 |
|
Mary
Kurek
|
The
Do’s
and
Don’ts
for
Creating
a
Business
Web
Site
According
to
stats
provided
on
www.internetworldstats.com,
69.1%
of
the
population
in
America
uses
the
Internet
to
conduct
business
and
connect
with
others.
The
Internet
has
become
the
business
center
for
networking
and
purchasing.
If
your
Web
site
isn’t
professional,
focused,
and
well
tended,
you
could
be
doing
yourself
a
disservice.
Below
are
ten
mistakes
to
avoid
if
you
are
a
Web
site
owner.
1.
Don’t
make
it
hard
for
people
to
connect
with
you.
Your
contact
information
should
be
easily
seen
on
every
page
in
the
same
location
(as
well
as
having
a
contact
button
on
the
navigation
menu).
2.
Don’t
use
info@-----
as
your
e-mail
contact
address
from
the
site.
It’s
impersonal
and
sends
a
signal
to
the
visitor
that
they
are
contacting
a
system,
not
a
human.
Use
a
name.
3.
Don’t
forget
to
make
sure
that
your
Web
site
e-mail
address
is
linked
to
your
own
e-mail
address
and
that
it
works.
This
is
a
common
mistake,
so
if
you’ve
not
been
receiving
e-mails
from
your
site,
run
a
test.
4.
Don’t
forget
the
purpose
of
your
site.
If
your
intent
is
to
sell
a
product
or
service,
make
sure
that
the
focus
of
the
site
is
clear
in
the
first
scroll
on
the
home
page.
5.
Don’t
use
“dancing”
graphics.
Moving
graphics
are
considered
a
distraction
by
most
Web
site
designers.
6.
Don’t
put
up
a
“Favorite
Links”
page
unless
you
can
keep
the
links
updated.
Check
them
regularly.
7.
Don’t
use
bad
photos.
Make
sure
any
photo
you
put
up
is
current,
crisp,
and
free
of
background
distractions.
8.
Be
careful
not
to
overload
your
site
with
features.
Your
site
should
be
interesting,
easy
to
navigate,
and
each
page
should
lead
the
visitor
to
another
on
your
site.
Interaction
such
as
a
blog
is
fine,
so
long
as
it
serves
a
purpose
and
is
used.
If
it
isn’t,
get
rid
of
it.
9.
Don’t
forget
to
market
your
site.
Send
out
“site
launch”
notifications
and/or
news
releases,
write
and
place
articles
online
that
connect
to
your
site,
add
your
site
link
to
your
e-mail
signature
and
print
it
on
your
marketing
materials.
10.
Take
care
in
placing
other
links
on
your
site
that
could
take
visitors
to
a
site
that
might
reveal
a
competitors
advertisement
or
link.
Along
with
mistakes
to
avoid,
you
should
know
about
features
and
details
that
could
enhance
your
business
Web
site.
Below
are
ten
tips
for
your
consideration.
1.
Be
media
friendly.
According
to
Jill
Lublin,
best-selling
author
of
Guerilla
Publicity*,
it’s
important
to
become
a
“media
supplier
and
a
media
resource.”
So,
along
with
your
bio,
photo,
recent
news
releases,
publicity
mentions,
and
company
history,
you
should
also
have
some
(FAQ)
or
“Frequently
Asked
Questions,”
pertinent
trivia,
story
ideas
or
research
tidbits
that
relate
to
your
business.
2.
Consider
your
keywords
carefully
and
make
a
plan
for
search
engine
optimization.
Work
with
a
Web
site
designer
to
create
targeted
keywords
that
will
pay
off
for
you
and
discuss
how
to
keep
your
site
search-engine
friendly.
3.
Include
a
downloadable
(PDF)
brochure
or
make
sure
your
products/services
page
is
printer
friendly.
4.
Include
a
good
traffic
monitor.
If
you’re
going
to
manage
your
own
site,
check
out
a
monitor
like
www.internetworldstats.com,
which
offers
a
free,
invisible
means
of
collecting
your
data.
You’ll
get
data
results
that
include
the
key
words
people
use
to
get
to
your
site,
what
city/state/country
they
are
from
and
how
many
pages
they
visited.
5.
Swap
links
with
people
who
have
sites
that
get
good
traffic.
Check
them
out
first.
6.
Include
a
“call
for
action”
on
your
home
page.
This
is
an
action
you
want
people
to
take,
such
as
signing
up
for
a
newsletter,
downloading
a
free
article
or
filling
out
a
survey.
The
interaction
increases
your
chances
of
turning
the
visitor
into
a
customer.
7.
Be
consistent
with
format
and
font
type.
If
you
start
with
Times
New
Roman
as
a
font,
then
stick
with
it.
Some
focus
on
uniformity
presents
a
clean,
professional
visitor
atmosphere.
8.
The
first
three
buttons
on
your
navigation
bar
should
include
your
top
3
focal
points
for
the
site.
Research
has
revealed
that
the
top
left
area
of
a
page
is
where
a
visitor’s
eye
falls
first,
so
if
you
are
announcing
a
new
product
or
marketing
a
seminar,
make
sure
to
include
those
buttons
near
that
area
of
your
site.
9.
Wherever
you
use
audio,
video,
or
offer
a
PDF
document,
make
available
the
links
to
download
a
free
document
reader
or
media
player.
10.
Place
endorsements
or
client
testimonials
throughout
your
site.
Your
Web
site
is
your
international
brochure.
Make
it
the
best
it
can
be.
*Levinson,
Jay,
Frishman,
Rick,
and
Jill
Lublin.
Guerrilla
Publicity:
Hundreds
of
Sure-Fire
Tactics
to
Get
Maximum
Sales
for
Minimum
Dollars.
Avon,
MA:
Adams
Media,
2002.
|
Mary
Kurek
is
a
Networking
and
Marketing
Coach,
Career
Transition
Expert
and
Speaker.
She
is
the
author
of
"Who's
Hiding
in
Your
Address
Book
--
Introducing
the
Ideal
Network
for
Successful
Women,"
and
the
developer
of
the
Instant
Resume
Kit.
A
former
Chamber
of
Commerce
Executive,
Mary
is
called
"The
Chamber
Lady,"
for
her
dedication
in
promoting
Chamber
membership
to
her
professional
audiences.
Combining
her
passion
for
making
amazing
"people
connections"
with
her
leadership
and
media
background,
Mary
brings
a
clarity
and
new
simplicity
to
creating
the
steps
to
success.
Visit
her
at
www.marykurek.com
