If you’re thinking of sharing your business via Facebook, creating an effective profile is important. It’s easy to go into Facebook and set up a profile that doesn’t do much to reflect what you’re about. So here are some tips for Facebook beginners.
Continue reading Tips on Creating an Effective Facebook Profile
Throwing a direct sales party can be really fun. They are happening more and more, so keeping it fresh and interesting is more important than ever. Here are some tips for getting an edge on successful direct sales parties, in real life and online.
Continue reading Tips for Throwing a Successful Direct Sales Party
When you start out in the direct sales business, knowing some tips and tricks can be helpful. If you are already in a direct sales business that needs a boost, tips can help you, too.
Direct sales is not a new concept. In fact, it may be the world’s oldest business model! You have something others need; they purchase it from you. The concept is simple, but direct sales looks quite different today than it did in the days of door-to-door salesmen.
Interested in becoming a direct sales consultant? It’s a great business model choice for many. It provides a number of the benefits of owning your own business without many of the drawbacks. Before you sign up with a direct sales company, take these five steps.
Direct sales has been a successful business model for decades. However, within the past ten years it has really grown. You can now find a direct sales company that sells just about anything.
Continue reading Finding the Right Direct Sales Company for You – Three Steps for Success
If you love gardening and consistently have good crops, consider starting a local produce business. More and more people are seeking local fresh produce instead of the supermarket or processed foods.
A household clearance business can be a huge help. They enter the homes of those who have deceased or vacated and essentially clean them from top to bottom. They get rid of everything inside from garbage to collectibles and everything in between.
As a website owner you want to make sure your visitors are happy. Happy visitors stay on your website longer. They come back for repeat visits. And of course they buy from your website. When it comes to a website’s structure, there are two elements that can make or break your user experience.
#1 Quick load times
There’s nothing that squashes a visitor’s happiness faster than not being able to load a website page. If the page doesn’t come up quickly, your visitor is gone. We’ve grown accustomed to instant gratification online. If your web page takes longer than a few seconds to load, you may miss out on valuable prospects and visitors. They won’t be happy while they’re waiting for your pages to load.
So what can you do to ensure quick load times?
* Reduce and minimize your graphics. Make sure a graphic takes up no more than 10k on any given page.
* Don’t use flash. Many website designers still turn to flash to add interest. Don’t do it. It takes too long to load. If you do use it, make sure you give your visitors the opportunity to click through and skip the show.
* Use plug-ins sparingly. There are a number of really useful plug-ins. However, they’re bulky and can slow down your load time. They can also distract from your web page’s purpose and make it look cluttered. If you’re going to use a plug-in, make sure it supports your goals for that page. And make sure it enhances the visitor experience.
#2 Easy navigation
The other thing that makes visitors happy is a website that’s easy to navigate. Straightforward and intuitive website navigation can be difficult to accomplish. The following tips can help you get the job done.
* Eliminate clutter – Many times a web page has so much going on that the visitor isn’t sure what the page’s purpose is. Are they supposed to look at ads? Fill out a form? Read an article? Make sure your web pages have a purpose. Then make sure that page is designed to support that purpose. Everything from the formatting to the add-ons can add or detract from your page’s purpose.
* Intuitive buttons – The buttons on your page are there to guide your reader deeper into your website. Therefore they must make sense to the visitor. One of the best ways to ensure your buttons are easy to understand is to make them keywords. Keywords are likely what drew your visitor to your website. They’re what the person is using to search for and find information. Create categories and subcategories with your keywords. That way your user is able to easily find the information they’re looking for.
When your visitors are able to navigate your website with ease, they’ll stay longer. If they’re able to find the information they’re looking for without struggle and frustration, they’ll return again and again.
When you combine a straightforward layout with quick loading times, you’re well on your way to giving visitors a very pleasant experience. Happy visitors turn into happy customers. Take a look at your website today. Does it make visitors happy?
A website generates two main types of visitors. There are the visitors that stop by and leave. They never return again. Then there are the visitors that stop by. They bookmark your site. They sign up for your opt-in list. They subscribe to your blog. These are the visitors you want. When you can motivate more new visitors to come back, you’re on your way to converting them to customers.
The majority of people do not make a purchase the first time they visit a website. A website has to earn their trust. It has to establish credibility, liking and authority. These are all buying triggers, and for most websites they’re earned over time. They key is to give them a reason to come back. Here are three ideas and strategies to give your visitors a reason to return.
#1 Valuable content is definitely required.
If you provide a consistent flow of great content, visitors will come back for more. However, there’s more you can do to ensure their loyalty.
#2 Provide a free membership.
Take a look at your website. Why do people visit your site? What benefit can you offer on a regular basis? Now instead of offering that information to random visitors, consider creating a membership site. Membership implies exclusivity. It also implies extra value.
When people sign up for your membership program they will receive “extra” content, products or services. For example, you might create a “Report of the Month” club. The information is free for members who have signed up. Each month you deliver a quality report. You can use the report to promote affiliate products and/or your own products/services too.
#3 Include user generated content.
Enable visitors to provide their own content for your website. Blogging is one way to accomplish this. You can include a “blog for us” form on your site. You can also turn the “Commenting” feature on and allow visitors to respond to your content. However, if you don’t have a blog site, then consider adding a plug-in or feature that enables them to add content.
For example, you might include a “Best Tips” category. You can then enable visitors to post or submit their best tips. You publish their information and you now have an interactive audience.
Finally, take a look at your usability features. What can you add to your site or blog to make it friendlier? For example, are other commenters notified when a comment is published to a post they also commented on? Can they forward your content to a friend? Can they print it?
The easier you make it to interact on your site, the better. Provide great content. Enable visitors to receive more via memberships and let them share information. The more repeat traffic you have, the faster you’ll build a loyal customer base.
