7 Fisherman's Tips to Avoid Losing Money on Your Web Site Design

by: Ian McAllister

-------------------------- Web site design to hook a customer is very like fishing. Try these seven tips to make money. -------------------------- Step 1. Research. ---------------------- What - you don't think a fisherman starts with research? How does he know not to fish in the bathtub? How does he know not to fish for dorado in USA? How does he know that his favorite lemon meringue pie on a sardine hook won't catch sharks? Imagine you've invented a 100% cure for Paraguayan piques. You pay a graphic designer to make your web site design. After a year you still haven't been able to make money. Your host tells you that the few visitors that you had only stayed for ten seconds. Research would have told you that *Your prospects speak Guaraní not English *Most of them can't read Guaraní *Even fewer speak English *Most of them don't have computers A little research at Overture would have told you that only 3791 people looked for pique in a month, but most of them were interested in polo, not in an insect. Does your potion kill Jiggers? 1432 people searched on that word, and they were mostly North Americans. Perhaps you could make money from them? If your web site design could inspire 10% of these searchers to visit your sales page and 10% of these bought from you that would give you 14 clients per month. Would that make money enough to pay for your web site design? You've been fishing in your bathtub! ----------------------- Step 2 Preparation ----------------------- As a fisherman you've discovered what fish are in your area, what will attract them to where you are, and found a spot where you won't get your line tangled up with other fisherman's lines. My research for this article showed that 'web site' had half a million searches but people could be totally uninterested in web site design. 'Web site design' had only a third of a million searches, but readers were more targeted. There were 239 advertisers on Overture, which shows that it is popular, and there are only 24 million competitors. 'Build a website' had less than 50 thousand searchers, but 337 million competitors. Ouch! I think my lines would get tangled! So the rule is: find what people want then design your web site with pages filled with the information that they want. If nobody is interested in your subject, advertise offline or find another subject for your web site design. ----------------------- Step 3 Get crowds ----------------------- You sprinkle oatmeal soaked in your secret ingredient on the water, and soon fish are following the scent back to where you are. Your first task is to make your web site design attractive to visitors. Tuna fishermen throw un-baited hooks into the mass of fish and pull them out in a sort of rhythm. The hook, which has no barb, snags a fish which falls off into the hold, and the hook is thrown out again, with the whole process taking a few seconds. Google Adsense is excellent to make money from this kind of web site design. -------------------- Step 4 Research -------------------- But that was in step 1 you object? Your research should never end. Talk to the other fishermen. Visit fishermen's forums. Search Google for information. Your oatmeal has attracted fish, but when you put it on the hook it washes off. You must find what bait will stay on the hook long enough for hungry fish to bite. This will vary from season to season. Experiment and record your results. Research for your web site design should never stop. Try different ideas to make money and record your results. ----------------- Step 5 Pre-sell ----------------- OK. Your fish are crowding round you. Your bait has some colorful feathers disguising the hook. You want to persuade the fish that your bait is more attractive than the scraps of oatmeal. Your web site design should start to describe your experience with whatever it is that you are selling to make money. You should try to communicate in all your web site design just how interesting you find what you are offering. --------------------------------- Step 6 Arouse Enthusiasm --------------------------------- Keep pulling your bait through the water so that fish will think *I'd better act while the food is there! *It's heading towards the other fish. I'd better be quick! *I may get a better offer, but what if I don't? If your web site design is aimed at affiliate income, don't try to sell yet. You strike only after the bait is in the fish's mouth. Let the vendor handle the last step. ----------------------- Step 7 Hook Them ----------------------- Once the fish has the bait in it's mouth you strike to drive the barbs home, then the fish can't leave go. Then you pull the fish in, and eat it. Oops! I'm not advocating cannibalism! Once your web site design has hooked a customer the same rules no longer apply. ------------ Bonus Tip ------------ To succeed, your web site design must have ways to keep your customers so happy that they will keep coming back again and again. Your web site design must obviously have a contact page. You should have a frequently asked questions page. You should offer further sales of related products to make money for you. If you eat your client you won't have her returning again and again. About the author: Ian McAllister learned fancy web design techniques from the local university, but you shouldn't use them! Instead design your web site to make money! 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