Back to Basics - Website Planning, Design and Management By Ashley Bryan “I’ll do it myself!”, “Yes, I must update those contact details…”, “What meta tags?”. Sound familiar? What about “I don’t need a website!”? These are things you may say to yourself regarding your existing website or the thought of having a website constructed. Over the coming years electronic communication and commerce will inevitably increase at a faster rate then ever before. The Internet gold rush is over, and now websites must compete for cyberspace, eyeballs and the dollar. It is time for web development to become more focused on quality rather than quantity, effectiveness rather than glamour. Your website advertises your business. So do it right. If you have a website, ask yourself these questions: • What are the objectives of my website? • Can the objectives of my site be met? • Does everything on my site work the way it should? • Is all the information on my site up to date? • Does the look of my site reflect my business and my image? • What impression does my home page give? • Can my site be found on the net? If you are thinking about having a website built, these are questions that will be relevant to you also. You need to have addressed those during the planning phase of your website development. Your website can be a cost-effective and valuable marketing tool which, when used complementarily to your existing marketing plans, can help to grow and expand your business. Your website should work for your businesses effectively, and there are some basic steps you can follow when starting off, that can help make that happen. Plan it Think it through, map it out and determine what the objectives of your website are. They may be to advertise or sell your products or services, impart information, gather information or to teach something to the users of your site. Identify the objectives before you start, they are the cornerstone of your web development project (and of your existing website if you already have one). You should have three or four clearly defined objectives for your website, and they should be easily achieved right from the home page. Consider impact! What will be the first impression that users of your website have when they open your homepage for the first time? Apart from the good versus bad impressions, ask yourself this: will the nature, image and focus of my business be able to be determined from this page? How far into the site will someone have to go to find out what your core business is? What content do you really need? Keep focused on what your objectives are. There is nothing wrong with starting small with a view to expanding later. Remember also site flow, and how users will navigate through the site, moving through the pages, and using the links. Is it sensible and logical? And of course make it easy for people to contact you! That’s what your site is for! So plan the site, get feedback from others, and get it working correctly from the outset. Build it There are two options here. Build it yourself, or obtain the services of a web development company. The first option is noble and ambitious (unless you actually are a web developer!) but if you are serious about a website I wouldn’t recommend it. Would you record your own radio ad on a cassette and allow it to be played on air? Only if you were brave. A poorly developed site will probably do your business more harm than good. But it is possible: if you do it yourself, are happy with it and it works for you then great! Apart from that there are web development companies and there are lots of them too, so shop around, get quotes, find a good one (not necessarily the cheapest), and then ask the right questions. “What sites have you built before?” (these are usually listed on the web developers own website), “what do you suggest for me?”, “what time frames, testing expectations, hosting options, support and follow-up services do you provide?”. Ensure that search engine optimisation of your site is part of the deal and when the site is being built be involved, review progress with your web developer periodically to ensure your and their expectations are being met. Test it A brand new website should be tested thoroughly, especially in instances where there is a level of inbuilt functionality in the site, such as database searches, form submissions, shopping facilities and online payment. Make sure everything works as you think it should. A good idea, as in many situations, is to put yourself in your target market’s shoes, and use your own site from their perspective. It’s a great idea to get friends (and anyone at all, in fact) to test your site, and to give you feedback (good and bad). For a really complex site, hire testers if necessary. Market it A website that no one visits will not generate a lot of business for you. Market it. Obviously put it on your business cards and other stationery and advertising, but it may also be appropriate for you to market the site in its own right. Where do you market a website? Well it seems sensible that you could always start to market your site where users of your products or services currently look for your products and services. If you are one of the first in your industry to get online then offer them an alternative! Your site should be search engine friendly, and should be listed on relevant search engines and directories. Just make sure your search engine optimisation is correct because it can be difficult to change your listing on many search engines once you have been added, and good rankings on a number of search engines can take months, so be patient. Measure it How do you know if your site is working for you? More phone calls generating more business? Contacts made with