 |
|
 |
|
 |
b2b
news
|
Tips
from your provider of:
web design
e-commerce
e-marketing
web Hosting
Domain Registration |
|
Vol 4 - Issue 2 |
April
2005 |
|
Welcome
to b2b news.
In
this issue:
|
|
Get
more out of your website |
Newsletters
Monthly
or quarterly Newsletters is a
great way of promoting your business
and your website. If you keep
your customers’ e-mail addresses,
then a Newsletter by e-mail becomes
viable. It is a very economical
solution, as you do not have to
spend on paper, ink, envelopes,
and postage. Your e-mail software
can be set up for bulk e-mailing
to a group customised with individual
names.
There
are many ways to format an e-Newsletter:
-
you can use plain-text,
-
html formatted (with images
included),
-
a Word document embedded in
the e-mail or as an attachment,
- and
a PDF file sent as an attachment.
You
can send the whole content of
the newsletter, or just a summary
of each article with a link to
the full text in your website.
Sending the links can be a very
good idea to attract immediate
visitors to your site, specially
if you have new products or services
you want to promote.
The
pages in your site with the full
text of the articles could contain
banners or small ads enticing
users to visit other pages in
your website.
It
is also possible to add tracking
technology to your html-based
newsletter. This will provide
you with information such as which
articles each person has read
and the time spent in each one.
You can then target your marketing
on the areas that have attracted
more interest or tailor it to
each customer’s preferences.
Newsletters
are a great way to keep in touch
with your existing customers.
Every time they receive your newsletter
you remind them you are there
available to serve them and that
you care about their business.
It is also an excellent tool for
branding your business name or
products.
Prospects
have less and less time to shop
around. When they are in need
of your products or services they
will first think of you because
they have been receiving your
newsletters. This is all part
of establishing a healthy relationship
with your customers.
In
some lines of business apparently
there is no much new to report.
A brief brainstorming session
will yield ideas for your newsletter
in excess of what you need. A
newsletter does not need to be
long. One page, or even half a
page will suffice, and not all
the information you put have to
be related to your type of business.
Some
examples of information you can
include in your newsletter:
- Products
on sale
- New
lines of products or services
- Special
discount offers, vouchers, coupons
- Competitions
& sweepstakes
- What
is happening in your industry,
new developments, innovations,
discoveries, etc
- New
materials, colours, sizes, etc.
for existing products
- Achievements
or awards the business have
received
- Staff
promotions, weddings, births,
new staff, retiring staff
- Employment
opportunities in your business
- New
partnerships, alliances, ventures
- General
news that can be of interest
to your target market
- Many
industry speakers/writers/editors
do not mind if you reproduce
their articles as long as you
credit them. So if you come
upon an interesting piece of
information that applies to
your customers
you can ask permission to include
it in your newsletter.
- Community
news
- Business
tips
With
e-newsletters remember always
to allow for a way to unsubscribe.
For
more information on how to set
up an e-newsletter for your business,
please give us a call and we will
be happy to help you.
In
our next newsletter we will be
looking at ‘Promotional
e-mails’
|
|
Adding
Interactivity to your site |
Interactivity
empowers users. With interactive
websites visitors have choices
and control over certain features.
Following
is a list of interactive features
that you may like to consider
for your website:
-
Search –
A search function will provide
users with the ability to search
your website by keywords or
phrases. Should personalised
searches be stored for each
user?
-
Forms –
What kind of forms? Feedback,
contact? What information should
the user provide? Will the fields
be optional or required? Will
fields be validated?
- Support
– Will you be providing
real-time support, or an email
form that can be answered in
24hrs? Will you be having a
chat area?
- Questionnaires/surveys/polls
– What kind of information?
About what subject? Will you
publish the results?
-
Panoramic Photos
– Interactive panoramas
can give the visitor a real
insight inside your business.
Visitors can virtually walk
around your shop/office and
zoom in and out to see details.
