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Title: Web Development- Helping you Turn Your Dream Into Reality!

Author: Arun Kumar

Article:

Your company's strength and capability are reflected in how its
website is designed and developed. For any online business to
flourish and sustain in this highly competitive market, it has
to stay ahead of its competitors in search engine listings which
can be only possible with a web application development company.

The benefit of having your own website is that it helps to reach
your target audiences at a very fast pace. This has led to the
growing demand of web sites development firms across the globe
that helps you to plan and develop your site. Whether it is in
web design or web software development, you are guaranteed of quality
services, on time execution and complete delight by these firms.
All these firms are highly capable of offering you with the
latest and most advanced website development tools and platforms
like Flash, .NET, PHP, Joomla etc. As per your specific business
requirements, you can opt for your favorite customized website
development platform without any hassles. Their talented team of
technical experts will be the powerhouse behind your success.

In last few years, country like India has also shown a great
prospect in the entire web development field through some of its
major and promising web development firms. Because of clear
focus on technical credibility, total commitment to customer
satisfaction and high-on-performance software development
wizardry, web application development India is now getting very popular in the entire
web software development scene.

Selection of the most appropriate web development services
provider sometime may be a problem. If you are a beginner in
this field, many people will approach you with attractive and
flowery offers from all directions. You can be easily trapped,
so, it is very important to be relaxed and keep yourself cool
and decide after considering all the aspects. Whenever you will
opt for a web development company give importance on the
following points:

• The Web Development Company should be a reputed one
• It should be able to provide a good website design and development service package along with web hosting and search engine optimization
• It should be equipped with the latest software and technology used in the creation of the websites

About the author:
SynapseIndia is a web application development company that specializes in web software development
for specific client needs. If you plan to outsource web application development to India, SynapseIndia could be the right choice for you.

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Title: How To Analyze Your Website

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
How To Analyze Your Website

How good is your website? Does it do its job? Is it effective?
These are all good questions that every business owner and
marketing manager needs to ask him or herself. The website has
become an essential tool for business. We all know we have to
have a website, but are we using this venue to its greatest
advantage?

Most people responsible for their company's websites have stats
packages and counters to tell them how many hits, how many
unique visitors, where they are coming from, what their IP
addresses are, what browser they're using, and of course the all
important monitor resolution. So what! Who cares? The real
question is do we have an effective website?

Now if you have a transactional website, commonly referred to as
an e-commerce site, you know the number of sales you are
generating from your site, which is important, but do you really
know how effective your site is? How many orders are you losing
because of bad layout, awkward design, confusing navigation, and
poor copy? How many potential clients have you chased away
because you haven't put a phone number on your site and an
accessible real-person that can answer questions?

A website is your business' public face,. Big businesses can
look like mom and pop operations and mom and pop operations can
look like General Motors. The design of your website should not
be taken lightly, its budget should not be an afterthought, and
the designer you hire should be someone who understands more
than code. Your Web-designer should be a multimedia-marketing
advisor, someone who can counsel you how best to deliver your
marketing message, and someone who can go beyond technical
issues.

You can spend a lot of money and have someone analyze your site
for you, but are you really going to believe him, are you really
going to act on their recommendations? You can't sell somebody
something they really don't want - that may sound obvious, but
believe me, sales people do it everyday. If you don't think you
need a new website, you aren't going to spend the money to have
one built. So the best way to tell if you need one is to analyze
the one you already have, yourself.

Below is a set questions you can ask yourself. If you answer
them honestly, you'll know whether you need a new site or not.
After you've gone through the process, ask some colleagues to do
the same. See if your answers compare.

1. Does Your Website Have A Purpose? Every website should have a
clearly defined purpose. Having a website just because everyone
else has one is not an acceptable strategy. What is your
website's purpose? a. Transactional sales-oriented site b.
Customer service support site c. How to instructional site d.
Product or service demonstration site e. Lead generation site f.
Marketing, branding, positioning site g. Promotional campaign
site h. Viral or buzz creation site

2. Is Your Website Focused? Too many businesses both large and
small use their website as an information junkyard, a dumping
ground for everything you do, everything you've done, and
everything you ever thought of doing. This won't work. Customers
are like children; they want clarity, direction, and unequivocal
answers. Your website should be focused on a singular function.
URLs are cheap, there is no reason you can't have different
websites for every major thing you do, or every marketing
campaign you initiate. How focused is your website?

3. How Functional Is Your Website? Everybody knows that websites
should be easy to use, that you shouldn't have to drill-down too
deep to find what you're looking for, and of course everything
should work. Your website is a communication tool. If your
website doesn't work properly, the only thing you're
communicating is incompetence. How functional is your website?

4. Does Your Website's Construction Balance Competing Concerns?
Websites by their very nature are a compromise of competing
issues. Aesthetics, multimedia, frame construction, HTML, Flash,
client-side, server-side, data bases, SEO tactics, information
architecture, marketing communication, transaction efficiency
all compete for precedence in the design of a site. Are you
sacrificing clarity, focus, and communication for SEO tricks and
unattainable traffic numbers? Did you start with an IT solution
like a database, and build your site around a poorly conceived
information delivery system. Does your website's design reflect
your sites' defined business purpose or is it a result of
secondary technical concerns?

5. Does your website honestly reflect your business personality?
Does your website represent and promote your marketing
objectives? Okay, this is a trick question for many small
owner-managed businesses. Marketing is not sales. Marketing is
about communicating who you are, what you do, and why you do it
better than the other guy. Marketing is about image building,
branding, and positioning, in other words, enhancing your
business personality. Does your website honestly reflect your
business personality?

6. Is your Web-presentation integrated into your overall
marketing plan? Too many websites bear no relation to the rest
of their business' marketing initiatives. Everything your
company does should reflect an over-riding ethos, point-of-view,
and personality. If your marketing collaterals don't match your
website presentation, you are confusing your audience. Is your
Web-presentation integrated into your overall marketing plan?

7. Is content king on your website? I once had a fairly large
manufacturing client ask me to build a website based on a
business card and ten 8x10 glossies of discontinued merchandise.
This fellow was so paranoid that his competitors would see what
he was doing that he hid his products from his customers. This
business is now bankrupt. We've all heard the saying 'content is
king'. Is content king on your website? Does your website
adequately display and explain what you do, what products you
sell, and what services you provide? Are there examples of your
work? Are there testimonials from your customers? Have you
provided information on how to order, how to use, and how to
resolve problems? Is content really king on your website?

