The Digital Practitioner: Website Design
    • Showing posts with label Website Design. Show all posts
    Showing posts with label Website Design. Show all posts

    Friday, 20 October 2017

    October 20, 2017 0

    Too often people see the internet as some type of magical, mysterious genie that will give them all the money they need with no work. True, there are many online strategies to make money while you sleep, but the same laws that apply to the rest of the business world apply here, too. 


    To illustrate this, we are going to compare the website we are creating with a McDonald's franchise...
    Real World Economics
    It may seem that the internet lives in it's own bubble. That the money, products, resources, advertisements, etc. are all just "digital" but it is crucial that you understand that the internet is backed by real world products and services preformed by real people. (And when you see the real checks in your mailbox, this will become even more apparent!)

    For example, you have a website and Amazon advertises on it. Someone visits your site, clicks on the ad to Amazon and purchases an iPod. The customer receives a real-life iPod, Amazon receives profit from the sale, and you receive a commission from Amazon. Win-Win-Win. 
    This entire system was created because a real person bought a real music player. Since you are just getting a commission for showing the ad, it is easy to overlook this process and think that Amazon just paid you for the digital ad space on your site, seemingly for "nothing". In reality, Amazon paid you because you sold an iPod to a real person. The distinction seems minor, but always keep that in mind.
    Always remember that you are selling metaphorical hamburgers and french fries to real people in your "McDonald's" on the web. There is no difference.
    Supply and Demand
    You may be familiar with the idea of supply and demand, and how this affects prices. If your McDonald's restaurant had 100 hamburgers in stock and there was 1,000 people in line, you could charge insane prices. But if you needed to get rid of 1,000 hamburgers and only had 10 customers, you would be practically giving them away.
    When supply > demand prices will be low. When demand > supply, you can raise prices higher.


    How does this apply to our simple website? The prices your site will earn for each sale or each click will be directly related to supply and demand. Using our last example, when consumers are willing to buy a bunch of iPods, Amazon can afford to pay you much more than when iPods just aren't selling as well.
    In a larger sense, there isn't too much you can do about this, but you can position yourself to protect against lower demand. The best way to do this is to ensure that you have multiple streams of revenue (which we will be getting to in the next lessons).
    Leverage
    Leverage means that you can do a lot with a little. Leverage is the concept that makes the internet an exciting place to make money. Leverage is the reason that I can offer you strategies to make money while you sleep. Let's look at how internet business offers us leverage:
    Time leverage is perhaps the biggest advantage. Let me explain how business works online. Because your website is up 24/7, even while you are sleeping, you can profit from it no matter what you are doing with your time. Once your site is up (and you spend minimal time maintaining it), you are free to do whatever you want and your site will continue to profit. If you are ambitious, you can spend your time creating another site, and another, while all of them are making money all the time. See how you can leverage your time? If this was the McDonald's, you would be working 12 hours a day to keep your restaurant in order and when you went home at night, the restaurant would be shut down, unable to make you any money.


    A second area of leverage is resources. The system that I am teaching you takes minimal money and minimal skills to create. It is a system that, with a little effort, you can create for under $20 and profit $200 per week or more. Try getting that kind of return with a McDonald's franchise.
    The final area of leverage is geography. With our restaurant, we can only serve local customers. With the internet, we can reach billions of internet users world wide. This leverage stuff is powerful and it is the single factor that makes the internet fundamentally different (and in my opinion, better) than the McDonald's franchise.
    Visit the Business Blog [http://www.businessgears.com] that gives you instant business headlines.






    by:     Andrew Olson 
    Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/4257449
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    Monday, 11 September 2017

    5 Customer Aspects That eCommerce Retailers Should Never Miss Out On

    September 11, 2017 0
    5 Customer Aspects That eCommerce Retailers Should Never Miss Out On

    Building an eCommerce site isn't that easy, especially when a plethora of similar sites are competing in the market.
    Whether one is starting up a new online store or has an existing store that is not seeing much profits lately, one thing that surely calls for attention is anticipating the customer's behavioural tendencies. 


    There are many emotional triggers behind the behaviour of online buyers that every retailer need to count on and reconcile their websites accordingly to ensure that their visitors stay back. 
    For anyone selling things online, these emotional persuasions play a greater role in getting the potential sales or customers.

    Chic look of the store
    Like the way no customers like walking into a storefront that is smelly, disorganised and unwelcoming, online buyers also turn away from a displeasing site. 


    They hope for an elegant store with a clean, spacious and compassionate atmosphere. 
    Considering that an eCommerce store is just the resemblance of a physical store in the virtual or web world, retailers must pay utmost attention to make store's layout, designing, products presentation, content and other aspects as appealing as possible.

    Story telling
    While every element in an eCommerce store contributes in and out to the unique personality of the brand, the chief idea is to present a cohesive personality which the targeted customers will actually like. 

    It is essential because customers like to feel connected with whatever brand they approach and perhaps this is the only reason why marketers of big brands endorse them by hiring celebrities. 
    Storytelling is the best way otherway round in eCommerce to connect with customers. It can be presented in either way, as the company's story in the About Us section or by summing up a unique product experience in the product page.

