No one designs a website to deliberately turn off clients, prospects, and
search engines, but all too often that is the end result.

What have they done to turn site visitors off with web design? Here is a
list of the most common mistakes we see.

1. *Confusing Navigation *- Do you make it difficult for people to find
information? Often we see confusing site architecture, or clever page
titles, which don’t mean anything to the average visitor. I made that
mistake on the first roundpeg website. The pages all rhymed: Create,
Generate, Colloaborate.. etc. People left, never knowing that we did
graphic design, brainstorming strategy sessions and team building.

2. *Hard to find contact information* – I read somewhere that the number one reason people come to your website is to find your contact information.

Is your phone number visible on the home page? Is the CONTACT US button easy to find?

3. *Copy that talks about You not Me*. I know it is your website, but before someone cares about your years in business, mission statement, and return policy, they want to know – “Can you solve my problem?”

4. *Technical jargon* – If I knew what HSPF, SEER, AFUE, VSP, SEO … all stood for, would I really need you?

5. *Graduate level text – *This is a hard one for many people to get
over. On the one hand you want to sound smart. On the other hand you want people to actually read your content. Remember even the NY Times is written at an 8th grade level. Why? It is done to make it easy for people to digest the information quickly.

6. *Unreadable text on dark backgrounds – * It may look cool and edgy, but if you want people to be able to read your site, pay attention to readability

7. *Irritating flash animations, auto play videos and audio tracks *-
They are cute, clever and you spent a fortune to create them. But the third or fourth time a visitor comes back, they want to skip past them. And if they are viewing your site on an iPhone, they can’t see them anyway. Also in this category: *popups, pop unders and pop overs,* which block the view of the very information the visitor has come to find.

8. *Slow loading pictures* – Did you forget to convert those high
resolution images to small, quick loading GIFs? By the time the image has loaded your visitor has made a snack, gone for a walk or found someone else to do what you do.

9. *Too much, too much, too much – *Pages with too much text or too many graphics can be a bit overwhelming. Search engines may love the content, but people will be turned off and leave. Don’t be afraid to break the content up with a link to another page. If people don’t follow the link you have not made a compelling case for the follow.

10. *Ugly and outdated design* – Like walking into a dirty restaurant, it is hard to have confidence a company has kept their skills fresh when their site looks like it was designed more than five years ago. Also in this
category, the phrase: “last update” If you are not updating regularly,
don’t admit it on the home page.

Lorraine Ball

As a confirmed networking junkie, I am always looking for my next fix. My new fix is LinkedIn. An on-line social network, Linkedin is often described as Facebook for professionals.  With an emphasis on career history, educational background and association membership, Linkedin has millions of members, with thousands more joining each day.

Start with your contacts.
Once you register (basic membership is free) you can invite people to Link In (connect to you through the online tool). You can search the LinkedIn data base for people you know or upload your email address book. You will only be able to view contact information for people with whom you are directly connected. The interface is easy to use and will pull contacts directly from your address book in Outlook, Gmail, Yahoo or MSN accounts. And if you are Outlook users, the downloadable toolbar makes it easy to continuously update your contacts.

Your Contacts Have Contacts!
This is where the real power of LinkedIn comes in. While you may have only 100 people in your contact circle, each of those people know other people. For example, after a year of building my contact list, I have more than 750 contacts (each of whom know on average 100 people) so my second tier circle contains more than 80,000 people.

These same connections exist in the off-line world. Your friends know people you want to meet, and sooner or later they may get around to introducing you. With LinkedIn you can accelerate the process by requesting invitations. You can search by skills, type of company, jobs held, geographic regions, and common interests.

If you find someone who fits your search criteria, LinkedIn will tell you how you are connected, who you know in common, and you can request an invitation. When my assistant moved to St. Louis , we searched my data base and discovered I had connections to marketing directors in some of the largest companies in the city. We were able to make introductions and accelerate her job search.

Beyond Your Address Book
LinkedIn is often overlooked in the world of social media, but as the tool has grown it is much more than just another place to “add your friends.” For job hunters and sales people with specific targets, it’s actually one of the world’s best networking tools.

Whether you are looking for a job, an employee, an introduction to a key executive or simply someone with the answer to burning questions, LinkedIn can help you find people who will meet your need.
LinkedIn will never replace the face-to-face interaction, but it can give your traditional networking an extra buzz.

By Lorraine Ball
Roundpeg

If you want to build loyalty is it more important to increase purchase frequency or purchase volume? In their book, “Meaningful Marketing”, researchers Doug Hall and Jeffrey Stamp concluded that focusing on purchase volume is 3.9 times more effective when trying to build annual loyalty.

Why? Loyalty is not static. Your competitors are always out there, trying to make even your best customers try something new. The research shows that it is best to strike when the iron is hot! When the customer is in a buying mode, help them buy. You may not get another chance later. Hall and Stamp recommend that business owners follow the lead of McDonalds, and think about supersizing the offer.

Give your customers a reason to buy more!

When your customer is ready to buy, give them incentives to purchase more. Long term contracts or larger packages offer you more profit, so pass along some of the
savings to customers. Offer incentives, such as discounts on multiunit purchases, to encourage them to buy more now.

Do you want fries with that?

Every time you walk into a McDonalds, and order a hamburger, the person behind the counter asks, “Do you want fries with that?” By simply training their employees to ask the question, McDonalds increased their sales dramatically.

The same technique can grow sales for your business. Do you routinely offer accessories and extra services with every sale? Are these options clearly listed on every proposal with the benefits spelled out for your consumer? If not, it is time to revise your proposal. The research shows that if you don’t mention it up front, you may not get a second chance.

The Meal Deal

McDonalds discovered most customers wanted a drink, fries and sandwich. As a result, they developed a pricing structure that was so attractively that almost everyone buys a “#1, #2 or #3.”

This concept can work for you as well. Bundle accessories and service contracts into the purchase price as standard. Discount the your package only slightly when you leave out an accessory and most consumers will buy the whole package.

Offer “Free Stuff” This bundled approach allows you to offer an extra service ( which costs you very little) “free” with complete system sale.

This bundled approach will help you set yourself apart in the market place as well.

Don’t’ stop with the Meal – Offer a Complete Package

Another tactic is to view your product from the customer’s perspective. What will they need to maximize the use or enjoyment of your product or service? If you offer these related products, either directly or through a strategic partner, your customer has fewer reasons to go elsewhere.

What types of services should you offer? If you sell a product to new homes, consider offering a $25 coupon for a landscape company or nursery with every system you
sell. Or maybe a gift certificate for carpet cleaning, or floor refinishing. Your customers will appreciate the little extras.

These extra services don’t have to be an expense item for you. Many companies pay referral bonuses. Talk to service provides about giving you the coupons for free instead of the referral bonus. And, if you are smart, you will give them coupons for your services as well.

These are just some examples of ways to grow you your business by building customer loyalty. For other ideas, simply observe successful companies in industries very
different from HVAC, and you may learn other ways to Supersize your business.

Lorraine Ball helps business owners find a starting point for growth and change.

http://www.roundpeg.biz or call 317-908-0262
Lorraine Ball
President of Roundpeg
317-569-1396
Lorraine@roundpeg.biz