8. Is your website an experience? You watch television, you
listen to the radio, you read a magazine, but you experience a
website. Unlike other marketing vehicles, websites provide you
the opportunity to deliver your marketing message with the full
complement of multimedia tools. Websites can stimulate all the
senses, sight, sound, and interactive touch in order to
communicate and connect with your audience. Websites are not
brochures. Visitors shouldn't just see your website, they should
experience it. Is your website an experience?

9. Does your website have a distinctive look? The notion of the
flaming animated logo has become a cliché for bad design and
style over substance, but that does not mean your website should
be aesthetically boring and visually dreary. Your site should
display clarity of vision; it should provide functional page
layout; its use of colors, type, and static and kinetic visuals
should be distinctive and purposeful. Your website should
provide a defining "Look" that enhances your business
personality. Does your website display a distinctive look that
represents your business personality?

10. Do you list appropriate contact information on your website?
I remember going to a meeting with a client who was in the
construction business. The Vice President of the company was
hopping mad. He demanded his email address be taken off the site
immediately. He wasn't going to waste any more time dealing with
client emails and inquiries. Websites are all about connecting
you to your clients, not hiding from them. If you think you can
put your website on autopilot and that a FAQ and Q&A are going
to cut-it, you better think again. Does your website have
adequate contact information? Do you list appropriate email
addresses and phone numbers for the people responsible for
various aspects of your business?

There you have it. Ten questions that when answered honestly
will tell you whether or not you have a website that works and
whether or not you need to rebuild.

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

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Title: The Sound of Business - Part 1

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
PART I - THE SOUND OF BUSINESS

BREAKING THE LIQUID CRYSTAL BARRIER

The Web is an emotionally remote hinterland delivered to us
through an impenetrable liquid crystal barrier. How then, can
you as a business owner, entrepreneur, or marketing executive
connect to a target audience that requires emotional reassurance
in order to do business?

Willy Loman is Dead

Gone are the days when we sent out phalanxes of sales
representatives pounding the pavement, beating the bushes, and
generally getting in the face of prospects. Too expensive, way
too expensive, have you seen the price of gas? Enough said.

Hot Shots Are Us

So you hire some hot shot Web designer who isn't as old as the
shoes you're wearing. If you spent some money on your site, and
you didn't fall into the trap of having your brother-in-law's
cousin design the thing, you probably got a technically
proficient website. Unfortunately, when they teach these
'wunderkind' the ways of the Web at the local community college,
they don't teach them anything about business, especially
anything about marketing.

Now if you're one of those people who think websites are IT
projects then good luck, have a nice life, stop reading, because
the rest of what I have to say will mean nothing to you. On the
other hand, if you believe websites are about marketing, let's
talk.

A Manifesto for the Web

A bunch of guys a whole lot smarter than me wrote a neat little
screed called the 'The Cluetrain Manifesto' - very clever stuff.
What they said was 'markets are conversations consisting of
human beings, and the Internet enables these conversations.' Now
here's the critical part, 'conversations among human beings
sound human. They are conducted in a human voice.' Now does that
sound like the Web you know? Does your website speak with a
human voice? Does your website connect in a human way to your
customers? I think not.

So what does this really mean, this so called conversation? Well
we are all aware of Email, Blogs, RSS, and the Instant Messenger
technologies that have enabled this conversation to take place.
But with these informal conversations comes a danger - sloppy
thinking and misunderstood intent.

Someone sends you an email, and you quickly respond dashing off
an email reply without carefully thinking about how, or what,
you are saying. Even if the basic intent and content is what you
wanted to say, have you really said it in a way that your
conversation partner will understand, or will they misconstrue
your meaning?

How many one line, short-form emails have you received in
response to a complex initial correspondence, and if you're
anything like me, you looked at it and thought to yourself,
'what the hell is this suppose to mean.' We've got a
conversation going all right, but have we really attained
communication.

The Meaning of Life or At Least Web Conversation

Now here's the interesting thing. I never actually read 'The
Cluetrain Manifesto', but I did hear it. Knowing that I would be
laid-up for a few days, bored to death, with nothing to do, but
too comatose to really concentrate on reading a book, I
purchased one of those audiocassette books at the local mall. I
had no idea what I was buying, but it sounded interesting, after
all the cover said 'the end of business as usual' which really
appealed to my unconventional, contrary nature.

So I bought it, and it was a revelation, an epiphany. Not that I
agreed with everything Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc
Searls, and David Weinberger had to say, but still their voices
stayed with me, and are still locked away somewhere in my head.

Breaking the Liquid Crystal Barrier

And that my friend is the message, the sound of the human voice
is powerful, and it connects to the listener on a whole
different level. It speaks the truth and connects emotionally to
the listener on a very human plane. It breaks through that
liquid crystal barrier, and says, listen to me, I'm here, I'm
human, and I have something real to talk to you about. Wow, this
is good stuff. So tell me why don't you have that human
connection imbedded in your website, delivering your message,
your story.

Forget about all the crap you've heard and read about bandwidth
and search engine optimization. When someone takes the trouble
to visit your website, don't waste the opportunity. Don't screw
it up. Don't be afraid to say what needs to be said, in a way
that will be heard. If you do it right, your website visitors
will remember what you have to say, and that liquid crystal
barrier will be broken.

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

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Title: ASP vs. PHP

Author: Tad Coffin

Article:
When building web sites, ASP and PHP are very popular languages.
Here's my opinion on whether ASP or PHP is best

ASP v. PHP

Both ASP and PHP are languages used to build Dynamic Web sites
that can interact with Databases and exchange information. ASP
(Active Server Pages) is from Microsoft and is used with IIS
(Internet Information Server) that runs on Microsoft Servers.
PHP (Personal Home Pages) is from Rasmus Lerdorf, who originally
designed this parsing language which was later modified by
different people. It runs on Unix and Linux servers and it also
has an NT server version.

There are a lot of differences between ASP and PHP.

Cost

To run ASP programs one needs IIS installed on a Windows
platform server, which is not free. PHP programs run on Linux,
which is free. Even the connectivity of the database is
expensive in the case of ASP as MS-SQL is a product of Microsoft
that needs to be purchased. PHP generally uses MySQL, which is
freely available.

