According to recent web statistics there are one trillion websites. Keeping this number in mind, how will your website rise to the top and stand out among the masses? Why should or would your website appear on the first page of Google? In other words, what makes YOU special?

Two questions that are most important to your site visitors are:

1. 1.  Who is your target audience?
2. 2.  What makes you unique, different or special?

Certainly there are many factors in deciding what makes you special. Here are my top three questions to identify what makes you SPECIAL.

Take a look at your competition. How do you differ from them? Is there something you offer that your competition doesn’t?

1. What experiences and backgrounds do you and your employees bring forth?
2. 3. Listen to what your customers are saying. What words do they use to describe you and your company?

The answers to these questions will help you succeed both on and offline.  Write your answers in the Comments area and let us all know what makes you special!

Do you know how powerful the colors are on a website? Colors make a first impression and also evoke emotions. Sometimes a simple change of colors on a website can create a whole new look and feel while keeping the same basic design.

It’s a good idea to have the colors of your logo be represented on the website. This creates a branding image in the mind of your customers. Whenever we see yellow & red & the golden arches we know what famous fast food chain that represents.

As with everything, there are positives and negatives to each color. Knowing your target audience will determine which colors you’ll choose to convey. When you’re appealing to a global audience, knowing the color meanings of different cultures will be beneficial. See a Cultural Color Chart.

Cash Colors – This 30-page ebook shows how to use color to create web pages that sell. For every color the author lists the feelings the visitor will experience. He also mentions industries that benefit by using certain colors and color combinations.

Meaning of colors according to the Small Business Association:

White – pure, clean, youthful, coolness, cleanliness, safety.

Black – power, elegant, secretive, classical, serious, stability.

Red – passion, excitement, danger, strength, bravery, energy.

Orange – vibrant, warm, healthy, exciting, fun.

Yellow – happiness, excitement, cheerful, alert, warm.

Green – natural, health, plentiful, wealth, freshness.

Purple – royalty, wise, celebration, romance, femininity.

Blue - intelligence, peaceful, trustworthy, authority, security.

A few websites to help you choose colors:

Degraeve Color Palette

Colour Lovers

Visibone Color Chart

I’ve seen speakers wear the colors of their logos and websites to leave a lasting impression on their audience. Are the colors on your website appealing to your target audience? Leave a comment and share some sites that have a good use of colors.

On average, I visit about 80 different websites every day. It’s refreshing to come across sites that have nice designs in addition to good functionality. Thought I’d mention a couple here. Just so you know, we didn’t design these sites.

Melissa Biggs -  This is a nice, clean design that encompasses 3 different professions for one person – Actress, Speaker and Designer. The photography is excellent and the filmstrip idea is nice. If you’re a speaker, take a look at how she’s organized additional navigation when you scroll down on the page. The social media icons are arranged nicely without being too much.  If you go to the Press page, there’s a magnifying glass icon, click on that and the whole scanned article comes up with click-to-enlarge images.

Tom’s Shoes This is a very nice, easy to navigate e-commerce site. There are good images that are easy to click-to-enlarge and in 3 clicks your order is placed. The philanthropic message of donating one pair of shoes for every pair sold is awesome. The email signup is on the left (so it’s on every page) and also on the right on the home page. There’s a lot of information on this site, yet it is laid out in such an organized way. It’s easy to find what you want to buy and get involved in the movement if you choose.  The community page has a video with social media icons – I like that! The Press page is very well done. The only change I’d make there is to have them in chronological order with most current being first.

By looking at what is working for other sites, you might get some ideas on how to enhance YOUR site! Post a site below that you like and why it’s so good!

How do you like to communicate with potential clients who visit your website?

If you prefer email, here are a few tips:

• Include your email address more than once on your Home Page and several times throughout your site.
• Consider having your email address in a larger font to make it stand out.
• Ask your web person to use an anti-harvesting script on the email address so you won’t get spammed.
• Forget the cute graphic envelopes or postal boxes that say, “Email me”. When the page is printed, the recipient won’t know what your email address is.
• Check your inbox several times a day and respond promptly to all inquiries. If a potential client sends you an email they will expect an immediate response – no later than 24 hours. The quicker you respond, the more likely you are to get the sale.