    Clear statement for product scarcity
    A popular notion of scarcity is that people get motivated to bargain on something if they find out that it is scanty. 
    The same principle applies to eCommerce, for which it is sensible for the retailers to maintain transparency in displaying the stocks availability for each product. 
    Marketers mostly trigger this concept to tell customers that their popular products or low-priced products might sooner go out of the stock which of course will grab their attention and encourage them to buy.

    Trust emblems to rely on payments
    Improving the store's reliability and trustworthiness is essential as many customers are reluctant when it comes to online payment. 
    Besides giving a professional look to the website, there's should be displaying of security badges, customer testimonials, ratings, customer-services email address or contact numbers on the store which infuse a sense of trust in the buyers. 
    Further, eCommerce sites need to always avoid things that can turn off customers during payments such as popping up of expired SSL certificate messages.

    Social linking
    Social linking in eCommerce sites implies the use of referral links from popular social network sites that a large number of people trust. 

    The linking of every product page with mass platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, seems appealing to the customers as they look at it as an opportunity to share their experience or interests of online shopping with their social circles.

    These stand as the most gripping emotional factors of every online buyer that describe well their expectations whenever they visit an eCommerce store. Thus, every retailer is hoped to get along with this thought process of the customers and sprinkle them in and out the stores to witness their sales soar higher.
    by: Rob Stephen 
    Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9785451
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    Thursday, 7 September 2017

    Make a Powerful Impact With the Power of a Good Website

    September 07, 2017 0
    Make a Powerful Impact With the Power of a Good Website

    When it comes to your business, you need to make an impact to forge meaningful relationships with customers. 
    One of the best ways to do this and get customer attention during the precious few seconds it takes to hold their interest is through a powerful website.
    A powerful website will take you to places you've never gone before. Make sure to make the best of it. 
    Read some helpful tips on how you can create impact with your business through your website.

    Register your domain name

    The first step to create a website that truly rocks is to register a custom domain. Select a name that boosts your brand and visibility on the web. 
    Remember that your domain name is the address that customers will connect with your business on the web.



    Make your domain memorable and easy to remember. Avoid complex spellings, numbers and symbols. 
    Get creative with your name, and make sure that there is a clear connection between your brand and your domain name.
    When it comes to domain extensions, .COM and .NET are the most common for business. 
    However, there are a lot of other TLDs you can choose from, such as .STORE and .SHOP, and country TLDs are also good for localising your reach, such as .NZ and .COM.AU.

    Have a definite purpose

    Your purpose is something you can anchor your business on.
    When it comes to the purpose of your website, you need to determine what you offer to customers. 
    Is your website simply to provide an online reference about your company that customers can explore? Is it for marketing purposes to promote your brick-and-mortar business? Or is it a full ecommerce website, where customers can readily make their purchases?
    Don't create a website just for the sake of having an online presence. You should clearly have a vision in mind of what you need your website to do for your business.
    Once you have your purpose in mind, you can go about structuring how to approach other elements, such as design, functionality and more.

    Professional design and appearance

    Visually, your website should be appealing, incorporating a professional look to encourage trust. Your site should also be kept simple. 
    Avoid clutter by limiting your design only to the essentials. 
    Apply a colour scheme that's relevant to your branding appearance.



    There are many different themes you can use and customise, depending on the web builder platform you're using. Don't worry about looking like many other websites in your industry. Most customers will know the similarities and will expect you to more or less follow the trends.
    The important thing is that you can clearly give customers the information they need about your company. That is the number one thing you should keep in mind when creating your website.

    Responsive design

    In a highly-mobile day and age, the importance of having a mobile friendly website has been stressed again and again. With 1.2 billion people around the world accessing the web through their mobile phones, mobile design is something you should definitely not overlook.
    Mobile responsiveness not only makes your website more accessible to all your users, it also helps you get a higher rank in Google results. 
    You also get more opportunities for conversions and sales as customers find your site convenient for their needs.
    With a responsive design, you can meet your customers' needs for fast and smooth transactions and browsing on your site. This saves you time creating different designs for desktop and mobile. 
    Your website functionality and appearance readily adjust to whatever platform your user is accessing, making the customer experience seamless.

    Relevant content

    Your website content should be kept relevant and informative for your target audience. Avoid too much jargon and make sure the average user understands the words and terms you're using. 
    Don't make the content too dense; it should be concise and coherent.
    The language and approach should fit your branding style. Are you edgy, formal or friendly? Use good calls-to-action where relevant. 
    On your homepage, let prospective customers know all about you and what you have to offer right away. Include short descriptions of your services as well as the experiences customers have with your company.
    Show your expertise and deep understanding of your customers' needs. This will help you inspire confidence in your brand. Make sure all the content is updated, including all your contact information, your stellar About Us page, Careers page and blog.


    Simple navigation

    Website visitors need to be able to get at the information they need in the smoothest way possible. Provide a simple navigation so that customers know where they are, and how they can go to where they need to go.

