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by Michelle Howe January 11, 2006

Michelle Howe

Michelle Howe, president of Word Magic, specializes in writing irresistible copy for Web sites. She is the author of Web Site Writing Made Easy and Persuasive Writing Made Easy. Visit her Web site for a FREE audio download of “Pay-Per-Click Success: Attract More Customers in 30 Days or Less” and FREE report, “The Five-Step Plan to Article Success.”

Michelle Howe has written 4 articles for PromotionWorld.

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Is your Web site like a big billboard where traffic just drives by and never stops? Here are some tips to help you change your Web site from a billboard to a storefront where customers come in to visit:

Win Your Customer’s Trust

Your homepage should immediately start building rapport with your visitors. Make sure it is very clear who you are, what you do and why they should do business with you. Have a picture of yourself on the Web site. People like to do business with people they can trust. By putting a picture of yourself on your site, you become a person, not just a business.

I have a friend who wasn’t too keen about the idea of putting her picture on her Web site. She felt that being middle age and over weight were two good reasons not to have pictures taken, let alone put it out there for the world to see on the Internet. Nevertheless, she did put her picture on her site and it was because of the picture that she landed a big account.

The prospective client was visiting her site and liked what he read about her qualifications, but it was her picture that really sold him. When he called her up, he told her that she “looked like someone I would like to do business with; you have a very honest face.”

Sometimes business decisions turn on the simplest reasons, but you can be assured that coming across as a real person on your Web site will certainly increase the trust level with your visitors.

Build Customer Relationships

Let your potential customers know that you understand their problems and that you have a solution to their problems. One effective way to do this is to put testimonials on your Web site.

Don’t you tell people how you solve their problems; let someone else tell the story. Testimonials are powerful and necessary to a successful Web site. Testimonials not only say you can do the job, but they say how well you can do the job. And they are so much more believable that you trying to promote yourself. Let others speak for you.

Include testimonials throughout your Web site. Don’t make the mistake of having one page just for testimonials. Rarely will someone click to a testimonials page and read the whole thing. So, you are in essence wasting your time and resources with a testimonials page.

Instead, sprinkle testimonials wherever you think they might help convince your audience that what you are saying is true. Back up your statements with testimonials and you start building relationships with your readers.

Make It Easy to Find Information

The navigation on a Web site can make or break a Web site. You can have the best content in the world, but if readers can’t find what they are looking for, they will leave.

Use simple, descriptive headings and subheadings to direct visitors throughout your Web site. Put keywords in the headings and subheadings so that the Search Engines have an easier time indexing your pages.

Think about the problems you solve for your readers and make sure you offer solutions to those problems. Remember, people are searching for information and solutions to their problems.

The easier you make it for them to find information, the more likely you will be able to entice the visitor to stay awhile. And, the longer they stay, the more likely you will gain a customer.