|
14_Ways_to_Add_Content_to_Your_Web_Site
| 14 Ways to Add Content to Your Web Site
When I surf the Net, I often see web sites filled with beautiful
graphics that strive to capture my attention. Well, they do so
for an instant, however I click away when I don't immediately
find relevant content. The content you add to your web site
needs to attract both visitors and search engines.
Part I - How to add content to your web site to attract visitors
Part 11 - How to add content to your web site to attract the
search engines
14 ways to add content to your web site and attract visitors
1. Get into the mind of your visitor. Brainstorm all the ways
your visitor would think of your product. Write your content as
if you are sitting next to him/her explaining your product.
Don't write in the 3rd person ie we, they, but use I, you, or
your. This makes it more personal.
2. Keep it simple - write as if explaining your web site
material to a 7th grader (12-13 year old). Don't use complicated
words that people would have to look up in the dictionary. You
want them to understand clearly what your site is about.
3. Convey emotion - people on the Web are often in a great
hurry, so you need to appeal to their emotions to stop them
clicking away to the next site. Use stories, convey your
experiences or include testimonies from others. This adds to
your credibility and trust, 2 essential factors for doing
business online.
4. Communicate quickly and efficiently - people online tend to
scan rather than read everything on the page. Therefore use
single lines of text for your headings and sub headings. Catch
your visitor's eye with lists, bullet points and use short,
snappy, active (not passive) words in your sentences. Your
paragraphs should only consist of 2-5 sentences. Long paragraphs
make it hard to read (scan) your page quickly.
5. Create white space - the layout of your web page should
include plenty of white space. Don't lean text hard up against
your graphics. Include white space between headings, sub
headings and paragraphs.
6. Use graphics sparingly - you have heard it said, "a picture
is worth a 1000 words." That's true but only if the picture
supports your content. Don't overdo the graphics. You may
impress your visitors initially, however to keep them interested
in your site, you need high quality content.
7. Create high quality content - make clear points with each
paragraph you write. Each paragraph should build on the previous
one, so that you are pulling your visitor through your page
naturally. You are trying to pre sell the product or service to
your visitor. This puts them in a natural frame of mind to buy
(unlike many sites which may just have pictures of the products
and a shopping cart).
8. Web page background - a colorful or busy background can make
your text hard to read and may give the impression of an
inexperienced webmaster. If you do use a background image make
sure it complements your site's theme, fits with your visitors
experience and will increase your credibility.
9. Use the correct fonts - the offline world primarily uses
"Times New Roman". This works well in print but not online. Sans
Serif fonts, such as Arial, Verdana and Helvetica are the best
fonts for easy online scanning.
10. Font colors - the best colors for reading online are black
text on a white or off-white background. If you want to use
multiple colors only use a maximum of 3. Too many text colors on
a web page make it hard on the eyes and spell inexperience. To
emphasize text you can use the bold tag (this text will
appear bold) or italic tag (this text will appear in
italics).
11. Check spelling and grammar - run your page through spell
check in your word processor. It won't pick up all the mistakes,
so make sure you read it through yourself to find other errors.
Spelling and grammar mistakes convey an unprofessional
impression.
12. Simple navigation - the main purpose of the navigation bar
is to make it easy for your visitor to find his way around your
site. Place your navigation bar on the left side or top of your
page (or both). Repeat the bar at the bottom of the page so your
visitor does not have to scroll back up to move on to another
section. ( Read my article "How to Create an Effective Web Site
Navigation Structure" http://www.isitebuild.com/navigation).
13. Get a critique - don't fall in love with your writing and
leave it there. Yes, it's hard to listen to someone criticizing
your beautiful piece of work, but swallow your pride and get
your friends or family members to do a review of your web page.
This will help you to refine what you have written and make it
appeal to a wider audience.
14. Use specific keywords - weave targeted keywords into your
web page as you write your web page content. I'll cover "How to
Write for the Search Engines" in Part II of this article.
About the author:
Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW) owner and
author of http://www.iSiteBuild.com..Affordable Web Site Design
and Web Hosting. Pick up your copy of the 159 page ebook TODAY
titled: "Make Your Content Pre Sell" by going to the link below:
http://mycps.sitesell.com/webselling83.html
|
|
| |
| |
