to select highly targeted, product specific keyword phrases that are less competitive and less generalized. You don't want to target every little possible keyword; you want to focus on your primary keyword phrases for each page.

Your first step towards optimizing your web pages will be to download a great little tool called Good Keywords http://www.goodkeywords.com. This is a free software program that will enable you to type in a specific keyword and it will return a list of keyword phrases.

As the competition for highly popular keywords is fierce, you will significantly increase your chances of receiving a high ranking in the Search Engines by targeting the less popular keyword phrases. And in turn, significantly increase your traffic.

For example, if your web page focuses on grooming a dog, you would type the general keywords "dog grooming" into the Good Keywords search box. The search would return a variety of more targeted keyword phrases. The keyword phrases that should be selected are those that are a little less popular, yet much more targeted.

Selecting the right keyword phrases is the first step towards ranking high in the Search Engines.

(Continued in part seven)

Copyright © Shelley Lowery

About the Author:

Shelley Lowery is the author of the acclaimed web design course, "Web Design Mastery" (www.webdesignmastery.com) and "eBook Starter - Give Your eBooks the look and feel of a REAL book" (www.ebookstarter.com)

Visit www.Web-Source.net to sign up for a complimentary subscription to eTips and receive a copy of Shelley's acclaimed ebook, "Killer Internet Marketing Strategies."

You have permission to publish this article electronically, in print, in your ebook, or on your web site, free of charge, as long as the author bylines are included.

Building Websites Stick To Topics You Know About

Writen by Andre Bias

The internet is a place that can be used for many things and one of those things is money. People sell products online, services online, and they also make money off of advertising and affiliate revenue. With all the money to be made online it is easy for others to want to jump in and replicate other successful websites they see. The problem with that is, just because one guy is make a few thousand every month does not mean everyone can. That person may have several techniques to making the money he or she is making but the overall key is most likely good content. The best way to have good content is to know your subject. If you create a copycat website on a subject you are unfamiliar with, and expect to make a killing, you will not.

Instead of chasing after those that are making good money on a specific subject you would be better of creating a site based on your interests that you have a deep knowledge of. Doing so will allow you to create quality content and you will enjoy doing it and surely, the money will follow. So next time you think about throwing up a crappy website just for cash, don't do it, just turn your attention toward quality and everything else will follow.

Andre Bias is a webmaster and is the owner of several websites including, http://www.serioushoops.com, http://www.inkjetdealz.com, and http://www.kidfriendlyentertainment.com

External Links On Your Website Do Or Dont

Writen by Tim Priebe

In the past, clients have asked me why they should link to other websites on their own site. Why would they want people to leave their site and visit someone else's?

First off, you have to be smart about it. Don't link to sites that are going to directly compete with you. But it is okay to link to sites with a similar target audience. There can even be some slight overlap with your own site, and you should still be fine, given that your website is appealing enough in its own right.

Second, if you really have so little faith in visitors to your website, you're in trouble. If they don't come back to your site, it's not because you had links to other websites. It's because you're doing something else wrong on your website. If your website has valuable and unique information, they'll be back.

I did say unique. Let's say I start a site where people can vote on their favorite cartoon, and that's the main point of the site. Including links to sites that discuss some of those cartoons can't hurt anything, and it can add some volume and value to the site. My site would then be one of the places that all those links were collected. Would you rather go to a search engine and try to track down all the sites, or go to my site where there's a links page with all the information you already need?

And the unique aspect of the site is still there. You go to the site to vote on cartoons and see how they are ranked. The links are just an added bonus to the site visitors. However, they can help to increase search engine rankings on a site that might not otherwise rank high at all.

Tim is the owner and senior web designer at T&S Web Design. His company has developed and maintained website for dozens of small businesses and organizations. Tim also maintains a blog with free website advice for small business owners, GetASiteOnline.com.

Webmasters Amortization Calculator Will Bring Sales

Writen by Arseniy Olevskiy

Having an amortization calculator on your website allows each of your hits to find valuable information that will then allow them to make a decision on the home mortgage that they purchase. Having the best products on your site will allow you to provide those customers with high quality results. Why does it matter if you have an amortization calculator on your page? There are several reasons, but the most important is the simple fact that those customers are more likely to click through your site and find the lenders offering the rates, the terms and the loan that they want. You get the sale.

Why Choose This Calculator?