-
Animations
– Should you use Flash
or Java to bring life into your
site and illustrate products
and services? A whole Flash
site or just small files?
-
Subscription email lists
– Do yo have an e-newsletter
or other periodic information
that users can subscribe to?
-
Links to other sites
– Should you have a link
page? Links that are related
or complement your business,
without offering competition,
can attract customers to your
site.
-
Downloadable files
– PDFs, images, audio
files, programs, games.
- Contact
Us – What contact
details should be on the site
– i.e. e-mail, telephone,
street address, office or shop
hours?
-
Site map –
Will a site map help your visitors
navigate the site?
-
Multilingual
– Would it be advantageous
to make the site available in
various languages? What are
the main languages your customers
speak?
-
Printing –
Will users be able to use other
printing functions besides the
default one supplied by the
browser? Printer friendly pages?
-
Passwords –
Will you have a ‘Members
only’ section which can
only be accessed via a user
name and password?
- Videos
– Conventional or interactive?
How long? What modem/broadband
speed will support?
-
Games –
Will a Flash game attract more
visitors or help promote a product
or service?
|
|
The
WOW! Factor |
There
is a lot of marketing going on
promoting websites with a WOW
factor. But what is the WOW factor
in a website? The first thing
that comes to the mind is a funky
site, full of flashy animations.
However, the WOW factor is not
quite that, is when a visitor
feels very good about the site
he is just visiting.
A few years ago, when browsers
started supporting Flash and streaming,
graphic designers translated their
skills to the web and gave wild
run to their imaginations. In
those days the web was composed
predominantly of three types of
sites: Funky and creative sites,
home-made sites, and what I like
to call ‘programmers’
sites’.
The funky sites looked fabulous
but you really had a hard time
finding the information you were
after. The menu links were hidden
in the design, you had to spend
time exploring as each link took
you to unexpected places, they
had little or no information,
the text was hard to read, and
it took a long time to download.
The ‘home-made’ sites
had lots of colourful fonts, background
wallpaper that made the text difficult
or impossible to read, no design,
sometimes only one, very long,
page, other times a few links
with not fixed menu, and practically
zero application of usability
rules in general. Good for kids
and for fun, but not a great image
for a serious business.
The programmers’ sites,
on the other hand, were the opposite
of the funky ones. These websites
were mainly created by programmers
and technically minded people.
Here you were able to find heaps
of information, often logically
arranged. On the other hand, design
of the site was usually unpleasant,
with annoying flashing text and
terrible colour combinations.
Nowadays, most professionally
produced websites are somewhere
in the middle point between the
funky, flashy sites and the programmers’
sites. The design looks good without
being overpowering. Information
and content have priority. They
are easy to navigate. The information
you are looking for is usually
one or two clicks away. The structure
follows a logical organisation.
These websites download faster
and are appealing and informative
at the same time.
A
WOW! Website is one that applies
usability rules to give the visitor
an enjoyable and useful experience.
It
doesn’t necessarily have
to be filled with flashy animations.
A harmonious, balanced, and clean
design is preferable in most instances.
Put yourself in the shoes of your
visitor. What would you like to
see in a website offering the
kind of goods or services you
offer? Would you be looking for
specific information about products/services
or just wanting to pass the time?
What kind of people are your customers?
Are they busy people who value
their time? Are they teenagers
who just like having fun?
You need to evaluate your customers
and decide which is the right
WOW! factor for them.
|
|
On
Next Issue: |
- Get
more out of your website: Promotional
e-mails
|
...
your success is our business
...
|
|
Copyright
©2005 Bubblegum Productions Pty
Ltd
www.bubblegum-productions.com
info@bubblegum-productions.com
Tel: 1300 13 WAVE, 1300 13 9283, 03
9803 3027
PO Box 1303 Glen Waverley VIC 3150
To
unsubscribe send a blank e-mail to info@bubblegum-productions.com |
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
|