The internet is filled with sites and they are good and bad. Some have been known for a long time and some still struggle to get the respect and fame they think they deserve.
Although not all your visitors are web design professional they still can put their finger on a good site and sense the ones that are not that ok. But how can you convince people your site deserves to be known and respected? How can you make them feel your site is better than other thousands they could find on the same subject?
Elegant design
You need a nice looking site. Don't overdo this either, but try to offer your site a unique and nice feeling. Branding is also important. Try to come up with a nice logo.
Create a nice layout, try to have a consistent colour theme and use nice fonts. Don't use templates unless they are unique and you have got the only copy. There's nothing worse for your "respected" site than a theme people have seen for 50 times before.
Avoid animated gifs, annoying backgrounds and music.
Good and interesting content
Don't just throw links and downloads. Nowadays people need more, not to mention the search engines would love your site more if you offer them some content. Organize the content logically and update it frequently.
Good way to advertise
We all need to live and some try to do this from the site they run. It's ok to have an ad campaign or two. Just don't over do it. Don't fill your pages with many banners and advertising links. They would make people lose respect for you not to mention ruin the entire layout.
A good behaviour online
Don't think people cannot trace you just because you are "anonymous" online. wrong. if someone wants to trace you all the way to your lair, there's nothing you can do against it. But you can use this in order to get known, in a positive manner.
Post in forums and respect. People will come to know you eventually from seeing your good posts and nice behaviour. When they'll see your site this could mean more visitors and perhaps some clients that are almost convinced you really mean business.
Respect towards your visitors
Don't treat your visitors bad, offer them a pleasant experience and make them love the place. Offer them a feed-back form and respond as fast as possible to any questions they might ask. Word of mouth is a serious promotion. Use it in your behalf.
Good organization
Don't take prisoners, let people know what's on your site and how they can reach the information they are looking for. A sitemap is a good thing to add to your site if you've got more pages. It's also a good trick for the search engines optimization. Have a good navigation system and don't make people have to guess what's going on in your little place online.
About information and contact page
For a business and even a personal page, a good about and contact page can do wonders. When people see a nice site they tend to want to know something more about the person running it or the business presenting it. And a contact page is a must on every site. For a business offer phone numbers and addresses, for a personal page at least an email address.
Updates
Frequent updates make search engines love you, not to mention your visitors. If you cannot update the information on a daily basis, try at least a monthly update.
Jonathan Yates
http://www.internetworldchat.co.uk
Internet World Chat is a discussion forum for webmasters to get tips or advice.
1. Assemble a web site development plan that is integrated... Read More
Remember your vision for your company and the brand or... Read More
Content is king. Without content your website is an empty... Read More
If you own a web site or if you are... Read More
When you design a website how do you start ?Do... Read More
Are you looking to create the perfect website? A complete... Read More
In learning webpage design, I encountered many problems that took... Read More
You just created a new web site but want to... Read More
If someone doesn't know you personally, will they trust you... Read More
A picture is worth a thousand words.And it still is... Read More
All websites have a homepage. It is the most important... Read More
Have you ever thought about the real stories behind all... Read More
An "include" file is a piece of code that can... Read More
Chris, a new consulting client, asked me to help him... Read More
Before deciding on which web design company to choose, you... Read More
You know... Before purchasing your product a person comes to... Read More
You know that I'm always extolling the virtues of an... Read More
The internet is full of web design companies pleading for... Read More
Web Design is a very subjective process. Your idea of... Read More
I've written about META tags in the past, and I... Read More
In retailing there is a saying that sales are made... Read More
It starts off simply; a few HTML pages, a few... Read More
Here's a really simple way... any novice can create a... Read More
To create professional websites is not an easy task by... Read More
So you need a website. You are not sure if... Read More
Airbnb cleaning service Bannockburn ..If you own a web site or if you are... Read More
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) allows you to create fast loading... Read More
Even if you're not an accomplished webmaster you can still... Read More
Do you know why the majority of people use the... Read More
If you're running a website or online business, your number... Read More
Developing a software application is not easy at all; apart... Read More
Here are a few programs I can't do without. They're... Read More
No matter what product or service you're promoting, unless you... Read More
With the advent of the Internet a whole new vista... Read More
These days, it seems that everyone has a website. Unfortunately,... Read More
There is nothing wrong with making your own website if... Read More
Have you heard of 'Babel Fish'?It's a service provided by... Read More
As a graphic designer, you are sitting on a gold... Read More
If you think it's simply a case of who will... Read More
Since I'm a web designer, I have a tendency to... Read More
Before I discovered the concept of Web site templates, I... Read More
In my web surfing adventures, I've found a few site... Read More
Studies done by Jakob Nielson the man touted as the,... Read More
For most people graphic design does not come easy. Unfortunately... Read More
The first immutable law of effective navigation: It's gotta be... Read More
Web sites that feature products ? especially furniture or other... Read More
Here is a quick list of components that make a... Read More
Before you start worrying about marketing your website on the... Read More
Don't mess with those links! When you're designing your site,... Read More
There is no doubt that reprint articles can serve lots... Read More
Web Design |