you from the site contact form? Sure is! The first and most logical thing to do is to research where your leads are coming from. Ask people making enquiries where they heard about you and get feedback from customers and users of the site as to how user-friendly they found it, and what were it’s good points and not so good points. As well as this you must analyse your website statistics. These are usually provided by your webhosting company, and there are also a number of statistics packages available to buy or download from the net (some of them free) which do a reasonable job. Most statistics software include explanations of how the statistics are gathered and what the terminology used in the reporting means. These website stats can really tell you a lot about the patterns of traffic to, from and within your website, as well as how much traffic is visiting your site, from where and what systems the users of your site are using. You should use this data to refine your site and to make decisions about the future development of it. Manage it So you have launched a website and can now sit back and wait for the business to roll in? Don’t you believe it. There are very few websites that require no management, maintenance or review on an ongoing, if periodic, basis. If you have good traffic to your site and want to ensure they return then you will need to refresh the content periodically to keep interest. Content Management in the general sense is vital too: keep your contact details up to date, remove old products or services and add new ones so that interest is retained. So there are some of the fundamentals of website planning and operation. Don’t forget: start small if you are unsure, and plan to expand over time as you review the effectiveness of your website. When your website really starts to work for you, you can expand out into other related areas if appropriate for your business, such as online marketing and email newsletters. These are great ways of spreading the word about your services or products, and of keeping your business top of mind with your existing and potential customers. Finally remember: plan a site with objectives in mind, build a suitable and appropriate site for your business, get the users in, keep them in, get them returning and manage your site. Webstarters Ltd . website design and development business from Auckland New Zealand. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ashley_Bryan http://EzineArticles.com/?Back-to-Basics----Website-Planning,-Design-and-Management&id=499590

toolbar powered by Conduit Email Marketing - How to Write Effective Emails By Jason Artmer Writing effective emails takes a few skills, which requires a bit of SEO (Search Engine Optimizing) practices. Since you are marketing a product or service obviously you want to write effective emails that will grab the reader’s attention. Still, you want to keep it professional. To get started with your how to write effective emails process, start smart. The first thing you should do is gather your information that you want to use to promote your web pages or business. How to write effective emails involves setting a goal, planning, and carrying out the process. For example, if you intend to market per se a new racecar. The first thing you want to do is think of the targeted audience, the racecar, benefits, and what features would attract the audience. Since you are writing about racecars obviously you want to keep an audience in mind, such as racecar fans. Now you can learn how to write effective emails: Example: The innovative race cars of today are making ground with its sporty features. Notice the term sporty: Sporty is another attractive keyword that racecar fans will take interest in… Now this is a good header, but you want to make your start, body and ending attract the reader’s attention also. Notice the keyword features in the example: You stopped at features, which is a good writing practice. A racecar fan interested in the newer racecars is going to say, “What features.” Now your reader is going to open the email, which exactly what you want him to do. However, you want him to continue reading the email and to visit your web pages also. Therefore, you want to focus on keywords that interest your reader. Add some hypertext and some links to your web site with some catchy eye-grabbers and you are well on your way at figuring out how to write effective emails. Do you want to learn more about how I do it? I have just completed my brand new guide to article marketing success, ‘Your Article Writing and Promotion Guide‘ Download it free here: Internet Article Marketing Do you want to learn how to build a massive list fast? Click here: Email List Building Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jason_Artmer http://EzineArticles.com/?Email-Marketing---How-to-Write-Effective-Emails&id=509637

5 Simple and Easy Keys To Building Email Relationship By Kenny Tan Building an email relationship could be the most important factor on any email marketing campaign because once you have your list of interested subscribers and introduced yourself with the welcome message, you can easily tap into the power of leverage marketing to build and continue the relationship. This e-mail list may be broken down further into the most active subscribers, as these will be identified by the most click-through to links and the impact on traffic to your website. As more people are driven to specific sales pages, you’ll learn more about your e-mail list’s buying habits, preferences, and how effective your messages may or may not be. Nurturing and encouraging this relationship will require some planning, but the ultimate goal is to make the customer look forward to hearing from you