Speed

If we compare the speed of ASP and PHP then PHP has an upper
hand. PHP code runs faster than ASP. ASP is built on COM based
architecture, which is an overhead for the server whereas PHP
code runs in its own memory space.

Platform Compatibility

PHP programs can run on various platforms like Linux, Unix,
Windows and Solaris whereas ASP is mainly associated with
Windows platforms. However, ASP can run on a Linux platform with
ASP-Apache installed on the server.

Additional Costs

Many of the tools used in PHP are free of cost and since PHP is
open source a lot of code can be found in open source forums.
PHP has inbuilt features like ftp, email from a web page or even
encryption mechanisms but in ASP such features are not built in
and some additional components are required. Therefore an
additional cost is incurred for such components.

Base Language

PHP is based on C++ language and the syntax used in PHP is quite
similar to C/C++. C/C++ is still considered the best programming
language by many programmers and people who love this language
would surely feel more comfortable with the syntax of PHP. ASP
on the other hand has a more Visual Basic kind of syntax that
again is closely related to only Microsoft products. So, it
depends on a person-to-person which language he or she is
comfortable

Database Connectivity

PHP, being extremely flexible, can connect to various databases,
the most popular being MySQL. ASP mainly uses MS-SQL.

Conclusion

Both languages have their advantages specific to users. Some
would argue that both the languages have their own importance
and depending on the user's requirements the language and the
platform can be chosen. If we talk about developing a discussion
board then ASP is equally capable but many feel the best
discussion boards are developed in PHP. If a user is looking for
some e-commerce application development then many would call ASP
the ideal choice. This does not mean that PHP cannot provide
e-commerce solutions, only that many people choose ASP.

From my perspective, PHP is an all around better choice than
ASP.

About the author:
Halstatt Pires is with the Internet marketing firm -
http://www.marketingtitan.com - a San Diego Internet marketing
and advertising company offering automated web site systems -
http://www.businesscreatorpro.com - for e-commerce solutions.

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Title: The Sound of Business - Part 3

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
PART III - THE SOUND OF BUSINESS

HOW TO GIVE GOOD SONIC PERSONALITY©

We live in an age of metrics. Traditional and new media
advertising agencies often substitute metrics for understanding.
Mathematical models create the appearance of scientific
analysis, when in fact they are often manipulated to support a
preselected agenda. We all know data can be massaged to conform
to almost any conclusion. Besides, most small owner-managed
companies can't afford the expense of these agency-driven number
crunching solutions. The real question is, do these metrics
actually help us connect to our customers, who just happen to be
people?

Emotions Win Over Rationality

After all, we are dealing with people, and people react to
information on both a rational and an emotional level. If
everyone bought goods and services based on a strictly rational
basis, we would all be driving Smart Cars and wearing Old Navy
jeans. People make decisions based on a perception of reality,
rather than a rational analysis. Without getting too
metaphysical, in business there is no reality, only perception.
We believe what we think is true, or what is presented to us as
true. Information is colored by who and how, the message is
delivered.

Trying to Make 'Senses' Out of Life

We experience our lives through our senses. We see, hear, touch,
and smell. It is through these senses that we create what passes
for reality, and on that perceived reality we make our so-called
rational decisions.

Left on their own, people will interpret what they sense in very
individual ways. What tastes good to you makes me gag. The woman
I think is beautiful you think is ugly. That is until we our
told in some convincing communication, what we should think.

Skinny, shapeless, superior super models are beautiful because
we are told over and over that they are, and ultimately we
mostly learn to agree. So what does this all mean: reality is a
managed state of mind. We are either the managers or the
managed. Sounds pretty icky, doesn't it, but there it is, and I
for one rather be one of the managers than one of the managed.

Managing Perception

We have all been told from early on that 'a picture is worth a
thousand words.' How many times have you quoted this famous
saying? And you actually believe it, after all Confucius
wouldn't lie, would he? According to Jack Trout, in his book
'The New Positioning,' what Confucius actually said was, "a
picture is worth a thousand pieces of gold." Not the same thing
at all is it? There is actually no evidence that Confucius made
either remark.

The documented origin of the famous expression has been traced
back to a guy named Fred Barnard who sold tram advertising in
the 1920s by stating the claim in his advertisements. Originally
he claimed it was an old Japanese proverb, but later changed his
story and issued Chinese lettering with a translation in his
ads. Who knows what the truth is, maybe old Fred invented the
expression himself, but most people believe Confucius said it,
and that's reality, even if the damn thing was made up.

What You See is Nice, But What You Hear You Remember.

People want to believe what they see is the most important
element in delivering a message, but I would argue that what you
hear outweighs even what you see. Think about it. Companies
spend millions of dollars on attractive logos and pithy
corporate names, and I have no argument with developing a proper
logo or a great name. But successful company names and logos
have an element inherent in their design that goes beyond how
they look. It is how they sound. When you see a visual brand
representation, a signal goes off in your head and a little
voice whispers that company name. Try to think of a popular
corporate logo without the name of that company sounding
silently in your head. Sound, and more specifically the human
voice, is the most under utilized marketing tool we have at our
disposal. And it's ready to hit The Web, big time.

The Web is Made for Sound

The Web is a multimedia platform and your website should utilize
every possible tool available to create your reality and to
deliver your marketing message. No one was able to stop the
flood of images from overtaking the Web, and soon audio will
follow. Now I hear the screams of some crying out against the
multimedia pollution on the Web, and I'll agree that it will
surely come. But here's the thing, agreed most companies will
implement sound on the Web all wrong and it will be just more
noise, but if YOU do it right, you'll be the winner. Your
message will get through the noise, and you will define reality,
and manage the perception of your audience. The question then is
how do you effectively implement voice-audio on the Web?

Audio - The Human Connection

I started this series of articles by stating that the way to
break through the liquid crystal barrier was with a human voice
that delivers a Sonic Personality© for your business. We've
talked about how you must create the basis for a business
personality by first defining who you are, what you do, and why
you do it better than the competition. We've also talked about
focusing on the core values of what you want to do for your
audience, and not confusing them with all the things you can do.
So now we are ready to craft your Signature Voice - your Sonic
Personality©.

