By: Balwinder

“What makes a great web page?”

People ask me this all the time, though they often encounter
difficulty boiling the question down to so few words.

Every serious website operator wants to know how to create
and maintain the best possible website that makes them the
most money and builds the largest subscriber base!

The following “commandments” represent the ideals towards
which every new or existing website should strive.

1. Thou shalt have a Purpose

Clearly define the site’s purpose and ensure all content
(pages, graphics and text) tightly focus on that purpose.
Discard all extraneous material… only give people exactly
what they came for!

2. Thou shalt be Lightweight

Use only small, fast loading graphics. If you must use large
graphics use thumbnails and image slicing to diminish the
size of every file to less than 12-15kb. Use standard
optimized gif’s and jpg’s and avoid anything that requires
the user to download a “plug-in” to view your content.

3. Thou shalt Load Fast

Each and every page on your site should weigh in under
30-60KB total, including graphics and navigation.

If your pages must be larger, such as the case with long,
1-page sales letters, make sure the top part of the page
loads fast so surfers can read your headline and
introduction while the rest of your sales letter loads
further down and out of site.

4. Thou shalt not use False Code

Use only html. Never use java, xml, dhtml or other forms of
code that require a surfer to keep their browser set up
“correctly” to accommodate your page. This is especially
true when using “cloaked” pages that require the use of
javascript in order to work correctly.

5. Thou shalt respect the Search Engines

If you want search engine traffic, use whole web pages that
don’t incorporate frames. Search engines get confused trying
to read content from most frames pages because the designers
don’t set them up with the proper information in the
correct frame.

6. Love thy Surfers and Visitors

Design for “last year’s” technology so surfers using 56K
modems can download and use the site quickly and easily. If
you design only for people with high-speed Internet
connections (DSL and cable) you have eliminated 85%+ of your
potential market.

7. Thou shalt not Annoy

Use only stationary text and graphical layout elements. No
Scrolling text, marquees, or animations of any kind,
including rollover buttons.

This “eye candy” steals valuable bandwidth and adds little
to a site’s main purpose, especially for returning visitors
who just want information, not a carnival sideshow.

8. Thou shalt Not Scroll Left or Right

Design your pages so they never force a visitor to scroll
left or right, no matter what the resolution settings on
their monitor. Sites that read “best viewed at 800 x 600″
really say “look at it my way because I don’t care about
your preferences or limitations.”

9. Thou shalt stay Consistent

Include a standard navigational structure on every page.
Though it may mean a serious challenge for the designer,
users should only need to click once to find every major
section of a site.

Also, this includes using standard link colors in all text
links. Blue: hyperlink; Purple: visited hyperlink; Red:
active hyperlink.

10. Thou shalt Know Thy Traffic

Use a site-wide statistics program that enables you to
determine what brings someone to the site, where they go
once they arrive, and when and where they leave.

This critical information helps with marketing efforts as
well as identifying parts of the site that need tweaking or
adjustment to help you increase sales. If everybody bails
from your site at the same page, knowing this can help you
change the page so people go from “bail mode” to “buy mode”!

Article Written By: Balwinder

For More Free Resources visit www.greateducationonline.com

Article Source: http://greatarticlesformoms.com

By: Kamal

You may know a few vampires. You know - the people that seem to suck the energy out of a room when they walk in leaving everyone feeling depressed. You probably also know people who, “light up a room” when they walk in. You might describe someone you just met as “rubbing you the wrong way” if you found yourself irritated with them and you just didn’t know why.

As someone trying to market a small business, your #1 job is to make your customers and prospects feel good about doing business with you. Sure, you are going to use every marketing tool in your disposal, and you understand that people ALWAYS buy on emotion and then justify with logic.

Everybody who’s not insane enough to be locked away or has some other mental pathology is, to some degree, “role adaptive”. Observe how your own behavior changes when you are talking to a toddler, or when you are talking with your friends, or talking on the phone with a sales person. You will notice that your voice, body language, inflection, word choice, pace, all change. You take on different roles that are more or less appropriate for the situation.

Human beings, as a species, have survived so long by being social. Compared to large predators that might have eaten our ancestors - we don’t have sharp claws or fangs, can’t run fast, don’t climb well, and have poor night vision. The two things that we have going for us are living well in groups and making tools.

Think back to that person that rubbed you the wrong way. You may not be able to place what it was about them. We respond to very subtle and unconscious social clues like body language and tone of voice. We respond very efficiently and very quickly on an emotional level. What’s on the inside shows on the outside event when we aren’t consciously aware of it.