and, inadvertently, increase the chances of a purchase over time. Building this relationship takes: 1. Consistency 2. Frequency 3. Providing incentives 4. Timing 5. Compelling and creative content When the subscribers feel like they have a connection with you, they will easily review additional information you send them, and may even look forward to your next product or service. You may find people commenting or providing feedback; these are all signs that your e-mail campaign is working, and that you are building a strong list of potential customers even if they are not purchasing immediately. Here are the definitions of the 5 keys to building a successful email relationship: 1. Consistency ensures that your subscribers are receiving messages with a smooth, streamlined process. This includes keeping the company logo or banner prominently displayed in the heading; it will mean basic layout techniques such as keeping the font size and style the same, and signing off with the same message. The more consistent each message is, the easier it will be to deliver a message that is grasped by the reader immediately. 2. Frequency will makes sure that you are establishing a high rate of correspondence so that your company or idea is at the top of their minds. You can try this with different interval ranges throughout the year or month, but ideally, you’ll want to be updating them with news at least once per month, and at the most once per week. Any additional correspondence may be a part of your auto responder system. 3. Providing Incentives Whether this is another free article, to signing up for a special discount, each piece can be a window of opportunity to spark fresh interest. This is the ideal place to provide information on a new product, or highlight a new service; by offering even a marginal discount, you will be creating an attractive reason for the reader to learn more. 4. Timing the intervals for each campaign is important, and working with an efficient auto responder service will streamline this process. Depending on the price and type of the primary product you are attempting to sell, you can gain an understanding of how long it takes to introduce an idea or concept to the customer, and how long it will take for them to complete the purchase. Initially, making sure the timing is consistent and developed in stages (e.g. 24 hours, 72 hours, 7 days after the ‘Welcome’ message) will help keep the relationship moving. 5. Compelling and creative content will provide your subscribers with focused and informative information. Instead of being another newsletter, your articles and insights can provide value for the reader, and will encourage them to learn more naturally. If you are highlighting a sale or special discount, it’s important to word and plan it carefully so that there is no pressure. If you find a large amount of opt-outs after a particular campaign, it will be clear indication that you need to rework the content you are delivering. When you apply the above 5 keys point to building a successful email relationship, you will be succeed with your present email marketing campaign that bring lots of loyal subscribers in any time. Kenny Tan provides full information of how to get massive email targeted leads on demand? You can visit his for full information at: http://www.coreg-cash-revealed.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kenny_Tan http://EzineArticles.com/?5-Simple-and-Easy-Keys-To-Building-Email-Relationship&id=508942

Create a Viral Marketing Strategy to Drive Traffic to Your Website By Donna Gunter Viral marketing can best be described as a marketing campaign that permits you to reach a large number of people quickly online, much in the same way a human cold virus might spread throughout an office complex. The online equivalent of word-of-mouth marketing, viral marketing permits people to pass along marketing material to friends, customers, and colleagues so that the marketing campaign catches on and spreads like wildfire. Because many online distribution channels are free or low cost, viral marketing is possibly the most cost-effective Internet marketing technique out there. Once you've launched your viral marketing campaign, it has the capability grow and spread automatically for years. With a well-thought out and implemented viral marketing campaign, you can: --increase targeted traffic to your site --build brand recognition --increase your link popularity --collect contact information from targeted prospects Two of the most common viral marketing strategies I've seen implemented are viral movies and viral ebooks. Movies can be quite costly to produce, but with the increasing popularity of video viewing sites like YouTube, your ROI (return on investment) may be the highest from this form of viral marketing. TheTimeMovie.com was the movie that introduced me to the concept of video viral marketing. It's short, compelling, and evokes an emotional response from the viewer -- all important attributes to ensure that people pass it along to each other. One of the best viral ebook creators is Seth Godin, who had over 1,000,000 people download his ebook, Unleashing the Ideavirus. It's still one of the most discussed marketing books around, and Seth has had similar success and gained a great following by giving away other ebooks he wrote, as well. Most of these ebooks are now for sale as paperbacks, and I'm sure this viral marketing strategy led to very high sales of his printed books. At the very least, the strategy has pushed him to the top of the list of marketing experts. How can you create a viral marketing strategy to drive traffic to your website? Here's a step-by-step process: 1. Determine what you're giving away. Will you make a movie, write an ebook, create an ecourse, or have a special piece of software written for you? The key to success in picking your product is to make sure that it solves a big problem experienced by your target market. You may also locate your giveaway by using something that someone else has created that permits you to brand it with your company information. (Get an example below in the author's resource box). 