You probably feel excited and frightened about creating your own website. It can be hard to see where to start, who you can ask for advice, and the budget you will need. The following tips should give you enough information to draw up a basic plan and start building a quality website.
Users can navigate your site easier when you have fixed-position navigation. This will make sure the navigation panel is locked in place as your readers move throughout the site. This is not only convenient for the visitor, but can also be useful for internet marketers, as this makes it easier for visitors to take some desired action (e.g. buy a product, sign up for a newsletter).
Users can navigate easier when you use fixed-position navigation. By locking the menu to a fixed point on the screen, you can make sure it is constantly visible to the user regardless of where they scroll to on the screen. This offers convenience for visitors and can help marketers as well when it allows visitors to take action easily, such as signing up for promotions.
Keep page size to a minimum. Not all Internet users have fast connection speeds, and the longer your site takes to load, the less interest they will have. A visitor who has to wait a long time to see your information will move on.
Be sure that scanning your website is a simple matter. Most website visitors do not really read online content. They just scan it looking for interesting tidbits of information. Emphasized text is more easily scanned and helps readers along, also better ensuring they return. Definitely keep the most timely and important items near the top. Doing all this makes your visitors’ experience more enjoyable because they can find the information they want without any problems.
Stay away from using pop-up ads. Few things are worse than being overloaded with pop-ups. Many people will leave a site that has pop-ups, even the big sites. Stay away from these types of annoying ads, and your customers will be happier. If you have a host that requires the use of pop-ups, then look for a new one.
Page size must be kept small. If your pages take a long time to load, visitors with slow connection speeds will lose interest. You will want your users to have a great overall experience.
Have you considered writing a newsletter? If you have your clients subscribe to updates, they will have a reason to come back again and again. Put a form for registration on a sidebar or somewhere visible, yet not interfering with the page’s purpose. Stay on the ethical path and only send newsletters to users who request them.
Set up your website so that people can easily search it. This is especially important if you have a large website. Try having a search box in the upper-right of your homepage that allows searching for terms on your site. You can find viable search features through companies like FreeFind or Google.
Make sure your website content is both interesting and compelling. It is the value of the content, not necessarily a flashy design, that keeps visitors coming back again and again. When you have relevant content on your site that appeals to your viewers and takes into account what they are looking for, there is a good chance they will want to visit again in the near future.
You should update your content and get rid of expired content regularly. If someone visits your site for up-to-date information and find that it’s discussing the latest event – which happened a year ago – they’re leaving. Allowing information that is outdated to remain on your website is a sign to users that you have not taken the time to update your site and it implies that you don’t care about their time. Review your website often, to remove anything which isn’t updated with the latest content.
With the information from this article, you should now be prepared to start designing your site. Set a budget, find suitable assistants and advisers, and start drafting your website. You’ll be able to create a website which fits all your needs without spending a fortune, but only if you start today!