There are several reasons why you should choose this amortization calculator over others. Sure, it works well and it is very user friendly for your customers. Clearly, it allows them to punch in the smallest amount of information and within seconds they receive the information they need to make a decision. But, there is more to the amortization calculator than just that.

• First of all, your job it quite easy. More than likely, you will have no problem adding the calculator to your site. It's easy.
• It will take you all of ten minutes or less to install and integrate into your format. Really, fewer than ten minutes. That makes it fast.
• Third, did you realize that you get all the detailed instructions that you need for installation as well as for integration? You stay informed.

Why bother putting one on your website, you ask? It's simple. Customers need tools to make them stay. Your website, even though it is informative and providing all that the customer needs, may not have the potential to earn the trust of the very skeptical customer. Providing an amortization calculator on your website will allow them to trust your lenders and your affiliates. You get the sale because they trust the site.

It's also important to note that customers are looking for these tools. They want to find an amortization calculator that will tell them how much they will be spending on the loan and what that monthly loan payment will be. So, if your website has the tools it takes to draw buyers to the site, but doesn't provide them with the tools they need, such as the calculator, they simply move on to the next one that does have it.

It takes only a few minutes to get the amortization calculator up and running on your website. The tool is easy to use which makes it a tool that the customer is likely to bookmark and come back to time and time again. And, if they plan on getting that mortgage loan, then they will come back to the website that they trust to purchase it. Because it will take you next to not time to integrate into your own site, and because your customers will have thrilled that you are offering it, make sure to carefully consider if you can indeed not have a tool like this on your website. Get started today with your new amortization calculator.

Arseniy Olevskiy is a freelance developer, specialising in finance subjects such as loans, banking, mortgages, amortization, etc. He recommends use of an amortization calculator for calculations at http://www.amortization-calc.com

Get To Know People Through Websites

Writen by Jesse Somer

Web sites are not just places to sell things; they are a medium where people can get insight into other people's lives. Take the musician Xavier Rudd for example. I recently saw this guy play at a concert and had never previously heard his music. He was really cool, literally blowing me away with his many skills, beautiful music, positive energy, and humble attitude. So being thus affected, I decided to check out if he had a website on the Internet. After finding his site (http://www.xavierrudd.com/) I automatically got to become more acquainted with the man, not as a fan looking up to a so-called 'star', but as a human being receiving real insight into the workings of another individual in our global human community.

First, just let me tell you a little about seeing this fellow play live. He is literally a one-man band! While sitting down he plays a stomp-box (type of drum), a lap guitar or several other 6 and 12 string acoustic electric guitars, while simultaneous alternating between playing one of three Australian Aborigine Didgeridoos or harmonicas which are placed in front of him on a stand. He sings intelligent thoughtful lyrics in between blowing and his voice ranges from softly spoken to powerful rebellious yelling. On his site he explains in one newspaper article interview that he goes into a trance while playing…I don't see how he'd be able to do it all otherwise!

The idea is, and this goes for any and every website on the Internet, business or personal, that your website is a place to share your identity as well as links to other identities (people) in the community. On Xavier's site, (I call him by his first name as I now feel I know him on a more personal level, although he doesn't yet know of me) you can read a few journal entries from his recent tour in Alaska and Canada. As these words come straight from his own mouth/pen/keyboard/mind, visitors to the site can see into how this guy views the world around him. The style and content of personal language can really tell you a lot about someone's personality.

Of course in the old days there was no real way of knowing the people you admired. This personalized approach to website communicative interaction need not be solely used in this paradigm. Businesses and individuals can now connect with the wider community on a much closer, intimate level. Just imagine if you got to know what the CEO of your electricity provider's views were on important issues that affect us all, like environmental sustainability. Or, how about knowing that they like to listen to Mozart and play with remote control cars?

We now have the opportunity to realize who each of us are, not just as names and faces, but as human beings with a soul or a spirit with dreams, loves, and aspirations. Another point to make as an example to be found on Xavier's (enjoying this intimate first-name referral) site is the one about meeting other people through someone else's connections. The site constructors (with Xavier's approval) have recently added a section where anyone can contribute essays relating to important issues about humanity. This gives added insight into what type of person Xavier is (socially conscious), as well as possible links to the writers of the essays. E.g. Abigail Rose, the first contributor who wrote an essay about the current state of politics and public beliefs in the U.S.A.