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

================================================================
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Title: 7 Easy Secrets to Understanding Web Statistics

Author: Alden Smith

Article:

Understanding what your visitors do on your site is crucial
information. If your visitors proceed to purchase a product but
then a large majority leaves the site when they get to a
specific page in the order process, you need to know about it.
It could be that this page is confusing or hard to use. Fixing
it could increase your sales by 200%. This is just an example;
there are many reasons why you want a detailed analysis of your
site visitors.

Most website hosting services offer a stats package that you can
study. If you're not sure where this is, call up your hosting
service and ask them. Statistics are a vital part of tracking
your marketing progress. If you don't have access to website
statistics get a package that can help you in this area. Do not
get a counter that simply shows how many visitors you've had.
You'll be missing out on vital information that can help
strengthen weaknesses in your site.

A good website hosting service offers traffic logs that provide
an invaluable insight into the traffic being referred to a web
site from various sources such as search engines, directories
and other links.

Unfortunately traffic tracking provided by web hosting services
is often in the form of raw traffic log files or other difficult
to understand cryptic formats. These log files are basically
text files that describe actions on the site. It is literally
impossible to use the raw log files to understand what your
visitors are doing. If you do not have the patience to go
through these huge traffic logs, opting for a traffic-logging
package would be a good idea.

Basically, two options are available to you and these are: using
a log analysis package or subscribing to a remotely hosted
traffic logging service. A remotely hosted traffic logging
service may be easy to use and is generally the cheaper option
of the two. WebTrends Live and HitsLink are two good, remotely
hosted, traffic-monitoring services worth considering. However,
WebTrends Live is a more complicated system and is suitable for
larger ecommerce websites. "SuperStats" is another recommended
traffic logging service.

These services do not use your log files. Typically a small
section of code is placed on any page you want to track. When
the page is viewed, information is stored on the remote server
and available in real time to view in charts and tables form.

Log analysis packages are typically expensive to buy and complex
to set up. Apart from commercial packages there are also some
free log analysis packages available, such as Analog.

A good traffic logging service would provide statistics
pertaining to the following:

1 How many people visit your site? 2 Where are they from? 3 How
are visitors finding your site? 4 What traffic is coming from
search engines, links from other sites, and other sources? 5
What keyword search phrases are they using to find your site? 6
What pages are frequented the most - what information are
visitors most interested in? 7 How do visitors navigate within
your web site?

Knowing the answers to these and other fundamental questions is
essential for making informed decisions that maximize the return
on investment (ROI) of your web site investment.

The most important aspect of tracking visitors to your website
is analyzing all the statistics you get from your tracking
software. The three main statistics that will show your overall
progress are hits, visitors and page views. Hits are tracked
when any picture or page loads from your server on to a
visitor's browser. Hits, however, can be very misleading. It is
quite an irrelevant statistic for your website.

The statistic that is probably the most important for a website
is Page Views/Visitors. This gives you a good indication of two
things. First, how many people are coming to your site, and
secondly how long are they staying on your site. If you have 250
visitors and 300 page views you can figure that most visitors
view one page on your site and then leave. Generally, if you're
not getting 2 page views per visitor then you should consider
upgrading your site's content so your visitors will stay around
longer.

If you see the number of visitors you have increasing as well as
the number of page views per visitor increasing then keep up the
good work! Always look for this stat as an overall barometer of
how your site design is going and if your marketing campaigns
are taking hold. Also, a good stat to look for is unique
visitors. Once a person visits your site they will not be added
to the unique visitors' category if they visit again. This is a
good way to track new visitors to your website.

Page views are a good indication of how "sticky" your website
is. A good statistic to keep is Page Views divided by the number
of Visitors you have. This statistic will give you a good idea
if your content is interesting and if your visitors are staying
on your site for a long time and surfing.

Some people are intimidated by web traffic statistics (mostly
because of the sheer volume of data available), but they
shouldn't be. While there are many highly specialized statistics
that can be used for more in-depth web traffic analysis, the
above areas alone can provide invaluable information on your
visitors and your website performance. Remember- this data is
available for a reason. It's up to you to use it.

About the author:
None

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Title: Web Design The 10 Biggest Mistakes

Author: Ron King

Article:
There are plenty of mistakes in the world of web design. Let's
look at what I believe to be the 10 biggest.

1. Too Many Ads. When you're trying to make money from your
website, it's all too easy to overwhelm your site with ads. Put
yourself in your user's place and take a good hard look at your
site and ask yourself if the ads feel intrusive. Does the site
look like an information source or does it feel more like a
page-holder for the ads?

2. Plugin Overload. You have to keep plugin useage to a maximum
of 1 type per page. If you've got Flash, then you can't have a
media player, or if you're using Java, then no Flash. It's not
as bad to use the same plugin twice, however.

3. Flash Intros. Please, don't use a Flash intro on your
website. They have been so overused that they're becoming
universally mocked.

4. Unclear Layout and Navigation. Many websites, especially
business sites, suffer from some kind of disease where the very
simplest task takes 10 steps. If users are asking you how to do
things on your site, then you need to improve your layout and
navigation. If there are certain tasks people want to do
frequently, put them on the front page.

5. No Marking for External Links. There are 2 kinds of links:
internal (to other parts of your website) and external (to other
websites). For the benefit of your users, it's best if you mark
external links, either by making them a different color or using
some kind of a symbol (a box with an arrow is the usual one).
It's also good to make the external links open in new windows,
so people aren't leaving your site altogether when they click
them.

6. Unclear Linking. Some web pages are designed to show links
only when people put their mouse over them. While this might
make the design look nicer, it is not very user friendly.
Instead, use a clearly contrasting color for links, and
preferably underline them. This makes them more visible to the
user, thus more user friendly.

7. Unlabelled Email Links. Always clearly mark a link that will
send email (a mailto link) with the word 'email'. If you turn
clicking a name into send email, you'll annoy users who expected
to find out more about the person.

8. Broken Links. You should check your links regularly to make
sure that they all still work. There's nothing worse than
finding a site that looks useful, only to find that it hasn't
been updated in years, so most of the links don't work. While a
website does mostly run itself after a while, that doesn't mean
that you should neglect essential maintenance.

9. Strange Fonts. Stick to the most common web fonts: that's
pretty much just Arial, Georgia, Tahoma and Verdana. If you use
more obscure fonts, then most users won't have them -- and those
that do will find your text hard to read. The only place for
non-standard fonts is in your logo or headings, and then only if
they are displayed as an image.

