I received an email today from a long-standing subscriber and someone I consider a good friend though we will probably never meet face to face. Her email asked for my advice on the website she is creating from a template offered to her through the program she joined. She's open, very receptive to advice, suggestions, changes. She's on the right track. The very first thing she added to the template was her name, address, and a toll free phone number even though it was not included with the template. By that act alone, she's already way ahead of the game :) But... This isn't about her website. What happened was it got me thinking I should go out online and look at programs of a similar nature. Get a feel for the webpages themselves, see if any good ideas popped into my head. Not to steal... to gather ideas, to get first impressions, and I needed to locate websites about big money. Mortages, refinancing, that sort of thing. I headed to Google and typed in the first word that came to mind - "mortgages." The results? All I can say is, "Yikes!" After clicking through the first 10 sites listed on Google's first page, to my dismay, I found only three websites where, if I was interested in buying or refinancing, would I even be somewhat tempted to dig a bit deeper. Only three out of 10? How can that be? The other seven websites I viewed were disasters! Here are websites wishing to convey consumer confidence. Websites that will get around to asking people to divulge their most personal of all information - their credit history, income, the works. And all I could think was, "Yikes! You've got to be kidding me!" So what? Why might this be of interest to you? You're probably not a banker or lending institution. But... you might be a CPA or real estate agent or mortgage broker, or anyone doing business online! First impressions can and will make or break your sale. They are what leads us to friendships, business associations, and what keeps us coming back to the same brick and mortar or online business again and again. Sure, if you have the cash and no time to do it yourself, professional web designers are a great way to go! But, if you're like the majority of us with limited funds, you are going to need to teach yourself the basics of HTML. Businesses or not, the sites I viewed screamed, "Newbie!" If you've been telling yourself you'll get around to learning HTML some day, and you are trying to make a living online, you need to move that to the top priority spot on your "to do" list. This is your web presence. This isn't something you "get around to doing." Make it a "today thing." It is not hard to learn. http://www.htmlclinic.com is a great free resource with easy to follow instructions. You can do this! Just keep in mind that guest books and family photos belong on "home" sites. If you are in business, be business-like. Every day that goes by, without your website up to snuff, costs you. Time, money, and potential sales. Visit your website now. Sit back. Be your own worst critic and ask yourself, "What is my website saying about me?" |
