Rebecca Lobo,
U.S. Olympic basketball player

If you could ask for one thing to feel like your life is more successful, whether it is your personal relationships, your job, your health or anything else, what would it be?

I’ve been thinking about this question for a while and reviewing it against the current status of my life… my answer’s below. What do you think? If you could ask for just one thing to feel like your life is more successful, what would it be?

I’m curious what you think, or what your answer would be.

Here’s what I posted:

Sharyn, this is such an interesting question. I keep coming back to it and thinking about what that one item or thing would be. I honestly don’t have an answer, as I feel like every day is yet another opportunity to be grateful and also to work on what my vision of a “successful life” looks like.

So health, family, relationships, money, my business…. all of these can always be improved.. and they are already continually being improved/renewed.

I recently took out my “big goals” list that I set almost 7 years ago and it’s totally true (amazingly so) that most of the important things on that list have become a reality for me and my partner in the last few years.

I now use www.futureme.org to e-mail myself periodic updates on my current big goals list. I’d also be interested in what other people think they need to be more successful.

I think in the long run it boils down to our own motivation, what we think success looks like, our path towards that and the relationships we make along the way.

From her website: www.akashicrecordreading.com

WHAT ARE THE AKASHIC RECORDS?
The Akashic Records are the soul’s records of all its experiences in all the lifetimes it’s been through. Each soul has its Akashic Records, like a series of books with each book representing one lifetime. The Hall (or Temple) of Akashic Records is where all souls’ Akashic Records are stored, like a library.

Each reading is as unique as your life. I start with the general overview, and when I find some issues that may be affecting you negatively, I go deeper into details. So this is really just a few things I often discuss with my clients:

Soul’s group of origination (fundamental makeup of who you are)
Soul’s primary energy center (as it relates to one of the seven main chakra)
Sou’s primary life lesson
Damages your Golden Web (what some people see as aura) may have
Whether you are traveling to negative astrals during your sleep, causing you nightmares or sleep fatigue
Whether you are “bound” with someone against your conscious choice
Energetic blocks that are interfering you from reaching your goals and utilizing the law of attraction
Whether earthbound spirits or ghosts are interfering your soul
. . . and more. . .

Akemi only needs a few pieces of information such as your birthdate and location of birth and your name. She also mentions in her FAQs (and this is for those of you who are more hard-nosed) that “as long as you are willing and open to have your soul record read, I can read it. It doesn’t matter if you have religious affiliations or not, or whether you believe in the spirituality / New Age stuff.”

She takes the information you provide, creates the reading, and then offers a phone consultation for you to ask her questions (you also have the option of receiving a written summary).

I found the reading immensely fascinating, because it put a lot of things currently going on in my life into a larger context. For me as a details person, this “big picture” approach was very helpful and inspiring. She also gives you “homework” with ideas on how to effectively make changes based on your new knowledge.

I am very grateful to Akemi for sharing this knowledge with me: it has helped me think more in-depth on my own soul’s path and what steps I want to be taking. It’s also given me some more insight into why I behave certain ways in certain situations: with this insight, I have a chance to make more choices.

Thank you, Akemi!

From our first project, we learned about all of the details needed for effective sales online, including what works (and what doesn’t work), what types of information to display, what kinds of policies need to be posted, and how the site needs to be updated. I highly recommend OSCommerce as your solution if you’re attempting to get your product-based inventory for sale online.

From a consumer standpoint, and as someone who does the majority of her shopping online, I want to emphasize you how important it is to shop around and find your products online if at all possible. For example, we found a cell phone battery in a brick-and-mortar store on sale for $85 but we found the equivalent online for $15 plus shipping! That’s a $60 markup… you definitely save money when you do just a little bit of research: if you’re not planning on actually purchasing online, then at least you’ll know a little more about the physical product you’re planning on buying. Recently I’ve also purchased cloth diapers from a supplier in Portland, cat meds from a supplier in Australia (!), and a baby sling from the wholesaler… all items that take more work to find here near my rural home.

My own sunglasses are for anonymity, style, and to shade myself from the rays, but they’re also there for fun and as an easy accessory. My husband always has his when we go out (we live in a very sunny place) and I have the pair that stays in the car for emergencies as well as a pair of prescription sunglasses: very practical and useful. Here’s us at the Colosseum (notice the gladiator!)