10. Badly-sized Text. It's important to keep your text around
the standard size. Making text too big or too small makes it
hard to read and annoying for many users. The best thing you can
do is use relative text sizing (not pixels) that allows the
browser to respect the user's preferred text size. You should
also consider offering buttons on your site to decrease or
increase the font size.

About the author:
Visit <a href="http://www.webtopdesign.com" target="_blank"> Web
Design DIY</a> to learn more. Ron King is a full-time
researcher, writer, and web developer, visit his website at <a
href="http://www.ronxking.com" target="_blank"> Website</a>

Copyright 2005 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the
resource box is left intact and the links live.

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Title: The Sound of Business - Part 2

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
PART II - THE SOUND OF BUSINESS

SONIC PERSONALITY© STARTS WITH BUSINESS PERSONALITY

Creating a 'kick ass' Sonic Personality© for your business
requires that your business have a personality in the first
place. Of course every business has one, whether you are aware
of it or not, and this is a real danger. Your customers'
understanding of who you are, and what you do, as a business,
may be very different from the vision you have of yourself. This
can be a very serious problem for owner-managed businesses,
where the personality of the entrepreneur oft times gets
substituted for the personality of the business - big mistake!
So what's the first step in crafting a marketable business
personality?

What Business Are you Really In?

OK kids, its story time. Back in the day, the railroad barons
were the most powerful business leaders in the country. They had
the money, the power, and the political 'shlep' (that's drag for
the uninitiated) to do pretty much whatever they wanted. Today
railroads are a depressed industry. So what happened? Simple,
they didn't know what business they were really in.

If you could have asked Leland Stanford or Collis P. Huntington,
what business they were in, they would have most likely
answered, 'the railroad business'. And in the long run, that was
their downfall. Instead, they should have thought of themselves
as being in 'the transportation business' and if they did, they
surely would have used their money, power, and influence to
control the emerging automobile, trucking, and airline
industries.

Before you can craft a Sonic Personality© you first must
understand who you are, what you do, and why you do it better
than the other guy. If you can answer those three questions
clearly, then you have the beginning of a coherent business
personality that must first exist before you can have a Sonic
Personality©.

Focus On One Core Value

One of the hardest things for entrepreneurial businesses to do
is to focus on one core value. This may sound, on the surface,
to be contrary to the lesson learned from the railroad barons,
but it isn't. Your core value focus has to be broad enough to be
able to sustain your business through the onslaught of
competition and fast moving technological change. When the
railroad barons focused on just one form of transportation they
let all the other transportation opportunities slip through
their fingers and ultimately overtake them.

Most accountants and bankers will tell you to 'stick to your
knitting' and not let yourself be spread too thin with secondary
initiatives. This is generally good advice, however there is a
fundamental difference between going off on a tangent and
sticking to your core values. Knowing who you are, what you do,
and why you do it better than the competition will help you keep
your focus while at the same time allow you to critically
determine whether new opportunities are ones that you should
pursue.

Create Definition: Lift and Separate

So far I have managed to avoid using the term, brand, because it
is generally misunderstood and ignored by most owner-managed
businesses. Substituting 'personality' for 'brand' puts the
notion of brand in context. Think about it. You may have thought
your business doesn't relate to branding concepts, but you've
accepted, or at least are intrigued by the idea, that your
business needs a clearly defined personality.

Al Ries and Jack Trout have written numerous books on branding
and marketing, including 'The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing."
One of the lessons to be learned from this book is 'The Law of
Opposites'. Simply stated, unless you're the 'top dog' in your
industry, you have to define who you are in contrast to the
industry leader. This is not dissimilar to The Theory of
Contrary Thinking.

The example sometimes used to explain The Theory of Contrary
Thinking is Tulip Mania. When tulips were first introduced to
Holland in the middle to late sixteenth century, people fell in
love with them. By the early 1600s, an exchange market had been
created that dealt with tulip futures. Similar to what happen in
the Roaring 20s, everyone got involved in purchasing tulip
futures for ridiculous prices, until some wise guy yelled SELL!
Panic set-in and like in the 1920s, the market collapsed. The
moral of the story is simple; if everyone is doing it, you
better do the opposite.

By defining your business in contrast to the industry leader,
you create a separate and distinct business personality that
gives your audience an alternative to the 'big guy'. You no
longer are a second banana 'wannbe' imitator, but rather a
distinctive company with your own image, strengths, advantages
and of course, personality.

Customers Are An Audience

Finally, this distinctive personality needs to be communicated
to your audience, and you'll notice I've called your customers
an audience, because that is exactly what they are. If you think
in terms of audience, it will open up a whole new understanding
of communication techniques and media, that will lead to better
audience recognition, acceptance, and ultimately sales. Now we
have to give your finely crafted personality a voice. Tune-in
next time for 'How to Give Good Sonic Personality©.'

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

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Title: Basic Website Design Service

Author: Steve Hill

Article:
There are many people who are interested in having an internet
presence, however are looking for a just a cheap basic website.
This article describes how to find a very cheap web design
company.

There are many people and companies offering a web design
service. It should therefore be quite simple to find a very good
deal. There is a market for a basic web design service and in my
opinion you should be able to obtain a website for under a £100.
Please feel free to contact me if you are unable to.

There are various times of the year when web design companies
are likely to offer some great deals. This is normally in the
summer or at christmas time.

Companies who are just setting out in offering a web design
service will often offer very reasonable rates at the outset,
basically to build up a portfolio. Once they have established
themselves they then tend to increase the amount they charge.
Therefore you need to get in quick while they offer a
professional service for a very small fee.

A number of years ago, I even heard about one person who for a
very short period of time was building websites for free! This
is an extreme case though.

A former workmate of mine called Peter was looking to have an
internet prescence for his small business a couple of years ago.
He did not have a huge budget, however was looking for a person
or company to create him a professional looking website which
would be search engine friendly at an affordable price.

He tried looking in many areas including yellow pages, ebay,
bargain pages and also by asking his friends, to see if they
knew of anybody.

He also searched in various search engines for the search term,
very cheap website design service. There were many different
websites listed, after a few phone calls, he managed to find a
very good deal.