There is also a whole section entitled, 'Inspiration, friends, art' which exemplifies this whole idea of forming a community through linking with others. Here Mr. Rudd (still have to be respectfully formal on occasion) has a list with photos of artworks and instruments from people he has met who have helped him, who he's played with, or who he's interested in. All of them are people he knows personally and in putting them on his site we can get to know them as well, by simply reading about them or by going via links to their own web sites which of course will produce a much more in-depth identity to connect with.

Add photo galleries, recorded interviews, biographies, lyrics etc. and we can get a really good view into this one person's world. You're on the Net, or you want to be; why don't you take it to the limit, sharing yourself and your friends with the world? You never know how many new friends or comrades you'll make in the process.

Jesse S. Somer
M6.Net
http://www.m6.net
Jesse S. Somer can see the possibility in humanity coming to realize each other as individuals again via the new Internet medium. Can you?

Separate Textonly Version No Thanks

Writen by Trenton Moss

In an attempt to make their sites accessible to all, more and more websites are now offering text-only versions of their sites. With the huge number of inaccessible websites out there, any attempt to make a website accessible to one and all is highly commendable.

But is text-only the way forward? The W3C have this to say about alternative accessible sites:

And if all else fails... If, after best efforts, you cannot create an accessible page, provide a link to an alternative page.

Hmmm... so according to the W3C a separate accessible site is OK, but they do use some pretty strong language to suggest that this should be avoided wherever possible. They're probably right too, given the disadvantages of going down the text-only route:

Text-only version may not be accessible

The most ironic thing about text-only versions, is that often they don't even offer full accessibility. This could be for a number of reasons, two of the most common being:

- Non-descriptive link text: Visually impaired Internet users can browse web pages by tabbing from one link to the next. Link text such as 'click here' and 'more', which may feature in a text-only version, won't make any sense to them when doing this.

- Inaccessible forms: For optimal accessibility, prompt text should be assigned to its form item, using the label for attribute. To check for this, a flashing cursor should appear in each form box when the text next to it is clicked.

Primary website may be inaccessible to site visitors

One of the myths of web accessibility is that accessibility is only about blind and disabled users. Accessibility is actually about everyone being able to access your website, both disabled and non-disabled, regardless of the browsing technology they're using.

For example, users accessing your website through WebTV, mobile phones, and PDAs, which have limited support for large images, Flash and JavaScript, may not be able to access your site. Don't underestimate the importance of this: in 2008 alone an estimated 58 million PDAs will be sold (source: http://www.etforecasts.com/pr/pr0603.htm) and one third of the world's population will own a wireless device (source: http://www.clickz.com/stats/sectors/wireless/article.php/10094_950001).

Lost branding opportunity

Some users may only need to make small adjustments to your site in order to be able to effectively use it. For example, a site visitor who needs to slightly resize the text on your site may have to use the text-only version if you don't allow this is the main version. This person then won't be exposed to your online image and branding, which you've undoubtedly spent so long developing.

Large time and money investment

Creating a separate accessible version can obviously represents an extremely large time and money investment. This can be offset if the site is database-driven, although there's still a time investment involved in setting up this alternative version - time that could have instead been spent making the primary site accessible to all.

Less information

Some text-only versions offer far less information and/or functionality than the primary version of the site. Manchester United's accessible version is a prime example of this: the primary website features over 100 choices in the navigation menu; the accessible version just eight. For a busy webmaster, having to make updates to two versions of the same website can be a huge pain.

If the website is 100% database driven then the separate text-only version will automatically be updated with the primary version of the site. Although database-driven sites are commonplace on the web, it is very rare that every single page is drawn from the database. As such, even with a database-driven site separate versions can often be left behind.

Marginalisation of society

The final point, and perhaps the most important. One of the most famous quotes about accessibility was made by Tim Berners-Lee, the man who invented the Internet:

The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect. Creating a separate version for web users with special needs can be seen as just one more way of them being marginalised from every day society. Having a separate accessible version has been famously likened to a restaurant providing a side door down a back alley for disabled customers, because the main entrance has a couple of stairs leading in to the restaurant.

The idea of the Internet is that it's an inclusive medium, which everyone should be able to use and access. Visually impaired individuals particularly can now access a virtually unlimited source of information in a way that would never have been possible.

Text-only? No thanks!

There are therefore so many reasons as to why a separate text-only version isn't a good idea. Additionally, there are a such huge number of benefits to having an accessible website that there's no excuse for not trying to make your main website accessible to everyone.