If you’re going to be purchasing online, make sure to get really good prices on the real deal. If you’re looking for womens sunglasses, check out Sunglass Warehouse, which offers a great selection of styles, shapes, and colors at unbeatable prices.

I first met Sharyn through Elite Leads in Oakland, when I lived and worked there and was first getting to know others in the Oakland business community. She’s so engaging in person and I’m happy to share some highlights of Create Your Reality with you.

The book focuses on tangible and straightforward action steps you may take to create “exactly what you have always wanted.” Sharyn tells her own story of overcoming multiple challenges and obstacles in her childhood, with her health, within her relationships, and through her work, to finally create a life that matches her values from the inside out. She currently coaches and consults with home-based business owners and entrepreneurs to achieve “measurable results,” and she takes the same approach with the book’s strategy.

“Lose all the weight you want,
fall in love with your soul mate,
make millions of dollars . . .
How can you make all of those self help books actually work?”

Create Your Own Reality
. . . is an uncanny guide to help you shed the years of suppression, being misled or trying to deal with the circumstances of life that has appeared to hold you back from the miracles you deserve.”

I know that many people buy one self-help book after another without seeing results. In this case, Sharyn talks about her own journey and how she’s achieved (step-by-step) success in her personal and business life. She also offers a resource section which is filled with multiple methods, tools, books, and processes that she has used to achieve her own successful endeavors.

Order online with many free bonuses at the website: http://www.createyours2.com/

Today’s post has to do with Amazon Associates, an easy and quick way for you to offer products from the Amazon.com website by providing a mini-store or list of products as an affiliate.

Billing itself as “The web’s most popular and successful Affiliate Program,” this program allows you to set up a free username and password, which then gives you formatted links. When your web visitors click through these formatted links and make a purchase, you earn up to 15% on products purchased.

You have access to traffic and earnings reports and ways to integrate the affiliate program into your content: this is great if you offer things like product reviews, book reviews, or if you focus on a particular niche and do articles or recommendations on products within that niche.

http://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/join

Communication Skills for Women:
A Dozen Phrases Every Woman in Business Should Master!

This article arms women with phrases for different business situations. When you consider the information though, chances are you can adapt and utilize this information in personal situations as well!

1) “Help me to understand . . your position, your point-of-view, your side of the story.”
When to Use It: This one is particularly effective when you are in conflict. Dr. Stephen Covey tells us: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” So employing one of the seven habits of highly effective people, you want to understand your conflict partner first. Let them explain their point-of-view, and why they feel the way they did. If you agree with them as you calmly listen to them explain their point-of-view, great, conflict resolved. If you don’t, what do you say?

2) “I still see it differently. Please allow me to explain my point-of-view.”
When to Use It: Again, in conflict. This gives you the continuation in case they present, and you still don’t agree . . and you still feel very strongly about this. Say so assertively. Say you see it differently and if you stay calm, and watch your volume and tone of voice the other person will hopefully listen attentively while you explain your points. Then you can negotiate to a win-win.

3) “My salary/hourly rate no longer reflects my contributions to the company.”
When to Use It: Speaking of negotiation! This one is a master in asking for a raise or pay increase. The boss isn’t interested in the fact that the reason you need a raise is because you’re facing rising costs of… everything! Health care, gas, food, etc. Your raise request needs to be tied back to specific contributions you’ve made at work so be prepared to discuss how your job responsibilities have changed or been added to continuously without discussing more pay.

4) “I want to hear what you have to say, but not in this way.”
When to Use It: Powerful for dealing with angry people! Perfect for when a customer is yelling at you, or when a co-worker is voicing concerns perhaps in a staff meeting and the way they’re addressing you in front of everyone is making you uncomfortable. It very politely suggests they take a different tone, change their volume, or make different word choices!

5) “What I can do for you is . . ”
When to Use It: Excellent for customers and customer service! Customers don’t really like hearing, “No, and what you can’t do (accept returns) and what they can’t have (their money back, etc.). Massage the language for better results! Instead of saying what you can’t do, talk about what you can. You can also use this with co-workers and bosses constantly making demands and you need a friendly way to meet them in the middle!

To request the other 7 phrases, e-mail Joy Huber at joy (at) joyhuber (dot) com

Joy Huber – “Ms. En’Joy’able”
Award-Winning Speaker & Business Communications Expert
www.joyhuber.com


For more great information check-out my CD Programs 
”An Interview with Joy Huber, Business Communications Expert” and “Talk to the Hand: A Woman’s Guide to Truly Thriving Amongst Difficult People” at www.joyhuber.com/online. Or email me at Joy (at) joyhuber (dot) com.

