FACT: Your web site appearance can make you thousands of dollars
OR it can kill your business - DEAD!
Why is it so crucial? Given a choice of restaurant, which one
would you enter? The one with the entrance under construction,
the bizarre color scheme and the hand written menu? Or the one
with an immaculately dressed host standing in the doorway
welcoming you to a table where even the color of the menu
coordinates with the rest of the decor which is, well, just
right?
Lesson: the first impression has tremendous IMPACT on how
visitors to your site perceive it from there on. The exit is
only a click away for the unimpressed!
Take a minute to review my story and see if it rings a bell with
you. Above all, learn a VERY important lesson:
I started on the internet about a year ago full of enthusiasm to
get my first web site up and running. I dabbled with FrontPage.
The first results were encouraging - so I thought. Then I
started noticing other web sites out there - professional ones.
Hmmm. Now I was not quite so content. Compared to some other
sites I saw, the whole thing began to look rather 'amateurish'.
After countless frustrating hours fiddling with various
programs, kicking the computer and feeling more and more
frustrated, my site still looked like the work of a greenhorn!
I liked the color scheme of black, red and orange for some
reason. After a couple of months some thoughtful person who had
visited my site sent a brief message: "Sorry to say, I could
hardly read a word on your site! Your body text is orange, one
of the worst choices you can make!" I was shocked. The page
looked so nice in my Internet Explorer window. So orange was a
big mistake! Time for a redesign.
OK. Off we go again. I changed the colors to red and grey with
the body text in a dark grey. Very smart I thought. After hours
and hours laying out many pages and formatting the paragraphs I
was well pleased with the results. I came across a copy of
Netscape's browser and decided to install it to see how my site
looked to a large chunk of the internet community who did not
use Internet Explorer. HORROR! What a mess! The page that looked
good in IE4 was totally disjointed in Netscape. The paragraphs
were all uneven and the tables didn't even line up. Picasso
would have been proud!
My dissatisfaction was growing. On top of that, I read a comment
from a savvy internet entrepreneur who said there was only one
design program he was aware of which delivered clean html code
which looked good in all browsers. Which one? Dreamweaver from
Macromedia. Gulp! You mean I had spent the last four months
sweating with FrontPage only to be told that the design program
of choice is a different one? Could I stomach another sharp and
tedious learning curve?
Around this time I received an interesting offer from a guy
named Micah Cranman. He owns a web design firm, Sybren Design
and is also a subscriber to my ezine The High Achievers Journal.
He had taken a look at my site and suggested a total
reorganization. I was skeptical. After all, I had given birth to
this thing, we were bonded, it was mine! Anyway, his offer
sounded good so I accepted.
After a couple of weeks the new site was ready for my first
appraisal. With great curiosity I opened it up. First
impression? Nice!
The colors of blue and grey were just right for complementing
the site theme of goal achievement and personal development.
Serious and business-like - that's the effect I wanted.
The menu system and categorization were brilliant. It made
navigation so easy and piqued a visitor's interest to
investigate further from any page. Instead of the previous mish
mash of doorway pages, ads and serious articles mixed into an
undefinable soup, there was now purpose and order to the site.
Now began an intensive period of communication with Micah as we
worked together on the small details. His input was invaluable.
Out went some 'cheesy' looking bullet graphics to be replaced by
plain but professional list items.
The body text color was changed to black.
A small paragraph introduction was added to the top of each
category section.
The color and formatting of the hyperlinks and article boxes was
fine tuned.
At the end of the day do I miss my very own do it yourself web
site? Quite honestly NO. I now have a professional web site I am
pleased with and one which is now set up to accomplish my
business goals.
Have I got any results to boast about yet? Yes. My visitors'
behavior has changed radically. The tracking records show
visitors are now hitting an average of 4 pages per visit as
opposed to 1 before. The navigation system with categories has
made sure of that.
If you've got a minute, just take a look for yourself and make
your own appraisal. http://www.vitalstop.com/index.htm.
What is my recommendation? Do it yourself web site design is
good to a point. It may satisfy your desire to get under the
hood and tinker with the engine. It can give you a working
knowledge so you can fine tune things later. But quite honestly
you can save yourself days and weeks of sweat, frustration and
grief. It took me about six months to learn this lesson. You can
learn it in five minutes from reading this article.
THE LESSON: If you want to get a professional web site up and
running quickly which will be a spring board for your business,
do yourself a favor - Get the help of a web site designer and
GET SERIOUS!
ADDENDUM
99% of responses to this article so far related to the
experience and agreed with the conclusion.
One reader however related her nightmare experience after
employing a so-called professional web site designer. In her own
words, "The design that was presented to me looked like the work
of a 5 year old." She is now attempting to get her money back.
If you decide to use a professional web site design service,
check it out first!
About the author:
Mike's web site at VitalStop.com is a great information resource
for Internet Business, Communication Skills, Computer
Proficiency, Creative Thinking, Goal Achievement, Image
Building, Power Vocabulary, Speed Learning and Time Management.
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