Certainly many big organisations are now working towards offering accessible websites, which is highly commendable. So come on guys, let's keep working to make sure the Internet is fully inclusive.

This article was written by Trenton Moss. He's crazy about web usability and accessibility - so crazy that he went and started his own web usability and accessibility consultancy (Webcredible - http://www.webcredible.co.uk) to help make the Internet a better place for everyone.

A Network Of Web Sites Is Not Enough

Writen by Martin Lemieux

The big thing these days is your ability to capture the market. So how do you do that?

Do you...

1) Use spam tactics?

2) Have a massive banner campaign?

3) Spends lots of money of PPC Advertising?

4) Build a huge web site?

5) Link to everyone in the world?

or do you...

6) Own a network of more than one web site? - Thinking that your network will help your search engine rankings since you can control your own link popularity!

#6 is starting to be the norm out there. Companies are just consuming a mass amount of domain names in order to increase their chances of being found online.

But does it really increase their chances? Let's see...

Since recently, Google has been crawling through "DNS"information in order to sniff out who owns what. So for instance, if you own 20 web sites, google will find that out by the information you have on all the registered domains.

Given that you own these 20 web sites, doesn't that give you the ability to create your own high page ranking, link popularity building campaign? Answer is yes, so what happens from that? Absolutely nothing. Nothing happens to increase your rankings I mean.

For instance, let's say you are trying to build everything off of one mainly large web site of yours. Let's also say that you intend to link to site #2 for this key phrase "Boosting Rankings". You've done a lot of work to add that title and link pointing to site #2 on all of your pages within your one, main, larger site. Here's what happens to your rankings for both of them.

It is known now that google has come up with this "Sandbox" effect. This is simply known as keeping an eye on certain network of web sites and the targeted key phrases they are after.

So your site #1 isn't the target of this sandbox effect, it's your smaller, networked web site that is. Instead of getting any type of rank for the phrase "Boosting Ranking", this site is added to a pool of web sites that are doing the same thing. The catch is that this "pool" is nowhere to be found, unless you know how to look for it.

On the other hand, your main, large web site will now take over the ranking for "Boosting Ranking" and will probably do pretty good within a search!!!

So does owning a network really help you? NO, not unless you know how to better your "smaller", network web sites so that they don't get caught in this "Sandbox Effect".

So how do you do that?

Simple, instead of relying on your network to boost your page ranking, outsource some of that strategy elsewhere. See, "Google" is only saying, if we don't do this to your network, then it gives you the sole ability to control your search engine rankings for all your sites. We are merely stating that we know you have a network and worked really hard to build it but we also want you to promote other peoples sites as well.

It's that simple. If you start today and keep building more links on other peoples web sites with your network, your entire network should see a big difference within 30 days of starting.

I hope this article helps you out!

About The Author

Martin Lemieux
Smartads - President
Affordable Web Design & Web Advertising
http://www.smartads.info / http://www.smartads.ca

Eye Catching Print Design
http://www.3dimentionaldesign.com

Marketing Tools
http://www.thewebclinic.com

Viral Systems Amp Technologies What Are They

Writen by Ted Gross

If you are reading this thinking that in this article we are going to discuss "computer viruses" don't read further. "Viral Systems and Technologies" have nothing to do with any computer virus though the "underlying event" that causes both of them to spread is almost the same.

So first, to the uninitiated, we should explain exactly what a "viral system" means and refers to. In order to do this fairly simply we will take an example.

If you want to relay information to someone there are many ways to go about disseminating that information. Among the options you currently have before you are the possibilities of using the phone and calling the person, choosing to write a letter (snail-mail), sending a telegram, or writing an email. In most cases you will expect a reply or reaction from the other party. Based upon that reaction you will react, then they will react and so on and so forth. This is known in our common language and certainly philosophical and historical study, as "cause and effect". I am sure that everyone reading this article knows all of this, at least intuitively.

"Cause and Effect" is a powerful tool in the arsenal of the humanity, and certainly made all that more powerful when applied to internet technology. One establishes a "cause" hoping for the desired "effect". A simple analogy may be when one builds a web site (cause) and then markets and disseminates the product on the web site (again part of the cause), hoping for the desired "effect" of increasing a customer base. This does not mean that the "customer" must purchase something. "Customers" in this case can be members, visitors, purchasers any part of the experience that brings "eyeballs" (people) to the website.

All this is fairly simplistic of course, but actually a real description of the real world the internet deals with. "Cause and Effect" are also the keys to Viral Systems.

