online business 101

The first step towards creating an online business is building a
website. Now, that isn't as complicated as it sounds. When I built
my first website, I thought Java was a type of coffee and HTML the
name of a robot in Star Wars. That's why I didn't do it.

Things like the www.ProfitMart.com system just weren`t around to
make things easy (and that is exactly why we built it.)

I had to pay someone else to do it for me. It cost me a few hundred
bucks, but I earned it back in the first few days. Here we will
discuss how to begin the process of creating your first site, and
where you can find someone to build your site if you don't want to
do it yourself.

*** As a point of note I STRONGLY recommend you look into
www.ProfitMart.com to make this entire part of the business far,
far simpler and expeditious.

Make your website attractive, interesting, engaging and
interactive.

To succeed at your online business (whether you are selling your
own product/service or are selling for other merchants as an
affiliate), you need a Web site created just for that - a simple,
focused site. One that is easy to build, maintenance-free, low
cost, credible, and a powerful traffic-builder and
customer-converter.

Having the right tool and the right product alone doesn't insure
the success of your website. There are many factors to be
considered while designing a site. Unfortunately, most of these are
easily ignored by Internet business owners.

Build It for Speed - It's a fact of modern life - people are in a
hurry. This means that you have between 10 and 30 seconds to
capture your potential customer's attention. To minimize your load
time, keep graphics small. Compress them where possible.

Use flashy technology (JavaScript, Flash, Streaming Audio/Video,
animation) sparingly and only if it is important to your
presentation.

Target your Market - Know who your market is and make certain that
your site caters to their needs. It is critical that your site
reflect the values of your potential customers. Is your market
mostly business professionals? If so, the site must be clean and
professional. Is your product aimed mostly a teenagers and young
adults? Then your site could be more informal and relaxed. The key
here is to know your market and build the site to their preferences.

Focus the Site - Make certain your web site is focused on the goal,
selling your product or service. A site offering many unrelated
products is not necessarily unfocused, but this is often the case.

If your business does offer many products, dedicate a unique page
for each instead of trying to sell them all from one page.

Credibility Is Crucial - The most professionally designed site
won't sell if your customers don't believe in you. A clear privacy
statement is one way to build your credibility. Provide a prominent
link to your privacy statement from every page on the site as well
as from any location that you are asking your visitors for personal
information. Provide legitimate contact information on line.

Navigation should be simple - Make site navigation easy and
intuitive. Simple and smooth navigation adds to the convenience of
the visitors. Add powerful search features.

Many times a lot of visitors do not have the patience to navigate
through the whole website to find what they are looking for.

Consistency is the key - Make sure the site is consistent in look,
feel and design. Nothing is more jarring and disturbing to a
customer than feeling as if they have just gone to another site.
Keep colors and themes constant throughout the site.

Make your site interactive and personalized - Make your website
interactive. Add feedback forms as well as email forms that allow
your prospective customers to ask you any questions they might have
pertaining to a product. Personalization of your website is another
key element that can lead to customer delight and can increase your
sales.

Personalization technology provides you the analytic tools
to facilitate cross-selling and up-selling when the customer is
buying online. It would give you an idea of what products to
cross-sell and up-sell. For example, when a person buys a CD
player, a disc cleaner can also be offered.

Content is King - Good content sells a product. Ask yourself the
following questions. Does your copy convey the message you wish to
get across to your visitors? Is it compelling? Does it lead your
visitor through the sales process? Have others review, critique and
edit your copy to insure it is delivering the intended message.

Always double check your spelling and grammar.

Until next time,