All your site really needs to be is clean, simple, and well-structured. It does not have to be fancy. It does not need to be complicated. And it certainly does not have to be expensive, despite what the pundits say. But it must not look like a dog’s breakfast. Your credibility will go…

bye-bye!

The best way to recognize good site design from bad is to do some surfing. You will know when you have found a good page, and its opposite. How? Just pay attention to your feelings as you surf. If you find yourself frowning or saying, “What’s going on?” a fair bit — sit up and take notice. Ask yourself… “What’s the problem here?… Where do things fall apart?”

Identify the problems, and make sure not to repeat the same things yourself. In fact, anytime your surfing is anything less than seamless, take a good look at the offending site and determine why.

Have a look at what the pros are doing. Chances are their pages are pretty simple, too!

Remember, people use the Net to find information. Information is contained in text. Compelling text is 1,000% more important than fancy design. After all, if a fancy page has no substance, it delivers no value.

On the other hand, your Web site IS your store front. It IS a reflection of your business, the quality of your product, and so on. Imagine driving by a brick-and-mortar store with a big crack in the front window, letters missing off the sign, and badly in need of a coat of paint — what would you think? Would you stop to browse?

Not likely…

Get a Professional Design

So be sure that your Web site looks professionally done. I repeat — that does not mean you have to spend a bundle to have it built. A clean design with a simple layout is all that’s ever necessary. If you’re in need of a professional Web site designer visit…

• Yahoo Directory!
• Guru.com
• Instant Work

When designing your page, here are a few things to remember…

• Keep page size as small as possible. That means using a small logo, and images only if absolutely necessary. The best sites on the Web load in under 6
  seconds on a 33.6K modem. No one will wait 30 seconds for your page to load.
  FAST! That’s the key!
• Keep the look and feel consistent throughout the site. Nothing says “unprofessional” more than a different colored background for every page.
• Don’t get cute. Keep background colors to a white or off-white color. Stick with basic fonts in black.
• K-I-S-S!
• Leave lots of white space, and don’t overload the page. Let it breathe! People scan Web pages, so splitting paragraphs up into bit-size chunks allows your visitorto absorb more!
• No animations, fancy gadgetry, or javascript effects. Let’s face it — there’s some pretty cool stuff on the Web. And, yes, it is fun to play with. But don’t be tempted — your sales site can’t be self-indulgent. You have to think “customer” every step of the way! Customers want information.
• Always, always, always test your pages on at least the latest versions of Microsoft’s Explorer, AND Netscape’s Navigator. You’ll be surprised at the differences — especially at the way they render text. For example, selecting a font size of “1” for your page works wonderfully in Explorer. Visit that page in Navigator, and you’ll need a magnifying glass to read it.

Bottom line?

Relax. Focus on your visitors. Don’t try to impress anyone with your new Web building skills. Build with one, and only one, mindset in place…
… To SELL!