What is a viral system? Simple. Any system that propagates itself simply because using it creates a "desire" (and later on, "need") for others to use it. Again a good example would be in place here.

Joe is a programmer and builds for himself a really good Messenger system. He really likes it, it works, it is mostly free of bugs and Joe can send messages to himself and read them all day long. No fun in that, is there? So Joe takes a deep breath and puts out his new Instant Messenger system for free on the Internet, calling it "Shmooze". Joe has no money does not market "Shmooze" in any way, except to offer it for free on his site where once in a while and mostly by mistake, someone drops by for 10 seconds.

One day, Sarah happens upon Joe's web site and sees "Shmooze" for downloading. Sarah downloads "Shmooze" installs it and realizes this is a great IM system. But when Sarah logs on all she sees on line is Joe. Now Sarah has nothing against Joe, but she wants to babble with the rest of the universe. So Sarah sends out a few emails to her friends telling them about "Shmooze" and where to find it.

A week goes by and now when Sarah opens her "Shmooze" she sees thousands of people logged on. How did that happen? Simple. "Shmooze" is a classic example of a viral system that "succeeded". Sarah sent out 10 emails to friends and five of these downloaded the program and liked it. They in turn sent out emails to others or told them on the phone or in a conversation about "Shmooze". The word of this new, great IM system spread "virally" to emails and people across the globe.

That is a "Viral System".

Before, my dear reader, you go off into never-never-land just thinking of the possibilities of money-making in viral systems, understand that like anything else viral systems require an incredible amount of luck and great timing to succeed.

Article Submission sites are viral systems. They offer us, the authors, something for free. We create the articles (much like this one) in order to disseminate our name and/or service in that little resource box. They create the program and technology, we deliver the "content", and the Submission Site then offers tools to disseminate the material. How is that viral? Well, if this article is published, and then shows up somewhere in Google or wherever, and then the person who sees it comes to the Submission Site, and then he/she too also submits an article...getting the picture?

Some classic viral systems and technologies on the Internet today are:

1. Chatting and IM systems
2. Article Submission Sites
3. Photo, Video Submission Sites
4. RSS (some feeds)
5. Video & PodCasting
6. Some Dating Sites
7. News sites

Viral Sites all have in common:

1. They are ALL FREE. By being free to the user they create an easy way to propagate their wares and/or software all over.

2. They offer a service and do it well. This service meets the needs/desires/wants/wishes of users all over and the users then recommend the site and its services to others they know.

3. They rely on third parties for their income. Advertising, Affiliates, Google Adverts etc. When users get something for free, and they gain from the system, they become "loyal" users. They come back again and again, and thus have every "positive" reaction to any advertisement offered on the viral site. It is actually an advertisers dream come true. A loyal and positive audience who is willing and desirous to "give" something in return for the service they receive. After all, if you buy from X supplier directly, why not buy for the same price through the site? This way the user/member feels they are giving in return for what they receive.

There is a great deal more to be written about the "psychological aspects and effects upon the user" of viral systems, but that is not for this introductory article.

For many years, in Seminars and conferences I have spoken about the "technological and psychological effects" of viral systems on the internet, specifically the explosion of "chat" and "IM" systems. The key to success is illusive. After years of study of these systems, I personally cannot say for sure, what specific factor causes some to succeed while others, seemingly better and more robust, fall into the Internet grave. However, there is no doubt that "viral systems" have been and will continue to be leaders in the Internet game for "hits", "eyeballs", "members" and "users". There is also no doubt that the a successful "viral system" can, with a lot of work and a lot of patience, offer incredible returns on an original investment.

There is an incredible amount more to explain and discuss about these systems, but that will be left for another article on the subject. Suffice it to say for now, that in short, viral systems are a major aspect of the Internet Marketplace. The most hit sites on the Net today, (take a look at Alexa.com if you don't trust this) are viral systems. Offering a service for free, doing it well, and thus gaining the loyalty of an ever-growing user base.

Copyright © 2006 Ted W. Gross. All rights reserved. (You may publish this article in its entirety with the following author's information with live links only.)

Ted W. Gross owns Amor Enterprises which operates Jewish Amor, a totally free Jewish Dating Site for Jewish Singles around the world. Despite being free it has all the capabilities of the major sites. Amor Enterprises will soon open other dating sites dedicated to specific niche dating around the world. Ted Gross is also a published author and maintains a web site for his works.