Is your website 'Dressed for success'?

	Website design and navigation are extremly important when trying to make money on the Internet.
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Is your website 'Dressed for success'?
By Chuck McCullough

You've heard the motivational talks about dressing for success. "You have to eat, drink, sleep, and breathe success to truly become successful. Your sub-conscious mind will lead you down the right path if you think about it enough."

Even if you don't totally believe in these words, you can surely hope that this mindset will help. You might even have famous quotes and uplifting sayings pasted around your desk or office.

You figure "why not?", "it can't hurt".

Some people even spend a lot of money believing that looking successful will ultimately lead them to success.

So I ask you:

Is your website 'Dressed for success'?

Why should it get any less attention? You want your website to be a success, don't you?

If you think about it, isn't your website the only visual image your visitors will have of you? (unless you have a web cam, of course)

What image does your website portray?

Do your visitors assume you went with the low bid on site design?

Do they wonder if the words "website navigation" are foreign to you?

Does your visitor subconsciously move her purse away from her monitor when she surfs by?

Do you really think they are going to install a T1 line so they can come back and view your graphics?

Your website needs to look and feel as if the person or persons behind it know what they are doing. It has to make your visitor feel comfortable. It needs to look successful.

If it looks like others are doing business with you, she will be more inclined to do business with you as well. The minute your potential customer spots the cobwebs, or one inch of dust on top of your products, she's gone.

Now, I'm not talking glamour and glitz...don't try to dazzle and baffle 'em. I'm telling you to make sure the basics are covered.

Sharp, crisp design, fast loading pages, lots of white space between the tons of content. You are providing tons of content aren't you?

Fresh, original content shows you know your stuff. People will want to link to your content to add to the usefulness of their own website. Lots of pages with relevant content can even help your search engine traffic. Your potential customers will have to return to finish reading through all of the great information.

I could go on and on about that one.

Anyway, what I'm saying is, even if YOU aren't successful yet, your website should make you appear as if you are.

If I run across a site on Geocities do I think the person is successful? Do I whip out the credit and order his products? Nope.

Do I want to give my gold card (if I had one) to someone that can't or won't pay $70 in registration fees and $30 a month in hosting fees?

I'm not saying that people on the free websites aren't making any money. Its just that for me it doesn't spell 'trustworthy company'.

Neither does 15 banners on the home page, or graphics from the clipart CD.

Put yourself in your customers shoes. What things make you feel that you have hit a legitimate site?

What things make you click away before the page has finished loading?

What things make you bookmark that site, and then actually return to it?

Ask yourself these questions, then type in the URL of your website and view it from the eyes of your visitors. Have you broken any of your own rules?

The bottom line is that every pixel of your visitors monitor as they hit your site should scream SUCCESS!

Besides, "it can't hurt", right? Worst case is that the information provided in this article does nothing to help your online presence.

But if it does work for you, you just might make enough money from your website to allow you to buy clothes so that YOU can dress for success!

Chuck McCullough is the owner of http://AffiliateMatch.com offering FREE articles, tips, hints, and real-world advice on how to make money with your website. Visit his site or join his FREE newsletter, The AffiliateMatch Informer by sending a blank email to mailto:newsletter@affiliatematch.com.

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