There are plenty of people offering quality website design
services, who do not charge huge fees, just keep looking and you
are sure to find them.

About the author:
Stephen Hill has a number of websites including:

<a href="http://www.constipation-symptom.co.uk">constipation
cure</a>

<a href="http://www.hair-loss-remedy-treatment.co.uk">hair loss
treatments</a>

<a href="http://www.best-way-to-quit-smoking.com">quit smoking
today</a>

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Title: The Sound of Business - Part 4

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
PART IV - THE SOUND OF BUSINESS

STEPS TO CREATING YOUR SONIC PERSONALITY©

1. List all the human attributes inherent in your business
personality. An accounting firm may want to project stability,
reliability, and a conventional outlook - think the avuncular
voice of Walter Cronkite. An advertising agency might want to
deliver a hip, cutting edge, in your face creative personality -
think the edgy delivery of Chris Rock or Dennis Leary. Now
before you get all excited and start shouting, 'how I am I going
to afford these guys?' the answer is you don't. There are great
voice actors available at very reasonable prices that can
project the desired style and delivery.

2. What are the audio qualities of the Signature Voice? Do you
want a man or a woman, or a combination of both? Do you want a
deep base voice full of conviction, a snooty British accent
dripping in condescension, or a comic rapid-fire patter aimed to
amuse and entertain? When we created the
MassiveRecordProductions.com
(http://www.massiverecordproductions.com) project, we required a
smart-alec wise-guy approach, in the vain of Dennis Miller. In
this case, the actual accent of the voice was less important
than the delivery.

3. What kind of language, phrasing, and cadence is required to
give the Signature Voice its personality? When we were looking
for a Signature Voice for a DVD that was to be used at the
Winter Baseball Meetings, we decided on a combination of Dizzy
Dean and Mel Allen. The key was that 'good ole boy' southern
charm conveyed through a combination of baseball jargon,
phrasing, and dialect. We weren't looking for someone to imitate
Dizzy Dean, just someone who could deliver the essence of
Dizzy's love for the game.

4. Wet or Dry? Have you ever watched one of those 'The Making of
...' documentaries on a how a movie was made? Sometimes they
will show you a scene with dialog but no music or sound effects.
It's really very flat, even with the actors doing their dramatic
best. Voice without music or sound effects is called a 'Dry'
delivery. When the effects and the music are added in
postproduction, the scene delivers real emotional impact. The
music and f/x provide emotional clues and memory hooks.

5. Write the script. I find having the voice in my head is a
great help in writing the script. Whether you're shooting for
Sidney Greenstreet or Rod Serling, the cadence, phrasing, and
language are what makes the script come alive, and creates the
Sonic Personality© that will represent your company. Unrelated
to the actual voice but definitely of importance to the script,
is the point of view. The script should not be about you, it
should be about how your audience can benefit from knowing you.
Don't fall into the trap of focusing on you and listing a bunch
of product or service features. Talk about what you can do for
your audience, and in that way you will make a real connection.

6. Audition the talent. Once you have a script, it's time to
audition a number of voices to find the one that fits the Sonic
Personality© you are looking for, and of course the price you
are willing to pay. We generally have 50 to 100 people audition
for each script. We then narrow the search down to the two or
three best voices that fit the audio and budget requirements and
present them to our client.

7. Implement on the Web. Once the voice audio is complete, music
and sound effects can be added as needed. The audio tracks are
then cut into digestible clips, compressed, and converted into
appropriate implementible files. The Sonic Personality© program
can be delivered on a website, or a DVD or CD presentation.

The Proof Is In The Toaster

In a world of mental clutter, 'information anxiety', and low
attention spans, Sonic Personality© will become the next big
weapon in webmedia presentation and marketing. But let's say
you're still not convinced even after reading the four
installments of 'The Sound of Business.' Let me show you exactly
how Sonic Personality© can work in a practical example, but you
have to promise to participate.

Take a sticky note or a plain piece of paper and place a big
question mark on it. Under the question mark draw a line. Now
place the piece of paper in your daily agenda two weeks from
today. In two weeks, I want you to write down on that piece of
paper the name of the fictitious product in the example we are
going to create. If you can remember the product's name, Sonic
Personality© has done its job.

Here's the setup. There are certain things in life that are very
personal, the way you dress, how you comb your hair, the way you
take your coffee, and how you like your toast. There is nothing
worse (well of course there is) than waking up on a Saturday
morning, taking the last two slices of bread, placing them in
the toaster, and in several minutes find you have what can best
be described as a 'burnt offering.' There is definitely a need
here that needs to be filled.

Our made-up client is a small appliance company who has created
a toaster that audibly warns you what setting your toaster is on
as soon as you put your bread in it. This product has appeal for
anyone who has been irritated by ruined toast. The client isn't
sure what kind of Sonic Personality© they want to present, so we
create a series of Sonic Demo Spots.

Click on the link below to hear the various sonic demo spots,
each with its own Sonic Personality©. Don't forget to create
your two-week reminder and if you remember the name of the
product, you should start thinking about how to implement your
own Sonic Personality© campaign.

Click here for example: <a
href="http://www.sonicpersonality.com">www.sonicpersonality.com</
a>

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

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Title: The Brand Story - A Tale Worth Telling

Author: Jerry Bader

Article:
THE BRAND STORY - A TALE WORTH TELLING

Every Business Has A Story To Tell

Everybody likes a good story and why not? Stories are
entertaining, instructive, engaging and above all human; they
connect people to people, and businesses to customers. Stories
are about communication and communication is the essence of
marketing.

We have at our disposal the greatest communication tool the
world has ever known, the Internet, and we are wasting it.
Websites are used as if they were corporate brochures. The
techno-experts would even have us remove its visual and kinetic
elements, and turn it into an academic-style journal to please
the SEO gurus. We've been there and done that. Search engine
optimization is great, but who is going to go to your website if
it's boring to view, and tedious to operate. It's time to move
on.

A Communication Venue For The Rest of Us

The Web is a multimedia communication venue, and with increased
bandwidth and high-speed connections we can use it effectively
to deliver our marketing messages. But communication is a funny
thing, just because we talk, write and present information,
doesn't mean we are communicating.

Since I am advocating storytelling as a means of delivering your
marketing messages, I will illustrate my point - you guessed it
- with a story. In his book 'Information Anxiety,' Richard Saul
Wurman relates the following story attributed to U.S.
Representative Pat Swindall, of Georgia.

