Chris, a new consulting client, asked me to help him increase sales on his affiliate marketing site.
As he was describing his site and the problem, I thought, "This is going to be a quick fix."
How wrong I was!
His site was excellent. Other than a few minor points, it followed all my basic rules for a successful affiliate marketing site.
The site was focused around a single theme in a profitable niche, with an excellent selection of high-priced, high-commission products.
Chris had gone the extra mile to have his site professionally designed, and it was simple, elegant and user-friendly, employing consistent navigation and a nifty database-driven search results system.
He was working directly with his merchant partners to create ad copy that offered his visitors the best possible deals.
And he was advertising in the pay-per-click search engines to drive tons of targeted traffic, and using hundreds of keyword listings with brilliantly worded titles and descriptions.
So, why on earth were his sales so low?
I knew I was picking at straws, but during our first session, I made a host of recommendations for improvement, which included:
- a domain name change
- a background color change
- reformatting the page table size
- rephrasing offers more positively
- adding relevant graphics and photos
- dropping poor performing merchants
- adding a newsletter
- adding new products
- redirecting non-buyers to additional offers
Chris implemented all my suggestions as well as a few of his own. After giving the new version a few weeks to prove itself, we scheduled our second teleconsulting session. I was anxious to hear how well the site was now performing.
You can appreciate my dismay when Chris told me that his sales had actually dropped!
Aargh!
I reviewed his site again, and it suddenly struck me... he should try blue links!
Why?
Because web design convention suggests that links should be blue, visited links purple and active links red. Although nothing written in stone about link color, I believe that those conventional colors should used whenever they compliment site design.
I'd changed my own site links, Sage-Hearts.com, from maroon to blue sometime before and noticed a nice conversion rate increase.
Sure enough, that WAS the answer to Chris' site problems...
His conversions increased 1100% almost overnight JUST by changing his link color to blue.
In addition to being underlined, people expect links to be blue, and in some cases visitors may have problems with sites that don't conform to their expectations.
With the average site visit lasting only about 8 seconds, we don't have time to waste confusing our visitors with basic site navigation. Use blue links if possible to keep your navigation instantly recognizable, unambiguous and consistent.
? Copyright Rosalind Gardner, All Rights Reserved.
Article by Rosalind Gardner, author of the best-selling "Super Affiliate Handbook: How I Made $436,797 in One Year Selling Other People's Stuff Online". To learn how you too can suceed in Internet and affiliate marketing, go to: http://netprofitstoday.com
shuttle to Midway Beardstown .. Lockport Chicago limo O’HareWhat dollar amount does your web site contribute to this... Read More
How many of the visitors to your web site take... Read More
So you want to build a website here I will... Read More
Learning how to convert visitors to your web site into... Read More
Your web site should be-visitor friendly to navigatesearch engine friendly... Read More
In this article, I will attempt to cover the basics... Read More
I can't figure out people who have products or information... Read More
Does website design make a difference in how long people... Read More
A Double Ad Tracker is an Ad-Tracker that points to... Read More
The way you design your web site affects your visitors'... Read More
Does your website make you any money? Does it SAVE... Read More
Every now and then, I receive a link exchange request... Read More
If you are designing a web site for which the... Read More
Most websites use similar fonts and as a result have... Read More
So your web site's online and you've got high rankings... Read More
Are you using the best colors for your web site?... Read More
The Psychology of ColorAre you using the best colors for... Read More
Whenever singer John Mayer sings his romantic song, "Your Body... Read More
Unless you are an inventor, most likely you are selling... Read More
From my personal experience of around two year as home... Read More
My site is working fine. The links work. Content is... Read More
With so many new websites going up, it is hard... Read More
You know... Before purchasing your product a person comes to... Read More
Never put form over function. Why? Because it's crucial that... Read More
Due to the large number of people offering website design... Read More
Green Bay Hummer H2 SUV rentals ..Here's the single most important part of your website: YOUR... Read More
Mechanical spiders have to eat. In fact, they usually have... Read More
Setting up a survey on your site is extremely simple... Read More
Using CGI scripts to add automation to your web site... Read More
What are websites? Are they sales tools for vendors and... Read More
The object of search engines is to give their visitors... Read More
It's been said again and again, when it comes to... Read More
This is a very perfunctory look at the website code... Read More
1. Size does not equate to competencePeople sometimes assume a... Read More
It's a fact, Page Not Found, known as a 404... Read More
Web design is a very competitive area and there is... Read More
Most NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) don't understand these important aspects of... Read More
You're almost set. The content of your website, e-book, or... Read More
New Web sites are springing up online by the millions.... Read More
Your web site is like your car. Both are significant... Read More
Any kid, and their grandmother too, can make a webpage.... Read More
Are you thinking that it is about time your small... Read More
Part one of this article is available at ... Read More
Have you heard of 'Babel Fish'?It's a service provided by... Read More
Most web designers and web design companies will try to... Read More
You have an idea for a website and you are... Read More
Many people today are tired of the Microsoft software that... Read More
Many websites make the mistake of being all flash and... Read More
The best things don't come easy. - QuotedThe finished web... Read More
One product, one long web page: this kind of web... Read More
Web Design |