An experiment was conducted where women of varying relative attractiveness were sent to draw samples of blood from guys. The men didn’t know that the blood was tested for testosterone levels – to see how sexually ‘turned on’ the guys were.

Two major observations were made: 1. Guys get turned on by being in the presence of attractive women on a hormonal level.

2. The female researchers could accurately predict the guy’s testosterone levels just based on their body language and behavior. Keep in mind, the guys weren’t in a bar trying to pick women up – this was a clinical setting.

The lesson is: people are generally very good at sniffing out what you’re up to. We train from birth to know what people are feeling – anger, deceit, euphoria. We also know that generally people are more comfortable being around people they are like. People form clubs and interest groups or, in extreme cases, become bigots.

What’s the marketing lesson? You, and everybody who’s involved in your business, must be convinced to the depth of their being that you are going to deliver on your promises. You must be enthusiastic about what you sell, or you can’t expect your customers to be. You don’t want to totally mismatch a customer by being happy if they are angry, but you want to gradually move them to a happy place.

You must communicate intentionally. Do you yell at your employees and then send them out to serve your customers? Do you get angry with your customers? Do you show up sleepy and lethargic? Think of emotion like a virus, you can pass it to your employees, and they can pass it to your customers.

What would your business be like if your customers just emotionally lit up every time they saw you? If every time your customers deal with you they get a shot of happy, they are going to want to deal with you again. They are also more likely to refer more business to you.

Take a close look at how you and your employees come off to your customers. You may have to do some training to get out of bad habits – but it will pay off in bigger profits.

www.greatindustrialguide.com

Article Source: http://greatarticlesformoms.com

By: Cindy Ashworth 

Working from home, Entrepeneur, home-based business… You hear alot of hype about working from home. It all sounds glamorous and easy to do. But it’s much harder than one thinks.

There’s alot to consider :

1) Before I even speak in detail with someone, I ask them “WHY”. Why do you want to work from home? This is very important for me to know. If you don’t have a defined “why” you want to work at home, odds are you will not succeed in working at home. Your reason to work at home HAS to be stronger than your reason not to. There has to be drive, determination and persistence. Without it, you will not succeed.

2) Determine if you are looking to work from home full time or part time. Not all work at home opportunities are full time. So make sure that the company you are looking into can accommodate your desired hours of work.

3) When looking into companies that you are considering to work for, check the BBB (better business bureau) on each company. But here’s the thing. You need to know what state that company is located in. And then you call the BBB in that state. I have heard a few people tell me that they called the BBB in the state that they live in, not the state that the company is located in. And they were given incorrect information. The BBB has the ability to make or break a company.

Key items to check on when contacting the BBB:

A) How long has the company been in business?
B) Has the company previously been under a different name? If yes, I suggest staying away. There’s a reason.
C) Has the company filed bankruptcy before?
D) Has the company growth continuously grown positive?
E) Has the company moved around?
F) Has the company had the same phone number and for how long?

*** Understand this… It is impossible for a company to make every person happy. And if a company should have some negative feedback, how can you say that it’s the fault of the company? What if someone worked for “company A” but did not have the drive, determination, skills, ability, time… What if life just got in the way and that person gave up on the company. Now this person is going to leave negative feedback on “company A”, when it was not the companies fault. ***

4) Depending on the business that you are working, you will want to make sure that you have the main necessities. Computer, printer, fax, (there is a online fax service available), copier, highlighters (great for color coding procedures), business cards, paper, notebooks, daily planner, monthly whiteboard with erasable markers, promotional items, and the list goes on and on.

5) Create a work schedule and stick with it. Designate the time you want to work your business and write it down. Let everyone know that this is when you will be working and treat it as that, (work). Now believe me, I know this can be difficult. Especially if you are a single parent and you have younger children. You may only be able to work 20 minutes here, 15 minutes there….. But it will become routine. And I believe in letting my kids help me out as well as setting time aside just for my kids. This is definitely give and take for everyone involved.

6) Stay focused and motivated. Knows your “WHY”.

7) Create a goal chart and hang it above your work area. That way you can see it everyday. I picked up a poster board. I used one half of the board and wrote down the goals that I have and the date that they will be achieved. Then on the right side of the poster board, I have pictures cut out and pasted on the board. If you are a visual person, this is great…. Maybe you have your dream house, washer and dryer, a certain landscaped lawn, a car, a picture of the ocean…. Whatever you desire, find a picture of it and put it up on your board.

Utilize all the tools that are available for your business. Don’t limit yourself. Dip into everything your company has… Become an asset.

9) If you have to talk on the phone, STAND UP….. Take posture. Don’t sit and slouch because that does come through over the phone.