"A woman seeking a divorce went to visit her attorney. The first
question he asked her was, 'Do you have grounds?'

She replied, 'Yes, about two acres.'

'Perhaps I'm not making myself clear,' he said, 'Do you have a
grudge?'

'No, but we have a carport,' she responded.

'Let me try again. Does your husband beat you up?' he said
impatiently.

'No, generally I get up before he does,' she said.

At this point the attorney decided to try a different tack.
'Ma'am, are you sure you really want a divorce?'

'I don't want one at all, but my husband does. He claims we
have difficulty communicating.'"

It's a great story; it delivers everything a good story should
communicate: a appoint-of-view, information, emotion, and truth
about the human condition. The only thing that would make this
story more effective is if it was delivered by a human voice
that could add character, emphasis, and personality.

Marketing is nothing more than telling your story in an
effective way that embeds your identity into the minds of your
audience, connecting and communicating who you are, what you do,
and why your audience should be doing it with you. Branding and
positioning are the results, not the process.

So Tell Me A Story - It's All In the Delivery

One of the great storytellers of the last forty years is radio
broadcaster and commentator, Paul Harvey. In his hay-day he had
everything a great storyteller needed to make a memorable
impression: the voice, the cadence, the attitude, the writing,
and the 'schtick.'

He presented his commentaries as if he was reading the
newspaper, even, reading off the page numbers when he came back
from commercial, "Page Two." He would craft his stories by
introducing the listener to a character in the most casual way,
perhaps by referring to him or her by a diminutive first name.
By the end of the story, he would tell you who this person
really was and invariably it was someone famous, and the story
he told revealed something unusual or hidden in this person's
background. Each story had a strong point-of-view, and each
commentary was ended with the tag line, "... and now you know
the rest of the story." Paul Harvey's little radio commentaries
are a quintessential example of Sonic Personality© (see
http://www.sonicpersonality.com).

"Content is Not Communication"

Web experts are always talking about 'content' and how 'content
is king' on the Web, but as Curt Cloninger wrote in his article
'A Case for Web Storytelling' "content is not communication."

Content just lies there until it is delivered in some proactive
manner, and plain text content on your website is as far from
proactive as you can get. Stories must be communicated
effectively if you want to deliver your intended message. Left
alone, your audience will scan, skip, misinterpret and generally
overlook the point you are trying to convey. The only effective
way to make sure your audience doesn't misconstrue the message
of your story is to deliver it in a human voice: one with
character, cadence, accent, language, and an attitude that
represents who you are. A story well told creates expectations
and relevance; it creates image and identity, and it focuses on
the business promise you must fulfill.

Fakers Need Not Apply

As good as your storyteller is, he or she cannot overcome a
fake. You must be honest to who you are, and what you really do.
Every business has a character, and an operational ethos. Trying
to communicate a message that conflicts with that corporate
character is a prescription for failure. Apple and Dell are both
good companies, but Apple Computer is cutting-edge; Dell is not.
Walmart and The Gap are both successful companies, but The Gap
is cool and Walmart is Walmart. No matter how hard a company
tries, they can't be something they are not, and trying can only
create false expectations, confusion and failure.

A Blueprint for Creating Your Brand Story

Whether you write the story yourself, or you hire someone to
write it for you, you must first gather the necessary material.
The easiest way to collect material is to create a series of
questions that when answered reveal the Brand Story. Think of
the process as an interview.

The Brand Story Interview 1. What was the original vision of the
company? 2. Who were the company's founding fathers? 3. How was
the company started? 4. What was the guiding entrepreneurial
philosophy? 5. Is there a creative genius or technical wizard
behind your vision? 6. What is the big idea behind your product
or service? 7. What does your product or service do for your
target audience? 8. Does your vision rely on quality, cost, or
uniqueness of your a. Products, b. Services, c. Knowledge, or d.
Delivery system? 9. Has your focus changed since the company was
founded? 10. What is your vision for the future?

Once the material is collected it must then be put into story
form. You are not writing a research paper, nor are you creating
ad copy. You are telling a story, and as such, it should be
written as a story. If as suggested you're delivering the story
using audio, you should write it for the spoken word and not for
print. There are a variety of multimedia styles that can be used
ranging from the radio commentary style of Paul Harvey to the
PBS documentary style of Ken Burns featuring accompanying
graphics and photography.

It's Not Just The Story, It's How You Tell It

If you've ever tried to tell a joke you heard from a
professional comedian and messed it up, you know how important
the telling of a story is. It's not just the words; it's the
rhythm, cadence, accent, intonation, point-of-view, and attitude
that makes the story funny, memorable, interesting or
instructive.

Our previous article entitled 'The Sound of Business' goes into
detail on how the concept of Sonic Personality©
(http://www.sonicpersonality.com) delivers marketing messages
and Brand Stories in a compelling, inventive, entertaining, and
memorable way. It explains the power of the human voice and the
necessity of integrating it into your website.

The Medium Is the Message

It is hard to believe that there are any companies of any size
or sophistication that don't have a website, but it is even
harder to understand how so many companies with websites, have
no idea what the Web is.

The Web is typically described in technical terms, but in fact
the Web is merely a venue designed for communication, a place
where conversations take place, where information is exchanged,
and where transactions are conducted. If you can accept the idea
that the Web exists to further your communication efforts, then
it stands to reason that delivering your story is your website's
'raison d'etre.' And without the sound of the human voice, the
delivery of emotional connective content, and the conveyance of
clever, interesting, useful, entertaining, and compelling
stories, the Web is a wasteland, an uncommunitive environment of
random confusion.

About the author:
Jerry Bader, is a partner in MRPwebmedia, a website design firm
that specializes in creating multimedia websites that enhance
their clients business opportunities by delivering their
marketing messages using the latest audio, video, Flash, and
interactive techniques.

MRPwebmedia developed the Sonic Personalities© concept that
effectively conveys your brand, image and message on websites
and DVD/CD presentations using custom-crafted voice-overs.

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Title: Small Business Website Design Strategies

Author: Charles Preston

Article:
Small Business Website Design Strategies

For a small business a website can have a massive impact on
whether that small business thrives or dies out. There are
several very important differences between a website built for a
large business and a website built for a small business. It's
important that a small business and the website design company
who builds the website for that small business are aware of
those differences so that the website has the greatest positive
impact.