1) Introduction
2) Parts of a Website (domain names, hosting, mailing lists)
3) Content Management
4) Free and Open Source solutions
5) Design and user interface
6) Payment processing
7) Networking (online and offline)
8) Generating revenue online: Google Adsense, affiliate programs, members-only content and other ways to make money
9) Reviewing your Data by using Reporting
10) Updating your site with Timely Content

Prior Links:
Parts 1 and 2
Parts 3, 4, and 5

Today’s post is focused on Part 6: Payment Processing

Part 6: Payment Processing

Your customers are more likely to buy if it is easy for them to purchase from you. If you require checks, you will most likely have to deal with cash flow issues where someone is behind in paying for services rendered or products delivered. My best recommendation is to set up a way to accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover. If you are doing this through a merchant account at your bank, your bank will have specific guidelines that they give you.

However, for most business owners starting up, Paypal.com will work just fine.

Some other options from CNN 5 separate alternatives include:
Digital River www.digitalriver.com
2Checkout www.2checkout.com
AlertPay www.alertpay.com
TrialPay www.trialpay.com
E-junkie e-junkie.com

With a free PayPal account, you are able to accept all major credit cards. You are charged 2.9% per transaction, but there is no setup or monthly fee. So for any sale of $100, you will receive$97.10.

To set up an account, you must provide a legitimate e-mail and contact information. I recommend setting up a business account if you are committed to your business success (rather than a personal account, which has more limitations). There will be a process where PayPal confirms that you may check the e-mail.

When tying your PayPal account to your bank account, PayPal will deposit two small amounts into your bank account and require you to enter those two amounts, to confirm that you are the owner of the bank account.

At that point, you may withdraw any received funds from your PayPal account as an electronic deposit or as a check.

You always receive a e-notification of payment if you have been paid via your PayPal account. Your buyer will also receive an e-notification receipt.

There are some additional items such as the ability to customize the colors on the payment page, the ability to have multiple “profiles” (for example, if you sell items through multiple businesses but they all funnel through one main account), and the ability to create packing and shipping slips or to invoice online.

Important Note
Most processors will charge a small fee either monthly and off each transaction. For example, $20 a month for the convenience + $0.25 (a quarter) per transaction. Some processors will charge you only when you make a sale.

FRAUD ALERT: Due to high “phishing” e-mails, where someone tries to get your login and password information through a “security alert” e-mail or “update your account info” e-mail, you should always open a new browser and type in the URL of the site you are visiting.

NEVER CLICK on a LINK in an E-MAIL. You may always go straight to a new browser, open up a fresh window, and login directly. Do not follow someone else’s e-mail link to go to any site that requires financial information.

Questions to Answer:
How is your current banking set up? You will want to open a different share off your existing account to track self-employment income: so you might have one personal checking account and one business-related checking account. If you are incorporating, you will set up a business banking account to accept cash or checks directly to the business.

Who will manage receipts, invoicing, and writing checks?

What types of payment will you accept: cash, checks, or credit cards? Wire transfers? Direct deposit?

by Elizabeth J. Agnew, MS, PE

For us introverts out there, the idea of networking doesn’t exactly get our blood moving. As networking becomes more and more an integral part of my professional growth, I’m finding that (and I never thought I’d say this) I am actually beginning to enjoy it. And that right there is half of the reason why I’m successful with my networking efforts. In this article I’ll share with you 4 tips for networking success – as an introvert!

First, let’s get something cleared up. Being an introvert does NOT mean that you lack social skills. I’ll repeat: being introverted does not mean that you aren’t a ’social’ being. We all are. It simply means that you get your energy from within – when you need to recharge, you find a way to be alone. Being around people tends to use our energy, rather than charge it up. That’s all.

So all you closet introverts can come out now. If you can embrace your introversion, you’ll see that there are true benefits to being one: you tend to have a better relationship with yourself, appear more grounded and aware, and value deeper connections, to name a few. Embracing your introversion means you’ll be able to leverage it in networking situations. The 4 tips below show you how.

1. Think quality, not quantity
Already, your being an introvert is advantageous. Because we tend to prefer fewer, deeper relationships rather than multiple casual acquaintances, we can bring that desire into a networking situation. No one said the key to networking successfully was to get as many business cards as you could in the least amount of time. If you’re having a great conversation with someone, then stay put!

