When someone does something seemingly insane it makes you wonder what’s behind whatever they’re doing.

I’ve learnt that there really is no such thing as a free lunch – even online where overdelivering is a standard among savvy marketers. It’s one thing to give away lots of valuable free content to build trust and credibility but giving away the farm?

You’d think that now more than ever people would be battoning down the hatches and doing all they can to lock in every penny they can make from their products, services, customer and subscriber lists.

So why is America’s #1 marketing legend practically giving away the info he’s developed to help 12,000 people make an extra $5.4 Billion they never would have earned without him?

Not just anyone either – with clients like Tony Robbins and Brian Tracy this guy is the real deal.

What I find amazing is that I happen to be reading his book “How to get everything you can out of all you’ve got – what to do when times are tough” which is all about looking at your existing resources and coming up with breakthroughs through learning to see and exploit opportunities.

Uncannily I get an email today telling me that this same guy – Jay Abraham is selling his $5000 home study course for a 99% discount of $39.95. Probably one of the most valuable and biggest ticket (a 5 day seminar costs $25000 and he consults at $5000/hour) is going for just £39.95.

I can only imagine it’s a viral marketing drive to build a large list of qualified subscribers prior to a new product launch.

Still – it’s one heck of a bargain and it’s a list I don’t mind being on.

Whether I decide to buy the upcoming product remains to be seen.

Get your copy of Jay Abraham’s $5000 home study course for 99% off here.

As a Newcomer to web design in Richmond Upon Thames I’ve decided to take the approach of offering not just highly professional design but traffic/search engine optimisation and visitor conversion built in to the foundations of my client sites.

Too many small businesses have paid out vast sums to designers for very nice looking and well designed sites - that don’t get any hits. And the ones that do get hits still don’t get much from those hits as these wonderful looking web sites just aren’t built to sell.

Web Design That Works

If the purpose of your web site is to generate leads and sales for your business then these next few paragraphs will explain what’s wrong with the sites that don’t do that - and what’s right with the ones that do.

Traffic

Firstly you need traffic as there’s no point of having a well designed and even well converting site if no one can see it. The traffic generation part of your web site should form an overall marketing strategy around who you want coming to your site and what they will want to see when they get there.

It’s time to step outside what you think your customers want and into what they actually do want. Finding this out is incredibly easy when you know where to go online to where they discuss the problems and benefits your business caters for.

Your traffic and SEO strategy must be clear and focused on attracting the right kind of buyer traffic who are most likely to become your leads and customers. For more on our targeted traffic generation and search engine optimisation strategies click here - or we still have a few places available for our free website marketing consultations where we will look at your current and potential traffic situation.

The Look and Feel

Here’s where your web design decisions are most critical.

• Not sure what colour scheme to go for?
• What about the structure of each page…. left navigation bar, or top navigation bar… or both?

This is where just about all poor performing sites fall over - usability.

That flash intro may look very cool, and that colour scheme might look very cutting edge……

…..but does it tell your visitor they’ve found what they’re searching for as soon as the page loads (which it does very quickly because we all hate clunky slow loading websites don’t we..)?

• Does that well researched, highly lucrative keyword phrase (that you went to the effort and expense to get to the top of Google for) appear in an enticing headline at the top of the page (the first thing a visitor will see) that screams “If you’re looking for [your keyword phrase] - you’ve found it here!”?
• Is the headline immediately followed by a compelling first paragraph that draws them into the page and through to your call to action?
• Do they have to look around and work hard to find what they’re looking for?
• Do the background colour and text make it difficult to read your copy or even worse hurt your visitor’s eyes?
• Are you doing everything you possibly can to respect your visitor’s time?
• Do you give them what they’re searching for and convince them that it is in their best interests to take the next step of requesting more information from you?

Because the back button (and millions of competitors) is just a mouse click away, you don’t want to have gone to the effort of acquiring these visitors just for them to leave your site within 3-5 seconds of getting there.

We measure our design and usability effectiveness with a scientific testing, tracking and conversion optimisation process. It eliminates any element of guesswork and enables our target market to tell us what’s working and what isn’t.

Your Focus and Call to Action

Now you’ve got a nicely designed site up with decent positions in the search engines, the right kind of buyer traffic is visiting your site, you’ve done all you can to let them know they’ve found what they’re looking for….

….what do you want them to do now?

• Buy something?
• Fill out a form for more information or sign up for a newsletter?
• Pick up the phone and give you a call?
• Turn up to your business in person to make an enquiry?

Whatever it is you want them to do - how do you communicate that to them?

Here is a design and usability blunder just about all non performing web sites make:

- Too many options for a visitor and no clear call to action -

You should have one very clear call to action and no other distracting options or links.

If you have flashing banner ads and different links all over your pages the chances of your visitors clicking on the links you want them to are slim to none.

If you want them to contact you or sign up for a free trial or do something specific that will make you money - make that the primary focus of your site with very few (preferably none) other options.

We achieve conversion rates of up to 20% (20 in every 100 visitors) using the aforementioned scientific tracking and testing combined with highly effective online copywriting techniques that focus on the call to action. Could these techniques work for your business? Get one of our website marketing consultations and find out.