First of all don't try to look and act like the big boys. If you
are a small business please do not plaster your site with
platitudes like "family owned since 1642" or "customer service
is our specialty" blah blah. IBM and Coke can get away with
having pretty sites that blather on and on using all kinds of
corporate jargon but a small business cannot do that. Here's
why...

Big companies are already established brands. They can rest on
their laurels now; at least they think they can. A small
business website needs to grab the visitor by the throat with
some hard hitting headlines and copy and get busy proving its
case because before visiting that website it's likely the
visitor has never heard of that small business.

Think of it like a courtroom. The small business is on trial
it's products and services are suspect from the get go. That
small business needs to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that it
can provide the best value over its competitors. What's worse is
that you only have about 8 seconds from the time the visitor
hits the homepage to the time they click the back button to hook
them into your sales copy.

The number one difference here is the copy. A small business
website needs to be a life support unit for its unique selling
proposition or USP not a contestant in this year's flashy foo
foo web design award contest. Win customers not awards. Forget
the animation and music and go easy on the images. What a small
business needs is a lean, mean conversion machine.

Studies show the visitors don't even consciously register images
until after they have absorbed the copy on the page. Makes sense
because what they came for was information not the old
receptionist at the desk on the phone pictures that we have seen
over and over again. They want to know who the heck you are and
what you can do for them and make it snappy!

It's brutal but that's the way it works. A small business that
knows this and applies this to their website has a huge
advantage over those who don't. So if you are a small business
owner and need a website keep this article in mind or if you
have an existing website take a look at it and reevaluate it's
effectiveness in light of this information. Small changes can
have dramatic effects on sales conversion.

About the author:
Article is submitted on behalf of Charles Preston, who is
President of Click Response, a website marketing and design firm
where you can get <a
href=http://www.clickresponse.net>affordable search engine
optimization</a> that works.

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Title: Professional Web Design Services

Author: Steve Hill

Article:
Are you looking for a professional web design service, however
are only on a small budget? This article gives you free advice
and tips about how to obtain a cheap but quality web design.
There are also some very valuable website promotion tips. I hope
you enjoy the read.

How To find cheap website design companies.

You may think that you need to spend hundreds of pounds to have
an internet prescence. I do not agree and believe that for a
basic information type website, the maximum you should have to
spend is £100. There is a large amount of competition in the
website design sector which means that you are able to pick and
choose the best deals available. For people who are willing to
be patient and who are prepared to make lots of phone calls and
send lots of e-mails, a quality company offering cheap web
design services should not be difficult to find.

You can find these cheap website design companies by looking on
internet auction websites such as ebay, internet search engines
such as google or in the Yellow Pages. It could also be worth
asking family and friends and also looking in newspapers.

Website promotion advice

It is likely that most people who have a website are looking at
ways to increase the amount of traffic they have to their site
and would like a higher page rank. In general the higher the
page rank you have, the more visitors you are likely to obtain.

The best way to increase your websites page rank is by getting
as many backward links to your website as possible. You can do
this by e-mailing other websites preferably in the same business
sector as your own and asking if they would be willing to swap
links with your site. This can be a very time consuming project
and it could be worth your while joining a program like
linkmetro.

Writing articles like the one you are reading here is another
way of obtaining backward links. This is what I believe is the
best form of website promotion as the links that you will
receive are one way, and have a higher value in the eyes of the
search engines. By submitting these articles to article
websites, other webmasters are then able to use your article on
their website, thus giving you an extra link. This is because
you are able to add your information and web address in the
author bio at the bottom of the page.

You may also want to consider google adwords. This is a form of
pay per click where you pay to appear on the right side of the
search results in the paid advertising section of the google
search engine for a specific key phrase. Always remember not to
spend more on the advertising than you are likely to earn from
the website.

If you would like to earn extra money from your website you may
want to consider google adsense. This is where the search engine
google, put adverts onto your website. When your visitors click
on the ads you get paid.

About the author:
Stephen Hill has a number of websites including:

<a href="http://www.stammering-stuttering.co.uk">stammering
stuttering treatment</a>

<a href="http://www.phobias-help.com">phobias help</a>

<a href="http://www.hair-loss-remedy-treatment.co.uk">hair loss
problem</a>

<a href="http://www.natural-health-cure.co.uk">natural health
treatments</a>

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Title: How Big Is Your Website?

Author: Jim Hoffman

Article:
Many online experts will tell you that all you need is a one
page sales site to make money online. While this is in many ways
true, if you have been online for any amount of time, the idea
of a one page site is a novelty.

Even just having a one page site requires you to also have other
pages that co- exist with the main page.

Thank you page Privacy notice Disclaimer Terms of use

These are just basics. You will find yourself adding other pages
in a short time:

Help pages Linking pages contact page

Plus if you are looking to rank better in the search engines,
you will find yourself putting in content pages with interesting
articles. Adding other pages like a page of freebies for your
visitors or even simple interactive add-ons to make your site
"sticky".

The thing is - you will need many other pages to get your site
ranked within the search engines, build trust with your visitors
and establish yourself as a professional within your niche.

My suggestion is to start slow. You don't want to build too many
pages at once (too many pages can seem like spamming). Put a few
articles on your site each month. Add some easy interactive
features to your site.

Depending on your niche you can find free articles online that
you can reprint within your site. You can also find some tools
to add to your site for your visitors to use.

You should also place a links page that includes links you
exchange with other sites as well as any sites you feel your
visitors can benefit from. Don't just add affiliate links and
reciprical links. Actually put links that are a value to your
visitors. This will help establish you as someone they can trust
and not just a person looking to sell them something at every
turn.

Finally, be sure to your navigation includes access to your
pages so it will help you with SEO and make it easy for visitors
to find what they want.

I am sure that once you begin and make that one page site - you
will slowly find yourself adding more content, links and offers
for your visitors. All this will help you increase your search
engine popularity, make your site "sticky" and help establish
that trust with your visitors that can turn that one page site
into one that converts sales.

About the author:
"Jim Hoffman is giving away free memberships to his Internet
Marketing CPR 'private site'. To get your own username and
password, visit http://internetMarketingCPR.com while charter
memberships last."

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