Let your goal be to make one solid connection for the evening that you’ll want to continue into the future. If it’s a multiple-day event, make your goal 3 – 4 solid connections. Now you can relax – let go of the need to compete for contacts and let fate do its work in deciding the few people you’ll get to truly know.

2. Stay curious
Introverts tend to prefer intimate, deep conversation rather than superficial small talk, which is one we reason we are typically allergic to networking. But how to come up with things to talk about that will get you past the small talk smoke screen? This is why I used to get stuck in the “I don’t feel like going” rut. I got out of it by staying curious.

Human beings are naturally curious creatures, and so once you learn to listen to your inner curiosity, it will be your ally in carrying the conversation. The person you’re chatting with has a story, has richness, has a life with details you can’t begin to imagine! Find out about it. Staying connected to your natural curiosity will help you stay drawn to attending and putting effort into the event.

3. Get real
When you’re doing all the curiosity-searching and questioning, make it juicy! Take risks! Dance next to the line – without crossing it. Let this stranger know that you are a real person – sometimes with family tiffs, speeding tickets, and morning breath! It will lighten the mood, foster trust, and be something to help them remember you.

If you’re someone who finds networking boring, this tells me that you need to move WAY closer to this proverbial line I’m talking about. As long as you remain respectful and avoid offending the person, this is what makes it fun. One way to do this is to tell the truth – tell them how you really felt about the presentation, or how business is really going (without being a whino – keep it polite and intellectual). Tell them about your trials and tribulations, or funny mishaps. Keep it short, then ask about them. You break the ice with candor, and invite them to follow suit.

4. Follow up
This is where your efforts can really pay off, or not. The fact that we tend to make fewer, closer connections makes it easier and more comfortable to follow up. Make your follow-up email or card personal to avoid making this process feel too mechanical. If you followed the tips above, you should have an interesting tidbit to cite that will remind you both of your connection.

When you follow up, take initiative in getting to know the person more. I recommend doing this even if you’re not sure you want to – remember, everyone has a story and theirs is richer than you can imagine. If they’re local, meet for lunch or coffee. If they’re too far, send articles or tidbits when they remind you of the person. Simply sending with a note saying “this made me think of you” is enough.

Bonus tip: arrive physically ready. As introverts, this type of engagement tends to use up our energy, so make sure you have a surplus when you arrive! Be well rested, well fed, and well hydrated. And if you notice you’re missing one of those things, excuse yourself for a 5-minute timeout and take care of yourself so that you can focus your energy on your new friends rather than your growling stomach.

Ultimately, networking doesn’t have to feel or be fake. Stay reminded of the original reason people decided to get together: to make connections. Let your goal be to foster true human connection, and do that the best way
you know how.

- Elizabeth J. Agnew, M.S., P.E.

See packages and rates:
http://www.vgacoaching.com/coaching_packages.htm

Sign up here for a free coaching consultation:
http://www.vgacoaching.com/coaching_try.htm

1) Introduction
2) Parts of a Website (domain names, hosting, mailing lists)
3) Content Management
4) Free and Open Source solutions
5) Design and user interface
6) Payment processing
7) Networking (online and offline)
8) Generating revenue online: Google Adsense, affiliate programs, members-only content and other ways to make money
9) Reviewing your Data by using Reporting
10) Updating your site with Timely Content

Prior Links:
Parts 1 and 2

Today’s post includes Part 3: Content Management and Part 4: Free and Open Source solutions, and Part 5: Design and user interface.

Part 3: Content Management

When you focus on the part of your business that you know best, you free up your web developer, copywriter, or marketing communications consultant to assist you in communicating that vision. If you’re the person tasked with developing the company’s website, your goal is to pull together all the information relevant to the business into a site map or website document that clearly details the different pages and the page content for each page.

If you don’t have a clear vision of how the business is put together, your web designer or other support staff and vendors may not be able to help you effectively.

Ideally, you are able to set up your website with a content management system (CMS) so you may make your own changes moving forward (instead of having to wait for the web developer to make changes, edits, and updates).

Why update your content regularly?
Your page content gets assigned a “timestamp” that assists the search engine in understanding if that page is “timely” or if it’s outdated. The more recent page content you have, the more “relevant” that page is and the higher your site’s overall ranking.

Check your site’s page ranking here:
http://www.prchecker.info/check_page_rank.php
Page rank goes up to 10, with a higher number being an indicator of a very well-linked site that is highly relevant with useful information.