A Reason To Act (Now!)

OK - so now you have a nicely designed web site, it ranks highly in the search engines for the right kind of phrases being searched on by your prospects who are near the end of their buying cycle and about to convert.

Your site is designed and written to let them know they’re in the right place and pulls them through to your clear and prominent call to action (which is the only place to go from where they are)….

….we’re almost there!

….but not quite….

Why should they act?

What is your compelling reason for your website visitor to give you their contact details or pick up a phone and call you or walk into your business?

Web users are different to offline shoppers - they don’t have the same sense of commitment as someone who’s gone out to buy a specific item and does not want to come back home empty handed.

Some of the alternatives to your web site visitor taking your desired action are:

• Decide not to take action at all for whatever reason
• Use the information you’ve given them on your site to base a purchasing decision then go and buy elsewhere.

How do you get your visitor to take action there and then and become your customer?

The answer to this is beyond the scope of this article as it goes more into the marketing side of things rather than the design. Also it’s not a 1-size-fits all situation, your visitor’s needs are as unique as your business. You’d need our customised internet marketing consultation to scratch the surface of this one.

The point is however that web site design and marketing are closely intertwined. Your design decisions should be based around your marketing data.

If the aim of your web site is to generate business then you need to incorporate market research, traffic generation, usability, copywriting, a clear call to action and a compelling reason to take action (now!). The design aspect should support all of these and not the other way round.

As mentioned earlier in the article, for a limited time you can get a comprehensive free website marketing consultation to help you determine how to get a website that brings you real results.

There is a limit to how many businesses we can do this consultation for free for as we are becoming increasingly busier the more clients we take on.

The world of small and medium business internet marketing is only starting to gather momentum. It won’t be long before your lucrative search terms will become vastly competitive to rank highly for in the search engines.

If you’re interested in getting a direct response website for your business or giving your existing site a marketing makeover then you can still get one of our free consultations by clicking here - or the big call-to-action button below:

As part of the initiative to get Internet marketing in the Twickenham area I’ve launched a free business directory for small businesses in the Twickenham, Teddington, Richmond, Hampton, Kingston and surrounding areas.

Unlike most of the other online business directories it is free to submit and you can have as much space as you like - with a customer review and feedback facility.

The directory has been built using wordpress with all the SEO add-ons and widgets so it is positively overflowing with Google Juice.

Overdelivering by Example.

As most clued up Internet marketers know you have to overdeliver if you are to stand out and make an impact with your online efforts.

So as well as creating a SEO behemoth of a local directory I’ve included handy guides and tips for submitters on how to get the most out of their ads.

When you submit your business to the Twikipedia local business directory for Twickenham and the surrounding area – you will get advice on how to target the right keywords to attract the highest quality targeted traffic.

You will also receive some basic copywriting tips (your submission is a blog post which can have thousands of words if you like – I don’t actually recommend this but you can if you want!) to appeal to your potential customers and persuade them to give your business a try.

You also get some basic tips on how to use direct response marketing to craft an incentive for your visitors to become a lead and a call to action to get them through your doors or on the phone.

So – there you go, a free ad of a whole page in a very search engine optimised directory with expert tips on how to get people into your sales process.

This is the bit where you ask…

…So what’s in it for you – why are you giving all this away for free?

What’s In It For Me?

• Will I turn around and suddenly start charging you when you’ve got a steady stream of customers coming from my directory?
• What’s my progression from here?
• What am I selling you?! There is some reason I’m doing this to further my own agenda!!

These are all questions I’ve been asked so far so here’s why I’m doing this:

I hope that by overdelivering and giving you a taste of using the web to generate more business on autopilot that you’ll want more and become interested in my direct response Internet marketing consulting.

By submitting your business to my directory that gets my business in front of you and you become my lead.

And I’m hoping to maybe make a few quid from Adsense as well which means I’ll never need to charge anyone and the directory will stay free.

So there you are – my cards on the table.

Do you want a full page ad in a heavily search engine optimised directory with handy dandy tips on how to automate business from the web?

Go on! You might even develop an appetite for getting results online and opt for a free website consultation as well ;~)

Click here to register your free full page ad in the Twikipedia Twickenham business directory.

Even if you don’t have a website – you can start Internet marketing in Twickenham today

As a Twickenham based business catering for Twickenham based clients it makes sense to get into the spirit of the area.

Luckily for me there is a lot to get excited about living in the epicentre of British rugby, having the river Thames so nearby, being right next to Richmond, not too far from Kingston, Hampton Court just down the road….

Twickenham is close enough to the centre of London but far enough out to not really feel like it.

Let’s face it - Twickenham rocks - and if you’ve been stuck on the A316 while there’s a big concert on at the stadium you’ll know what I mean!

What Does Any of This Have to Do With Internet Marketing?

So as a business based in the Twickenham area how can you tap into the Twickenham buzz and combine it with the awesome leverage of the Internet to reach more local customers?

To answer this you need to think in terms of what you have in common with your customers.

