Top 6 Mistakes that Drive Your Visitors Away in Less than 2 Minutes
Top 6 Mistakes that Drive Your Visitors Away in Less than 2 Minutes
You took the leap. You set up a website to display
your important message. Congratulations! As in life, first impressions
are important on the web. Web researchers found that you have about
2 minutes to make that first impression a good one. Visitors will
judge your site in those few seconds on its professionalism and
appropriateness to what they are looking for.
In fact, a website can lose about one-third of its potential customers
due to poor design, according to a recent user study conducted by
Jakob Nielson, Ph.D., a principal of the Fremont Calif.-based Nielson
Norman Group.
Take a long hard look at your site. Or ask a friend to give you
a brutally honest review of your site. Does it pass the test of
professionalism? Are the graphics of good quality and clear? Is
the formatting, font size and font colors consistent throughout
the site? Or does your site commit design mistakes that speak AMATEUR
as soon as it loads?
There are some common mistakes website owners make that may cause
visitors to leave early. Correct these 5 mistakes to make sure your
visitors stay long enough to read your important message:
Mistake#1 They post "Under Construction" signs
all over the site.
Under Construction signs posted all over the website spell UNPROFESSIONAL
in a big way. Seasoned site owners understand the power of patience.
They know that timing the launch of your completed website is much
more effective than doing it prematurely.
Solution: Be patient. Wait until the website is complete before
publicizing your site. Doing it this way, your visitors will be
impressed and gain trust faster. They won't feel uneasy and run
away because they see UNPROFESSIONAL stamped all over your site
with each Under Construction sign.
Mistake #2 They place brightly colored counters on every
page as a badge of honor.
The truth is most everyone knows counters can be set to whatever
number you like. If you don't want to start your counter at zero,
you can easily start it at 10,000. It raises a red flag of questions.
Therefore, it may repel your visitors faster than it attracts them.
Why raise the red flag of questions, if you don't have to.
Solution: Need to analyze your traffic? Look at your in-depth statistics
instead.
Mistake #3 They don't use copyright statements.
Some uniformed site owners don't know that their copyright is effective
the moment their creative work is set in a fixed form. So they fail
to put their stamp of ownership on their work.
Solution: If you truly own your work, claim it. Post your copyright
information at the bottom of every page.
Mistake #4 They write boring, long and sometimes complicated
copy.
It slows your visitor's reading to a standstill if they can't quickly
understand your copy (the words on your website.) Trust me; your
visitor will not stop and get a dictionary if they can't understand
something. They will leave quickly.
Solution: Invest time into getting your copy right. Keep it simple.
Get rid of passive verbs and too many adverbs that rob your copy
of power. Use compelling words in short sentences full of action.
Mistake #5 They fail to identify the benefits of their
products and services.
Most visitors don't automatically know what your product or service
can do for them. The 'What's in it for me' is what drives most of
us. If that question is not answered quickly, we may leave before
we discover you have exactly what we've been looking for.
Solution: Make it easy for your visitor. Place your best benefits
in your headlines, links and even picture tags.
Mistake #6 They forget to ask the visitor to do something.
Beginner site owners leave money on the table by not asking their
visitor to take specific action. They don't consider their visitor
may be distracted, busy or dormant to any desire for their product.
Solution: Write marketing with the idea of what you want to happen
after they have read your copy. What do you want your visitor to
do? Write with the conviction that your prospect will do something
after reading-click through to the sales page, contact you for more
information, pick up the phone and order.
Don't forget the power of direct commands. Be specific in your
directives. Stop right now and fill in this coupon. Send for this
ezine before you forget. People love easy steps. They don't have
to decide. The work of deciding what to do is already done.
First impressions are important on the web. Follow the simple design
techniques above and stop turning your visitors away at the door.
Use your first few seconds to impress your visitors with simple
design that delivers your powerful message effectively.
About the Author ©Earma Brown,
11 yr. Web Developer, Author, Service Business Owner Helps service
business owners, and writers with full featured hosting, domain
names, websites and a host of other web solutions. Send any email
to webwit@arrowproduction.com for free ezine Web Wit and mini-course
'Jumpstart Your Website to Success'
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