10) Keep yourself in check. This is your company. Would you hire or fire yourself? Would you want to work with someone like yourself ?

About The Author:

Cindy Ashworth is the owner of www.mykidsmywhy.com and www.successfulwahm.blogspot.com. She is a single mom with 2 kids working her way to be a full time WAHM.

By: Heather Eagar

As you sit down to write your cover letter, do you ever stop and think, “Who the heck is going to read this?” You may believe that just because employers get hundreds of resumes per job posting that they tend to skip the cover letter part. That is just not true.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

You’ve written this awesome cover letter and it’s taken you quite a long time to create your masterpiece. You’re tired and spent from all your hard work. When it comes time to get your information together for the next job, you change the “To” section of the cover letter and the job title that you’re applying for. Boom – done!

But hold on a second…

What you just did is a major faux-pas. How is Employer #2 going to feel when it’s obvious you didn’t write your cover letter just for him? What if there was something in there that didn’t relate to that particular job at all?

Before you throw up your hands in frustration, let me clarify: you do not need to completely re-write your entire cover letter for each and every one of the positions for which you apply. You just need to put forth a little extra effort to show the employers that they are not just one of many companies for which you are applying.

Oops! Forgot to Change the Company’s Name?

You’re applying to jobs online and you hit “Send” a split second before you realize you forgot to update the company’s name on your cover letter. It seems like it’s happened to everyone but it is a huge blunder that most likely takes you out of the running for that particular position. Not very encouraging, huh? The good part about it is that you’ll be extra careful applying for jobs from then on.

Is there a way to recover from this error? You could always follow up with a hardcopy of your resume package. By then, the hiring manager probably would have already forgotten about your little mistake. You can also wait a few days and apply on line again. With so many resumes, employers probably aren’t going to remember your original submission.

Not Highlighting Your most Important Achievements?

Many job seekers believe that if they have their achievements on their resume, why should they repeat themselves in their cover letter? Simple – you need to do everything you can to make that employer want to read your resume. If your cover letter doesn’t provide them with enough ‘proof’ that you’re a great candidate for the position, then there is a chance they won’t even make it to your resume.

Now I’m not saying that it’s best to repeat yourself verbatim. Be a little creative and reword those top three or four achievements or important requirements that you know the employer wants to see. These may be different with each job posting so customize appropriately.

There are many ways to make your cover letter grab an employer’s attention. Treat it as being as important as your resume in getting interviews. After all, it’s your cover letter’s job to make the hiring manager want to read your resume. A great resume needs a cover letter to pave the way for the job that you really want.

About The Author:

Heather Eagar is a former professional resume writer who is now dedicated to providing job seekers with resources and products that promote job search success from beginning to end. Grab your free cover letter tips email course at www.CoverLettersMadeEasy.com.

Article Source: http://greatarticlesformoms.com

By: S McIntyre

There seem to be some confusion among many newbies just coming aboard the work at home train. I know how difficult it can be to wrap your head around all the information provided. Sometimes it’s as clear as mud and sometimes it’s just plain murky.

Let’s define work at home j-o-b. Yes, that’s job with hyphens in between it. Why? Simply because you will know I mean a job that requires skills and or experience, a cover letter, resume and an interview. You may be an employee or Independent Contractor with a set schedule and a set wage.

It is true you should never pay to get a job. It works like any brick and mortar. The exception to this “rule” goes to purchasing equipment to help you perform the job properly and this may include a headset or foot pedal. Sometimes a background check is required if you’re dealing with sensitive information, but this is done after you are hired and not before. Most companies will pick this tab up, but there are a few who don’t and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it as long as the company is legitimate and reputable.

Now I just said it was true you should never pay to get a job, right? Exactly. Here is the difference and I’ll explain a bit later. In most cases, you can find jobs on your own. There are plenty of work at home sites that provide FREE access to work at home companies and job leads. Some are researched and most are unresearched meaning you have to do all the legwork. What happens if you don’t have the time or the resources or you’re not “the job searcher and sniff-out-scams” savvy type person? Then there is an option for you to pay a one time lifetime membership fee to receive access to researched and reputable work at home companies. Confused about the pay thing? Don’t be! Here’s my explanation. You’re not paying to get a job; you’re paying for a service; for an agency to do the legwork for you. While there are mixed opinions on this issue, it is simply that…opinions. Don’t let someone deter or sway you. Only you know the reasons why this could be a good solution for you.

Again, you will come across many sites who don’t provide a legitimate service. There will be some, who have a database full of jobs, but the jobs can be found everywhere or it’s not updated on a regular basis. There is one particular site with a very good reputation, comes with good recommendations and have been online since 1999.