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A mentor and friend of mine, Charlie Page, wrote an article that covers about website readiness.
He also uses this as a site letter for promotion but I am not hear to sell you this. This is purely for the information.
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Seven Questions Your Website Must Answer
© 2005 Charlie Page
Most of us pay a considerable amount of attention to our own websites. We look at the wording on the site, wondering if we got it just right. We look at the graphics and overall look of the site, wondering if a prettier site would translate into more sales.
Our visitors look at our sites too, but not in the same way that we look at them. In fact, looking at our own sites through our visitors’ eyes can reveal some rather startling ways in which we can improve.
Let’s look together at the seven questions that most visitors ask in their mind while they are on your site. Answer these questions correctly, and visitors will reward you with an order. Miss one or more and your site will simply not sell as well as it could.
NOTE: Most of us will discover that our site does not answer all of the questions. At least, that was true for me. To help you improve your site, after each answer you will find a quick and easy way to answer the question.
Why Should I Spend My Time On This Site?
I’m not sure where the figure comes from, but people say that we have three seconds to grab the attention of our visitor or we lose him or her. I believe that figure is correct. People are in a hurry, have short attention spans, and are distracted easily by having multiple programs open at one time, other people in the room where they are surfing, and much more. If all that wasn’t bad enough, there are now billions of web pages out there, all vying for attention.
The best way to answer this question is with a compelling headline. There are three ways to ensure that your headline grabs attention.
Be emotional. People buy based on emotion, and then defend their purchase with logic. (I HAD to buy a new car honey; the old one needed new tires!) If your headline doesn’t pack an emotional punch, add one today.
Make your headline short. Today we find the gurus teaching us to use pre-heads, post-heads, and paragraph long headlines. Yet, over the years, we’ve seen that the best headlines are short and to the point. Short is good. Short is simple. Short is easy to understand.
Be sure your headline clearly conveys your #1 benefit. If you help people save money, say so. If you help them save time, say that. But never write a headline that fails to tell the reader that you can solve their problem.
Can You Solve My Problem?
As we have said, people are in a hurry. What that means to you is that they need to know that you can solve their problem – and they want to know that as fast as you can tell them.
This is why it is vital that you tell them what you can do for them, and how you will solve their problem, in the first two paragraphs.
My experience has been that people will read your first paragraph just because they are on the site. Then they will glance at the second paragraph. If they don’t see something there that draws them in, they are usually gone.
If you follow the advice of this article, you will already have told them that you can solve their problem in your headline. Now reinforce that benefit and tell them how you will solve their problem in the very first paragraph of your sales letter.
What Is Your Offer? << And Remember - I'm In A Hurry! >>
You may have heard about people who ‘scan’ your page. The term ‘scan’ simply means someone (and most of us have done this) who reads the headline, then scans the page – looking mostly at the bolded or larger sized text – then checks the price and makes a decision to buy or not buy.
The fact is, most people scan. They do this because they are in a hurry, and because most sales letters are so darn long!
The way to answer this question is to make sure that your page includes sub-heads that tell the entire story. Sub-heads are simply words in larger type that introduce a new thought.
Scan your page today and see if you can get the whole story by simply reading the bold words or the sub-heads. If you can’t, edit your copy until you can.
What Is Your Price And Why Should I Pay That Much?
Ah, the price. How do you convince someone that your price is right, and that they should buy now?
While there are no pat answers, here are three tips that will help.
Don’t hide the price. People are in a hurry, so tell them your price and don’t make them try to figure it out. I suggest putting your price at the bottom of the page, near your signature.
Relate the price to something real. If you sell a $20 item, it’s easy to compare the $20 they will spend with you to something like a meal, something from everyday life. Would they benefit more from a fast food lunch, or from owning your product? I’ll bet it’s the latter! ;)
Tell the truth. Most marketers seem to think that inflating the price of something just to show a lower price creates sales. Does that type of garbage work on you? Case closed.
What Must I Do To Order Now?
When people want to order, they want to order now and get their product now. So, don’t make them work for it – show them how to order with one easy click.
Here are two tips that will help.
Go through the process of ordering your product and count the clicks. If it takes more than three clicks to finish the process, change something until it takes no more than three. The best process is this: Click the ‘buy now’ button, click once more to confirm your intention, and then give your payment information.
Make your order button obvious. Some sites use 15 ‘buy now’ links, but they are so hidden in the text that you can’t find them. When it comes time to ask for the order, there is no need to be shy. If you have a graphic, use that. If not, put the words ‘click here to order now’ in 18-point type.
Will You Support Me If I Need Help?
An often-forgotten aspect of selling online is customer service. I’ve heard people say that offering great customer service is a bad idea because you’re not making any money while you are supporting a customer, and there are so many customers that it doesn’t matter if you make them unhappy.
Of course, the people who said that are now out of business. ;)
The point here is obvious – like you, people have questions in their mind when they buy, especially when they buy online.
If you want to make more sales, then ease peoples’ minds about buying from you before they buy.
Will You Refund My Money If I Don't Like What You Sell?
The value of a guarantee has been debated many times. I sometimes hear people say that they won’t give a refund at all. This is a big mistake on two levels. First, people can get a refund anytime they want it from their credit card company. Second, not offering a refund policy makes you look bad. There’s just no way around it.
Testing has proven that a clear and strong refund policy increases sales, and does not increase refund rates substantially. We all have to deal with the bottom-feeders who buy our product, download the product and the bonuses, they immediately ask for a refund. But the fact remains that this is a small part of the Internet population, and you will get more sales with a strong refund policy.
One tip: Word your refund policy to make it seem as strong as possible. If you are not going to ask the reason of the refund, say “No Questions Asked”. If you offer a one-year policy, saying 365 days seems stronger than saying 1 year.
Remember this, people come to our sites for one reason – to solve a problem they are having. They don’t come to buy, to sign up for our ezine or information, to recommend their friends, or any other reason at all.
They simply want solutions to their problems – answers to their questions.
The more your site answers the questions above, the more it will sell and offer you the freedom and lifestyle you want from an Internet business.
And that’s a beautiful thing indeed!
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Charlie Page helps people succeed in their online business by teaching the tips, tricks and techniques that work in the real world. Discover how Charlie can help you succeed online at http://www.RealWorldTactics.com
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There you have it. I couldn't have written it any clearer.
So if sales are slacking go back and look at your site with these questions.
Have a good day.
Kenneth R Sword Jr
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