Getting visitors to stick around
When people search for websites, they generally are looking for answers and information. Visitors will quickly skim over a site and find what they are looking for or simply leave a move to the next website on the list. The attention span of the average user is extremely short, studies have shown that the average attention span on a website is 10 seconds (or 26 words). So, as soon as the link is clicked, the clock is ticking and you need to capture your visitor.
Targeting your content
Each page within your site has one message (or should) that message should be very apparent and made clear on the first line of content. If that message is lost, say goodbye to your visitor. To make your page's message clear and targeted, use quick, captivating and bold words in the heading of your page. The heading should be clear and apparent to what your visitors are looking for. When the user notices that the heading is relevant to their search you will have successfully gained another couple seconds.
Simplify
Content is such a downer in many websites, people simply are not willing to read long drawn out articles on the internet, they want brevity and a level of being straight to the point with no frills. The first step is to cut the fat out of your content, especially if you are trying to promote the sale of a product. Bullet points are fantastic tools in organizing a lot of information into easy to follow points.
Bold is also a very positive tool used to attract the visitors to certain areas of the content to push key points without going over every little detail. Take the little bit of time to highlight keywords or key phrases in your content. This will not only promote SEO efforts, but will allow visitors to find exactly what they seek.
Flash and other multimedia
Flash and interactive media within a site can be cool and functional, but can also easily scare away visitors. Intros are horrible on basically any site, not only is it horrible for SEO, but it allows users to quickly leave because of time of loading, unsupported formats or drawn out animations that don't allow users to go where they want.
Music on any website is such a dumb idea, especially with no way to turn it off. Having music playing on a website will not only increase load time, but it will also quickly scare the visitor away when it starts playing. If you must have music, have it stopped unless the visitor chooses to turn it on!
Avoid overly interactive content and make everything easily accessible as soon as your page loads. Menu options (navigation) should be clearly visible on the top or top left of your web page.
Long load times = free ticket to leave
Long load times will be your worst enemy in your attempts to keep your visitors at bay. Avoid overly detailed or large graphics on your web template. All of your images should be scaled down properly to promote quick loads. Remember, not everyone has cable internet! You still need to cater to those with <100kb style="font-weight: bold;">
Overview
So there you have it, simple ways to get your visitor to stay! These are invaluable tools and methods that can drastically improve your conversion rates in sales!
Targeting your content
Each page within your site has one message (or should) that message should be very apparent and made clear on the first line of content. If that message is lost, say goodbye to your visitor. To make your page's message clear and targeted, use quick, captivating and bold words in the heading of your page. The heading should be clear and apparent to what your visitors are looking for. When the user notices that the heading is relevant to their search you will have successfully gained another couple seconds.
Simplify
Content is such a downer in many websites, people simply are not willing to read long drawn out articles on the internet, they want brevity and a level of being straight to the point with no frills. The first step is to cut the fat out of your content, especially if you are trying to promote the sale of a product. Bullet points are fantastic tools in organizing a lot of information into easy to follow points.
- See?
- Quick
- Simple
- Information
Bold is also a very positive tool used to attract the visitors to certain areas of the content to push key points without going over every little detail. Take the little bit of time to highlight keywords or key phrases in your content. This will not only promote SEO efforts, but will allow visitors to find exactly what they seek.
Flash and other multimedia
Flash and interactive media within a site can be cool and functional, but can also easily scare away visitors. Intros are horrible on basically any site, not only is it horrible for SEO, but it allows users to quickly leave because of time of loading, unsupported formats or drawn out animations that don't allow users to go where they want.
Music on any website is such a dumb idea, especially with no way to turn it off. Having music playing on a website will not only increase load time, but it will also quickly scare the visitor away when it starts playing. If you must have music, have it stopped unless the visitor chooses to turn it on!
Avoid overly interactive content and make everything easily accessible as soon as your page loads. Menu options (navigation) should be clearly visible on the top or top left of your web page.
Long load times = free ticket to leave
Long load times will be your worst enemy in your attempts to keep your visitors at bay. Avoid overly detailed or large graphics on your web template. All of your images should be scaled down properly to promote quick loads. Remember, not everyone has cable internet! You still need to cater to those with <100kb style="font-weight: bold;">
Overview
So there you have it, simple ways to get your visitor to stay! These are invaluable tools and methods that can drastically improve your conversion rates in sales!
Labels: increasing web sales, optimizing web content, website content