    Keep in mind that your customers are busy, so don't make essential information hard to find and don't make your website processes too complex. If you're a store, incorporate easy checkout, especially for returning customers. Make things as convenient as possible to show that you value your customers' time.
    Make your categories simple and clear, and don't put too many items in your navigation. Be descriptive in your labels to get more chances of ranking in search engines. Descriptive labels can also greatly help your visitors when they look for specific products or information.

    User experience

    Make sure to offer customers the best experience that they can have on your website. From design to navigation and more, smooth out each aspect to contribute to a seamless experience. Ensure that you are interactive at all times by incorporating feedback forms, contact forms and live chat so that customers can easily reach you if they need to share something or make a request.
    User experience also includes the speed of your website, so make sure that your page loading times are at top speed. The main thing to remember with user experience is that everything has to be easy and pleasing. Use that as your viewpoint and structure your website accordingly.
    User experience includes usability, design, utility, accessibility, performance, marketing and so much more. Put focus on each aspect and improve the overall experience to attract more interest and encourage more conversions.

    Reassure customers with top security

    There are many stories of hacking and financial theft online. Assuage customer concerns around security by employing top protection on your site. Customers expect you to have a trust logo on your website these days. Prominently display a trust seal on your homepage to show that you are serious about protecting customer information.



    Make sure to employ protection on your website to build trust with your audience. If your customers doubt the safety of your website, you lose credibility online, especially if security issues arise.
    Offer a secure online payment system, and make sure you make transactions safe and secure. Perform site backups to avoid costly data loss, and keep your site's security up to date by performing regular scans to determine vulnerabilities.

    Be visible online with SEO

    A good website is no good if audiences can't find it in their search results. To improve your search engine results, employ a good SEO strategy. Many digital agencies offer the service to all types of businesses, from startups to more established enterprises. Find the one that fits your needs.
    A higher ranking means more customers can find you when they search keywords relevant to your industry, and other factors such as location. More visibility will give you more opportunities to turn visitors to loyal customers.



    When it comes to ranking, search engines are looking for content, authority, performance, and user experience. Optimise across all facets to achieve a top ranking online. Overuse of keywords and buying links are not recommended, so avoid those.

    Go beyond what customers expect

    Going beyond the basics will help you imprint your brand more clearly on customers' lives. Look for ways to personalise their experience on your website. Include a distinctly human touch by showcasing the people behind your company and team. Build trust by featuring customer and employee stories on your website.
    Let customers sign up to your newsletters and blog updates so you can reach them with relevant promotions, sales and news. Make your emails creative, simple and personal, and connect the calls-to-action to your website page.
    Employ excellent customer service with timely responses to concerns and requests. Make sure that you can be easily reached by customers at all times.

    Look at your own experiences

    To make your website more appealing to customers, look at your own experiences online and see what else you can improve on. Test everything on your website and make sure that each aspect, from texts to images, colours, layouts and more fit together well.
    Your experiences in the industry are things you can use to your advantage as well. 
    Perform research on your industry and keep updated with the latest trends. Don't get left behind and don't let your website get outdated.
    Everything moves fast these days, so you need to make sure that you do, too.

    It's all about the customers

    Always keep customer perspective in mind in everything that you do. In your content, talk to customers instead of talking at them by including such words as "you" and "your" instead of "we". Don't be too technical in the information you provide. Make sure you can easily explain everything through simple and understandable words.



    When you think from the viewpoint of customers, you can easily determine what's best for your audience. Make sure to ask for comments and suggestions and pay attention to what your customers have to say. These are important references on what you need to do to give them a better experience on your website.

    Stay social

    Keep social media in mind when it comes to staying connected with your audience. On your website homepage, place your social media buttons that are connected to your social accounts. This way, customers can easily view your posts and your latest updates.
    Also, connecting your website to your social channels enables customers to get more information about you. Sharing and getting connected are easier and they can get a better view of what you are like as a company.
    Make sure to keep your social pages updated and respond to customer questions and comments in a timely and interactive manner.
    Social media is a powerful tool you should take advantage of, with many opportunities to get more customers and followers, effectively growing your network.

    Keep things updated

    Your website is not a one-time thing that you have to get over with. It should be treated as a constant work-in-progress, because it is. You'll need to fix bugs, make improvements and change things as each opportunity arises.
    Developments and updates show that you are committed to excellence and growth. 
    Keep customers on track with these to shake things up and give them something to look forward to. A better website experience with new features can lead to more conversions and revenue.

    To retrace, here are the things you need to leverage the power of your website and create the best impact.
    - Buy a domain name
    - Clear purpose
    - Professional design
    - Mobile response
    - Short, fresh content
    - Simple navigation
    - Good user experience
    - Top security
    - SEO for more visibility
    - Go beyond the basics
    - Your own experiences as basis
    - Customer-centric approach
    - Social media connection
    - Updates and more updates

    Your website is your online profile. It's what customers use when purchasing services and products from you or learning more about your business. 
    Make sure you are putting up the best front to attract more customers and grow your business.

    Don't let your website go to waste after all the effort you put into it. 
    Get the best impact with these guidelines.



    by: Mark Evans
    Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Mark_Evans/2308946    
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