What kind of content should I post?
Any kind of content that helps your customers make a decision is helpful content. This may include things like Frequently-Asked Questions, checklists, white papers, resource articles, or information about your field or industry. Try and keep a neutral tone when providing this type of content, as hype or advertising copy may actually turn off your customer. Stick with general information and information specific to your processes and procedures.

Ideas for content
Here is a list of helpful content that you might consider posting on your website from my book, “Fifty-one Ways to Build your Community of Clients Online:”

• Daily or weekly news in your target area
• Notes on your business process
• News that affects your clients
• Books, articles, or magazines with a review of why it’s important
• Events that you or your company attended, organized, or led
• Events from associations or membership groups
• Event calendar for your region
• Initiatives within your company
• Charitable drives, auctions, or events
• Blog entries in your content area (do a web search on “Blog on _______” and fill in your topic area)
• How-to articles
• Photo gallery
• Visitor photo gallery
• Latest press releases
• Latest newsletter
• Recent projects or Upcoming projects
• Job opportunities or Volunteer opportunities
• White papers for informational or educational purposes
• Staff or Member highlights
• Story of the month
• Notes from the CEO, Director, or Board Chair
• Seasonal announcements
• Staff profiles
• Latest volunteer projects or newest volunteers
• Company announcements
• Recent awards
• …. and much, much more

One question I always ask myself before posting:
So what?

Here’s your article or news resource or your latest updated page…. so what?
Does it help your customer or build your community of clients?

If so, then it is useful.

If it’s not useful, doesn’t fulfill a need, or is just more marketing messaging, consider dropping it and waiting until you have something helpful and useful to share. Quality content is much better then a barrage of useless, “hyped,” or marketing-speak information.

Separation of design and content
Because of CMS setups, most people are able to make updates to their page content without having to wait for the web designer to make the change.

Here are some screenshots of the back-end of Wordpress: this is very easy software which I use to manage the ASuccessfulWoman.com blog.

Easy to write a new post (”posts” are chronological, “pages” are fixed navigational elements)

Reviewing past posts

Managing categories

When you integrate a blog or other CMS system into your site, you have an easy way to add additional content to your site.

Important Note:
Most open source software requires a download to your hard drive (the download is usually in “zip” or “tar” format) and then an upload and installation onto your hosting package. Use an FTP program like FileZilla (all platforms), WS_FTP (PC), or Fetch (Macs) to upload the package to your hosting package. Check all “Readmes” as needed. Or, ask a knowledgeable person to take over this part of the process for you: most savvy web developers are familiar with CMS installations.

Questions to Answer:
Do you have a sitemap for your website?

What can you do yourself and what will you hire expert advisors or vendors to assist you with?

Who will update the website once it’s installed?

Part 4: Free and Open Source solutions

Popular open source content management systems are Joomla.org, Drupal.org, OsCommerce.com (for e-commerce packages), and Wordpress, a blogging platform. There are also proprietary CMS systems that fulfill the same needs. Many of these packages are written in PHP (Personal Home Page, a type of programming language) and use a mySQL database. You’ll also find variations that are built on these elements.

All of the open source versions of CMS’s are free to download and install. In my experience, most installations will require some customization by a team or individual knowledgeable about those software packages to get the package to do what you want it to do.

All CMS’s operate under the assumption that there is a back-end where you may make page content changes using simple web-based forms. Your hosting provider typically offers PHP and mySQL as part of their offerings: check your host to see their specifics.

Open Source systems that I recommend, based on your needs:
Joomla, good for lots of different types of content
Drupal, good for member-driven sites
OsCommerce, good for e-commerce
Wordpress and Wordpress Themes, a good general-purpose page content manager

How To Set It Up
GoDaddy.com (we resell these products through 10KHosting.com) offers an excellent package where you may simplify the process of installing some of these CMS solutions.

To begin, you find and purchase a domain ($10/year) and Economy Linux Hosting (about $4-5/month). You typically do not need any “extras” but you might want to consider a proxy service or “private domain registration” so that your personal contact information does not appear in the public record of domain registries.

You’ll set up an account with your username and password. Make a note of any passwords, PINS, usernames, or control panel access logins you set up.

A domain typically is “parked” while you’re waiting to install the actual files and it may look something like this while you’re waiting:

Here is a sample of a back end showing the “Hosting Connection” or (”Value Applications” on 10KHosting.com)

Notice the section on the right which offers one-touch installation of things like Joomla, Drupal, or Wordpress.