2. Brand the product. Make sure that your logo, your website URL, and/or your tagline is on the viral marketing piece. You want anyone who downloads this viral marketing product to be able to link back to your website, just as you would want someone to be able to contact your brick-and-mortal store when you provide a promotional giveaway like a pen, coffee cup, mousepad, etc. 3. Set up delivery process. Will visitors be able to download the software directly from your site, or will they have to provide their contact information? The best option is to give it away with no strings attached. However, on the page in which you offer the download, you can offer visitors yet another gift, one that requires their contact info to receive. 4. Give away the rights. If you'd like to really jump start the viral marketing process, give people the rights to give away your viral marketing piece to their own customers. 5. Rebrand the item. If you permit people to rebrand the giveaway with some of their contact info or affiliate links, as well, they will really be motivated to pass along your viral marketing piece. 6. Announce the availability of the item. Write an article or a press release about your viral marketing item. Announce its availability to your contact database or ezine list. Ask your readers or visitors to your blog to announce it to their lists or just simply give it away. Capturing the power of viral marketing is a simple and cost-effective strategy to drive traffic to your website. If implemented properly, who knows how much fame and fortune this technique could bring you? Copyright (c) 2007 Donna Gunter Online Business Resource Queen (TM) and Online Business Coach Donna Gunter helps self-employed service professionals learn how to automate their businesses, leverage their expertise on the Internet, and get more clients online. Get your free affiliate link cloaking program at Affiliate-Link-Cloak.com. It's a perfect example of viral marketing in action! Ask Donna an Internet Marketing question at AskDonnaGunter.com . Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Donna_Gunter http://EzineArticles.com/?Create-a-Viral-Marketing-Strategy-to-Drive-Traffic-to-Your-Website&id=506985

Three Drop Dead Simple Ways To Make Money On The Internet By Gary Baker With all of the hype and hundreds of different opportunities hitting your inbox daily, it can be very confusing on exactly how to really make money on the internet. What follows is a proven outline on a simple and easy way to start making money with your own internet marketing business. #1 - You need a product to sell. Without a product to offer, you're business is dead in the water. Aquiring a product of your own isn't that hard at all. Simple information products are the number one best selling items online. You simply write on a subject that you've got a ton of knowledge on. You might be good at fixing transmissions, or maybe cooking different chicken recipes. You might be good at saving money on groceries or even playing guitar. All you need to do is seek out what you already know, expand on it, then simply write about it. If you just can't think of anything to write about, you can become an affiliate for someone who has already written an information product on your favorite topic by visiting ClickBank at: http://www.clickbank.com Once you've chosen a product, then it's time to market it. #2 - You need to market your new product. In order for others to know about your product you're going to need to get the word out about it. That's called marketing. If you've created your own information product then you'll need to write up a sales letter for it. To do this, simply tell a story about how your product will solve your readers problem. Write just as you would to a friend. Give a ton of benefits that relate ways your product will make things easier for your reader. Set a price and close the letter. For a great website creation tool check out this freebie here: http://www.sitemonster.net If possible, somewhere on your website you'll want to try and get the readers email address so you can follow up with them at a later time with different information. If you've chosen an affiliate product, then the website will already be written for you so you can get right to work driving targeted traffic to it. To market your new product, you're going to want to spend as little cash as possible so here's how to that. #3 - Low cost advertising tip. If you're short on cash, then the number one way of marketing your new product is by writing and submitting 300-500 word articles on your target market. Writing up an article is pretty simple. You can research your topic on the internet and compile tips that'll help your readers make an informed decision about your product. Don't make the article a sales letter. Actually give them useful information that can be put use immediately. At then end of your article, you'll want to put a 5-7 line resource box that includes a short description about your website, product and how to find it. Make this box powerful. Be sure it contains your website link to the product. Try and submit your new article to as many ezines as you can in your target market. To find newsletter that deal with your product just do a search on Google. You should atleast write and submit one new article per week if possible. This will keep brining you in traffic as well as brand you as an expert in your field. Following these basic steps will get you on the way to finally making some profits from your internet business. Learn Real Ways To Make Money On The Internet That Really Work, As Well As The Latest Money Making Ideas, And Hot New Information Products And Services! http://www.opportunity-advisor.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gary_Baker http://EzineArticles.com/?Three-Drop-Dead-Simple-Ways-To-Make-Money-On-The-Internet&id=503323

