You Never Get A Second Chance To Make A First Impression

Your website is the first thing your new potential customers will see when they meet you. Are you making a good first impression? Meeting someone online is little different than meeting them in person; unfortunately, you have less than a minute to catch their attention and keep them reading. Do they like the look of you? Are you saying what your customers are looking to hear? With the future of your online business riding on your words, are you making a good impression? Here are five ideas to have your customers staying longer and remember you long after the encounter ends:

l. Dress nicely and be well groomed. Have you ever been to a website you were ready to leave as soon as you got there? Me too. Chances are things were too loud and too busy. Though there may have been something there of interest to you, you weren't likely to have found it. So what is the well groomed website wearing this season? Not too many loud flashing headlines. Instead, make sure your site is calm and confident. Your headline and first paragraph should be a summarization of the website theme. Who you are, what you're going to share with them and why you decided to do so. No one likes to read half a page only to find the site didn't deal with their issue of interest. No flashing lights, no neon headlines, no blaring music or boisterous sales pitches blasting away.

2. Have a nice voice; be friendly and pleasant. Have you ever met someone you initially thought you'd like to get to know... and then they opened their mouth and you realized you knew all you needed to? Your website should speak to your readers like a good friend might. Be easy to understand. Write in short sentences, with short paragraphs. Each paragraph should have a theme, stated in the first sentence, and elaborated on through its conclusion. And though it's so tempting to put some fancy font on your website, you have no idea what they'll see. Stick to the basic Arial, Helvetica, & Sans-serif fonts. They're easy on the eye.

3. Talk just to them; treat them like they're the only one. Rather than talking to the masses as a whole, write to a particular person. Picture them in your mind and write as though you are having a private conversation with them. Be their friend - This is something for 'you', not just anyone. They'll feel like you really like them and like they have your undivided attention. Always use active voice rather than passive.   It will make them feel as though you're speaking directly to them.

4. Always focus on their needs rather than being pushy and trying to move too fast. Nobody likes to be around someone who pushes the relationship too quickly. You want to get to know someone before you get too emotionally involved. There was a reason this person chose to visit your website. Address that need. How can you solve their problem? Don't tell them what you have; tell them what problem of theirs you can solve. Making a purchase is an emotional decision. If you move too quickly, they won't be ready to commit emotionally. Get to know them first.

5. Give them a reason to stick around or come back. Give them something they can't get anywhere else. While yes, they probably won't feel as special at any other website, but on the off chance the competition is also following these five steps, give them a free mini-course. Let them see you care about their success and about them. Show them you value the relationship. Give them a free report; something to help them reach their goal.

If you follow these guidelines, you'll make a wonderful impression and your new friends won't want to leave. They'll appreciate your thoughtfulness and stick around long enough to see what an absolute 'peach' you really are.

3 Reasons Postcards Are The Best Way To Advertise

When I say postcard, maybe you think of the old fashioned, jagged edged dull pieces of card stock.  Think again!  Today's postcards are vibrant, high-impact creations with clip art so real that it'll jump off the page at you.  And the best thing about them...

1. They're Short and Personal
Let's face it, people just don't have time to sort through a lot of advertisements and junk mail.  If the truth be known, they immediately identify ads and pitch them into the trash without ever slitting the envelope.

Postcards get read!  It's already open, and the message is "in your face" without exerting any effort to absorb it.  Even if the reader isn't trying to read it, he'll get the impact of the short message before he tosses it.

Personal messages have a greater appeal than mass mailings. Postcards keep the old time charm of a personal greeting while implement new high tech marketing strategies... a combination for success.

2. They're Easy And Cost Effective
Hey even the postage for a postcard is cheaper!  Go to your printer and have them print you up several thousand for 7 or 8 cents apiece.  Not too bad!  For about 30 cents you have a cutting edge, high impact marketing tool ready to be put to use.

You don't even have to bother with putting them in the mail.  Many print warehouses will take care of it for you.  Hey, what could be easier?

3.  They Keep Your Marketing Strategy Hidden From Competitors
Do you get tired of spending countless hours agonizing over new marketing strategies, only the have your competitors jump right in and ape your campaign?  Yeah, it's pretty frustrating, but hard to do anything about.  Everything you do is right in front of them shouting "Copy Me."

Postcards are private interactions with the individuals who read them.  It's a one-on-one campaign that lets you keep the results quiet from prying eyes.  Heck, they won't even know what you're doing, much less how to copy it.

There's another sneak tactic that I haven't mentioned yet... using postcards to direct traffic to your Website.  That's right!  Most of us think we need to use Internet marketing tools to drive up our Internet sales.  NOT SO!  That's what everyone else is doing, but think about it.  A postcard with your slogan and visible information that directs the reader to your Website... yeah, let's hope the competition doesn't catch on for quite a while!

There's not another marketing campaign that can guarantee 100 percent readership!  It just makes sense that when more people read your ad, it will be more effective.  Use postcards to market and count on a high response rate!