It is possible to “manage” your domain so it points to a particular drive or it forwards to whatever link you specify. For example, a link like yourname.com may go to a homepage that you set up, or it may be forwarded directly to yourname.com/blog, where the “blog” subdirectory is your blog package (like Wordpress).

E-mails and e-mail forwarding typically comes standard with your hosting, so set up a few key e-mail boxes such as info@yourname.com, webmaster@yourname.com, or contact@yourname.com.

Important Note:
When you register your domain name (www.yourname.com), consider reserving the .net and .org versions.

Consider reserving your domain name for 2+ years so you do not lose ownership by mistakenly not renewing each year.

You may always call a hosting provider’s technical support or new accounts number and ask if they offer Linux, PHP, and mySQL.

Always try to receive hosting with control panel access so you may manage as much as possible yourself.

Questions to Answer:
Do you know what you want your site to do for you? Consult with a web advisor to figure out the best solution for your specific needs.

Do you have someone who can deal with the domain name and hosting setup?

Do you have an existing domain? If so, where is it registered and who is the contact? You may do a domain search via GoDaddy.com.

Part 5: Design and user interface

I encourage you to focus as much as possible on page content, which will help with your search engine rankings and your website’s “reach” through the number of pages you offer. I don’t encourage you to spend too much of your web budget on design. A good web designer, with clear direction and a variety of links that you like, can design a beautiful homepage for approximately $450 per design. A good web developer may encode that design for approximately $100 per page.

If you’re installing a CMS and customizing the design, then your web developer may upload the “base model” software and the designer can create a template design around that base model.

I was amused with a question on Linkedin asking how much a website costs to implement, and with four separate parties, the estimate added an extra digit each time (from $300, to $3000, to $30,000, to $300,000). Regardless of the budget, make sure that you choose a designer that has created other material that matches the look and feel that you desire. Also, make the most of your programming/coding time by organizing the functionality you desire as well as possible in the beginning, so your web developer may follow through with functionality according to your exact specifications.

For example, do you have a form? What is in the form?
Typically it would include:
First name
Last name
Title or Position
Company
Address
City
State
Zip
E-mail
Phone #1
Phone #2
Description
And a few drop-down lists or radio buttons relevant to what information you need
You probably need the date a form was submitted, a date the form was processed, and possibly a “referred by” field. You might desire an “internal notes” section or a photo section.

You would probably want the form to be forwarded to a specific e-mail and the information collected from the form dropped into a database where you may sort the forms by Lastname, Date entered, Date updated, or some other fields.

If you can specify in as much detail as possible what you need your form to do, it will be easier for you to explain this to your web design team.

Sample web form back-end:

Your web visitors will rely on your content to navigate through the process of deciding if they want to choose you or not. Help your web visitors by “funneling” their experience to your most popular pages: typically a homepage, about, products/services, samples or testimonials, and contact page cover the main items needed.

Lay your pages out in an orderly format
Your visitors appreciate if you direct them to the most important pages of your website. Lay out your pages so they “flow” naturally to the user. Put in a “Frequently-Asked Questions” page or a “How to Get Involved” page that provides helpful information on how a web visitor may interact with your website. Plan ahead so you understand what’s important on your site and direct your visitors to the most important pages.

Make your navigation easy to understand
Keep your website navigation simple and consistent from page to page so your users don’t get overwhelmed or lost in sub-pages or sub-sub pages. It is helpful to break up your information into multiple pages and provide links to each page as needed. For example, if you offer a section on “Twenty Steps” and each step is approximately 200 words, consider creating a main landing page and then add twenty links to each separate step.

Keep the site “sticky” with a call to action on every page
Ask your visitor to do something with each page: this may be as simple as a “sign up for our e-newsletter” or as complex as “participate in our survey.”

Some other ideas for keeping your site sticky include: adding “related pages” links, adding a “pricing estimator” or calculator, offering a “how to get started” application, offering a “download a PDF” for your standard form, or offering a “for more information, contact us” e-mail form.

Make it as easy as possible for your web visitor to make the choice to move forward with you, your products, and your services.

Questions to Answer:
What forms or procedures do you currently complete over the phone or in person that you may be able to move online?

Do you have standard worksheets or documents that you may make available as PDF’s for download?

How may you better use your website to manage your clients and potential customers?