3 Quick And Easy Steps To Make Money With Google Adwords By Gary Baker The following is a proven method to make money with google adwords and is easy to implement. Step #1 - Go to http://clickbank.com and sign up for a free account. Once you're set up, you'll want to go to the section titled ClickBank Market Place. You'll notice hundreds of information products on a variety of subjects. Information products are the best products to make money with google adwords. You'll want to pick a product that has a high gravity and pays out atleast 50% on each sale. You'll be paid every two weeks for any sales you make. Step #2 - Sign up as an affiliate for the product you've chosen. The affiliate signup link can normally be found near the bottom of the product website. Sometimes you'll find the signup link at the top right hand site. The link usually says "affiliates" or "make money". The very best websites and affiliate progams will have pre-written ads, keywords, banners, etc. Step #3 - Go to http://google.com and sign up for a google adwords account. After you've signed up, you will then be lead through the set up of your ad, keywords, bids, etc. Your keywords should be tightly focused on the product you chose through ClickBank. Keywords are nothing more than the terms your potential customers use to find information on the product you're offering. Having laser targeted keywords is how you'll make money with google adwords. Your ad should be short, powerful, and create desire. You're bids should be kept as low as possible as to not lose alot of money while tyring to make profit. Also remember to keep your daily ad budget set low as you're first starting out. This way you can test your ads, keywords, product, etc. Once you find a product that will produce atleast a one percent sales rate(1 for every 100 targeted visitors) you can then raise bids, find new keywords, write and test new ads. To really make money with google adwords, you'll want to consistently repeat this process for other products you find. Keep adding to your product portfolio and watch your profits soar! Gary Will Show You Real Ways To Make Money On The Internet That Work, As Well As The Latest Money Making Ideas, And Hot New Information Products And Services. Join now for free at: http://opportunity-advisor.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gary_Baker http://EzineArticles.com/?3-Quick-And-Easy-Steps-To-Make-Money-With-Google-Adwords&id=503728

Internet Marketing Begins with a Proven Marketing Model to Increase Web Site Traffic By Leanne Hoagland-Smith Today more than ever before, your website is your cyberspace handshake where the goal is to get attention from potential clients. The question is simply: Is your Internet marketing delivering a firm or wimpy handshake? Years ago, advertisers constructed a simple marketing model called AIDA. This marketing model is critical in getting and keeping the attention of your prospects. A – Attention Your message must get the attention of your prospect. Without their attention being activated, they simply pass by and go where someone has secured their attention. I – Interest Your message must keep their interest. Your marketing copy must be of the highest quality while truly speaking to them by understanding their pain, needs and desires. D – Desire Your message must fuel their desire. Even though desire is third in this model, I believe that desire is within each stage of this model. Desire supports attention, interest and the last A of action. For no one likes to be sold, but everyone loves to be. A –Action Your message must include a call to action. On your website page, there should be several calls to action from call out boxes asking to sign up for your newsletter or take a free assessment to actual call to actions by asking them to call you. Internet marketing is essentially no different than the more traditional marketing vehicles. The ultimate goal is to increase market awareness for your products or services. Also, an additional goal is to create a desire for those Internet prospects to return. By using the AIDA marketing model, you should be able to increase your website traffic. Leanne Hoagland-Smith, M.S. is a business coach and executive coach with offices in Indianapolis and near Chicago. She writes, speaks and coaches people in businesses to quickly double or triple results through the creation of an executable strategic plan along with the necessary leadership skills "to pull it off." One quick question,if you could secure one new client or breakthrough that one roadbloack holding you back from success, what would that mean to you? Then, take a risk and give me, Leanne, a call at 219.759.5601 to experience incredible results. Visit http://www.processspecialist.com/ and explore everything from free articles to connecting with Leanne. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leanne_Hoagland-Smith http://EzineArticles.com/?Internet-Marketing-Begins-with-a-Proven-Marketing-Model-to-Increase-Web-Site-Traffic&id=511237