• When you meet with them face to face what do you chat about other than ’shop’?
• If you bumped into a customer on a Sunday afternoon stroll by the river where would the conversation go?

Be Yourself Online

Everybody knows that people prefer to do business with those they know and like, those they can relate to. If you can find common ground with a prospect that’s some personal interest you both share then unless something is very wrong the deal is pretty much done.

So what do you have in common with your local customers?

How can you communicate that to them online?

An informative ‘about’ page is a good start, as is adding the personal touch in your site content. Both of these will help influence the decisions of brand new prospects visiting your website for the first time.

However the all out winner has to be in a regular newsletter. My favourite ezines are not written by anonymous ghostwriters inside nameless, faceless corporations.

They’re written by real people with real experiences who communicate very personably and I can relate to them through their messages.

When they bring out a new product I’ll buy it, if they recommend someone else’s I’ll trust their recommendation.

Internet Marketing in Twickenham

So if you want more new local customers, more repeat business from existing customers and more affiliate partner sales from your customer base then start communicating with your prospects as you would face to face, it’s not hard when you know what to do.

The key isn’t in the Internet technology and fancy SEO - those are just a vehicle for the real ‘meat’ of your online business:

Your Message and You.

If you want to learn more about growing your business using Internet Marketing in Twickenham then we can help you out with a no-obligation no-risk website marketing consultation.

I can even bring my laptop round to your favourite riverside pub if you like!

Cheers.

Applying the 80/20 rule to your online business can best be personified in conversion testing and tracking.

How else do you actually find out which 20% of your visitors are most likely to become your customers?

How else do you actually find out which benefits and features are most likely to get them to sign up of buy?

How else do you know how your presentation of these benefits and features is going to get the most of them to act?

Does that graphic help or hinder your bottom line?

Is that headline too clever for it’s own good? Is it a bit cheesy? Should it be clearer? Less in your face? More in your face?

Is there too much copy? Not enough?

Is that the right colour scheme, font, font size?

Who really knows the answers to these questions?

Advertising gurus? Psychologists? University lecturers? Your mate at the pub?

Or…. your market who will tell you with their wallets?

In this day and age you are blessed with a medium that will tell you exactly what your market wants quickly and cheaply. Do you know how to use the tools to find out and use that information to multiply your results as quickly as possible?

We do…

Future Proof SEO with minimal effort and absolutely no need for ongoing tweaking. Now there’s a thought.

 

How easy business would be if getting decent search engine rankings and quality traffic didn’t involve all the jumping through hoops and sneaky little tricks. Just thinking about it conjures up visions of sipping cocktails on a tropical beach whilst idly contemplating what to do for the rest of the day - all while the business is raking in thousands per hour all on its own.

 

If only it were that easy.

 

• If only I didn’t have to research certain keywords then try and stuff them into my copy in a way that doesn’t obliterate the message of my words and perception of my business.
• If only I didn’t have to submit my site to a gazillion directories and chase up other site owners asking for one way links or exchanges.
• If only I didn’t have to write 5 articles a week then submit them to article directories.

 

Is that enough ‘if only’s’? I think so, there are plenty more but you get the picture. SEO is a hard slog…..and an ongoing one at that….

 

…….and that’s doing it the ethical way!

 

Don’t get me started on ‘black hat’ trickery and trying to figure out the actual algorithms the search engines use.

 

Will SEO Ever Be Easy?

 

Well actually it already is.

 

You just have to look at it from the search engines point of view, think about what they are trying to achieve and create your site with that in mind.

 

And what do they want?

 

They want to return the highest quality and most relevant results so people will keep coming back and using them for more searches.

 

Why do they want that?

 

Because the more people using them the more people they have seeing (and clicking) their ads, the better they can serve their advertiser customers and the more money they make – that’s it!

 

So what does that mean you need to do?

 

Simple - just make a highly relevant high quality site that will keep people returning back to the search engine they found you through. Make a site that other sites will link to without you having to beg/bribe them because it adds value to their visitors and enhances their credibility.

 

Build a site that your visitors will bookmark and recommend to others.

 

Build a site that facilitates and encourages visitors to comment and contribute.

 

Build your site to best represent your business and to best address your site visitor

 

SEO methods and tricks are becoming less and less relevant to get into and stay in the engines. It won’t be long before things like keyword density (how many occurrences of a keyword on a page) are no longer a factor and can even get you flagged up (and dropped from search engine databases) for trying to “manipulate your rankings”.

 

The engines are just getting cleverer and cleverer and they are adapting to cut out the SEO’d sites that add little visitor value and experience.

 

Focusing on underhand tricks to get your site up the rankings is the wrong side of 80/20 and will eventually hurt you in the long run.

 

Focusing on your visitors, who they are, what they want, how to give it to them is the right side of 80/20 and soon will be most that is required.

 

Before you start SEOing your site ask yourself this question – ‘does it belong on the first page of results?’

 

If it does then it will grow organically and the links will come (with an initial push), word will spread and you can carry on enjoying serving your niche.

 

If it doesn’t then you need to think again and refocus your efforts.

 

See you on the beach