If you prefer to communicate with potential clients via phone consider these suggestions:

• Place your phone number in the upper right corner of your site in a large san serif font that is easy to read. Include the words: Call me today at 000-000-0000. Place your phone number in the Blue Browser Title Bar. When the search engine robots visit your site – your phone number will be included in the verbiage printed for that search engine’s listing of your site.
• Do you have a professional voice messaging system that you change and check regularly? Try calling yourself today and see what type of impression your message leaves. When recording a new voice message – SMILE – this simple act of smiling while speaking will actually come across in your voice.
• Return all phone calls within 24 hours. All kinds of negative assumptions are made about a business or person that does not return calls. Years ago I received a voice message from someone wanting me to volunteer my time for a political campaign. Since I do return all phone calls, I called this woman back. After politely explaining that I would not be able to volunteer my time because of my business obligations – she casually mentioned that her mother was a pattern drafter. WOW! I knew someone who was looking to hire a person with those skills. A connection was made all because of me returning a phone call. What amazing thing will happen to you today when you return phone calls?
• Speaking of phone numbers, try typing yours into the Google search bar. If you’ve had the same phone number (landline) awhile, your name and address will come up.

Include both your email and phone on your Contact page. Keep your business and website positive, prosperous and professional by returning all calls and responding to all email inquiries. Word will spread quickly that you are courteous, responsive and professional. Those are very good qualities for any business or website to have.

Are you confused about what to do and when with your website? Does your website need a facelift? Has the focus of your business changed? Take immediate action today with these 3 easy steps.

Step 1. Remove or change old dates pertaining to:

Workshops, events, seminars, specials, sales, coupons.

Copyright information.

Holiday hours or schedules.

Nothing screams neglect more than old dates on a website.

Step 2. New Look

Just as cars and fashions change so do the look and feel of websites. Technology continues to advance quite rapidly. What is available to web developers now for design and functionality may not have been available 2 or 3 years ago. Visitors spend less than 6 seconds on a home page. That’s how fast they make a decision to explore your site further or surf on. This instant impression is based on color, look/feel of the layout, navigation and clickable links to other pages in the site.

Cash Colors is a terrific Ebook by Brian McGregor. It helps you understand how color can create a variety of emotions. He also identifies which colors work best for different industries. It’s 30 pages of valuable information!

Step 3. Update Content

Keep the text brief. Scrolling to read long pages turns off most visitors. Visitors like to scan and click! If you absolutely must provide lots of wording then allow visitors to click on an underlined link to read or learn more. Make sure the pages are printable for those who like to print and read offline later.

Include some new 2-5-word keyword phrases in your text to attract more of your ideal clients. Surfers are more sophisticated about doing searches so instead of residential interior designers (3-word phrase) they might search for Seattle residential interior decorators (4-word phrase) or even find a Seattle interior designer (5 word phrase).  It’s important to determine the words your potential clients are using. For example, designer or decorator? In the web business people are starting to type in developer instead of designer. Also, the words “expert” and “best” are being used more frequently in searches. Read the article Choosing Keywords, Tattoos & Website Design to learn more about choosing some great keyword phrases.

Have some fun with this and let me hear how these action steps worked for you. Click below to share your own resources and useful tips for websites.

Prequalify clients with your FAQ's

A great way to pre-qualify potential clients that visit your website is to add a FAQ or Do’s/Don’ts page. This will help fine-tune the types of clients who will contact you for your products or services. To develop your own FAQ page, think of the top questions your ideal clients ask you. Browse your emails for the most commonly asked questions and your responses. When people are shopping for a product either on or offline, the FAQ can help close the deal.

Here is a short example:

Just like each client is unique – every web company has unique offerings. Here’s what we do and don’t do:

We Do:

• Create customized web designs.
• Work virtually with companies outside of Colorado.
• Respond to every phone call and email within 24 hours.

Think about what makes you stand out from your competition. Put the top 3 on your website, you might also include one of these benefits at the end of your voice message.

We Don’t:

• Create cookie-cutter web designs.
• Work nights or weekends.
• Niche our services to a specific industry.

This works because people who are looking for template sites instead of custom will go elsewhere.  For those seeking a 24/7 company they will realize this company is not for them. If they are seeking a company that works only with a specific industry then they’ll surf on.

Our Ideal Clients:

• Value an on-going relationship with a professional web company.
• Want to attract their ideal clients and know their target audience.
• Have fun with positive attitudes!

Equally important is clearly identifying who your ideal clients really are and putting this on your website.  It’s pretty amazing what happens when you actually put this in writing and believe your ideal clients will find you. It really works!

Here is an example of an Architect who clearly defines his design counseling services to prequalify potential clients. htp://www.wingesaia.com/counseling.html

Have some fun with this and I’d love to see the page on your site where you prequalify your best clients. Click below to post a comment.