Flipping Real Estate for Profit By Jill Kane There are lots of cable television shows these days that feature "flipping" houses for profit that make it seem like just about everybody's doing it. For the uninitiated, flipping a house means buying a house at one price, then improving it in a short amount of time to sell it again quickly for a substantial profit. Most people who flip there first house have dreams of making an enormous profit very easily, but it's not that simple. Complications almost always come up, and you have to be very aware of the area, what the market will bear and which improvements are worth the investment to flip a house successfully. You need to find a house that fits several criteria in order to make a healthy profit at flipping. Some of the things you need to take into consideration include: Is the neighborhood a growing or improving one that buyers will be interested in? Are the improvements or repairs needed ones that you can do within a reasonable budget? Can you pay for the needed repairs/improvements and still net a good profit? Is the area one that will appeal to a wide range of buyers? Are there any problems that just aren't fixable (bad location, a foundation that is sinking and can't be shored, etc.)? How many other houses are for sale in the immediate area (too many, and the market glut will drive the price of your house down no matter how nice it is)? Locating a home that fits your budget and criteria means research, and lots of it. Many people who have flipped successfully say the best way is to simply drive around mid-range neighborhoods and look for the slightly run-down homes with solid bones that have been on the market a bit too long. The owners are usually anxious to sell, and the most buyers avoid fixer-uppers, so you can negotiate from a firm position. Also check out Sheriff's Sales, banks that handle foreclosures and online auctions. Of course, even after you purchase the property you have plenty of work to do. Be sure you set up a budget in advance and resolve to stick to it when doing repairs and remodeling. Remember, the goal isn't to turn this into your dream home, but a solid, saleable property that will net the highest possible profit for you. Have a complete home inspection and get bids for any repairs that you can't handle yourself, such as upgrading wiring or dealing with dry rot. Next, determine what jobs you can do yourself or with the help of friends to save money. Finally, shop around for the best price on materials and haggle whenever you order more than one thing (say, tile and cabinets) from one supplier. One of the most common mistakes a novice at house flipping makes is choosing top of the line everything, thinking that this is what will sell the house. Quality is always a good selling point, but only within reason. There is a bell curve to this - after a certain point, you start to lose money if you've purchased luxurious upgrades that aren't necessary. For instance, if you're remodeling a house in a mid-salary neighborhood with primarily starter homes for young families, buying granite countertops and solid cherry bathroom cabinets will mean you will end up pricing the real estate too high for the market to bear in order to get your investment back. Instead, consider attractive, durable laminate countertops and oak or pine cabinets. On the other hand, if the home you are flipping is in an exclusive neighborhood where most other homes have the best of everything, those granite countertops may be a must-have. How do you know what is best for the particular home you're flipping? Go to several open houses in the area and see what the standard is, then talk to realtors about what they feel are the most sought-after features for buyers in the price range you are anticipating selling the house for. Generally, you don't want to be the most expensive house in the neighborhood, but you should shoot for the upper end of the scale. Being aware of what buyers want also means that you should remodel with in eye toward appealing to the greatest possible number of buyers. This means keeping things practical and neutral, not tailoring the house to your own personal tastes. You may love rich, bold colors in every room, but most home buyers prefer to see walls that are in a warm neutral shade such as eggshell or taupe. The same goes for fixtures - if you install fixtures that include color inlays or have elaborate detailing that either is extremely elegant or (at the other end of the spectrum) ultra-casual, you may put some potential buyers off. Sticking with what's simple and classic is best and will multiply your chances of a quick sale. If you plan to continue flipping houses, but sure to establish a rapport with your contractors, suppliers and the inspectors you deal with. You'll need their help and goodwill in the future, and it's always a safe bet they'll return your calls more quickly if they like and respect you rather than if you are yelling and demanding things. In fact, if you find a good contractor or supplier, it can often pay for you to establish an informal agreement with them that you will use them for any future flips in exchange for some type of consideration on their part - after all, they want that steady work or those steady orders from you. Finally, although some flippers will try to sell a house on their own when it is finished, a realtor can be your best friend. Realtors are professionals at getting the word out, generating interest in an open house, and talking up your property to other realtors. Again, if you decide that you want to flip other properties in the future, let the realtor know this. He or she may very well lower his or her commission in exchange for the promise of future listings from you. Good luck and happy flipping! For more real estate investing information, visit 1st-real-estate.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jill_Kane