My First Internet Business

In my earlier blog post, I mentioned that I have set up my first internet business online.  If you want to have a look at the website that I have created,   go there now -  it's called Cash Critical - Inbox Millionaire Blueprint.  

Setting up a website has always been the challenge faced by many new internet newbies.  Now that my internet business is open to the public,  I have to learn and master how to send traffic to my site.  I won't get any sales if nobody sees my cash critical website. 

Do you want someone to help you set up your first internet business for you, and so be on the same level playing field as all other internet gurus? 

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Images

Today I learnt to include images in my post. This image on the left is downloaded free from iStockphoto.

You need to register as a member of iStockphoto before you can download images from its site. The images are purchased using 'credits', but there is a free image available for download daily.

One note of advise regarding images : make sure the images you use in your websites do not violate copyright rules. Read the fine prints and restriction of use of the images which you download.

From now on, I will pepper my posts with images to make my post more colourful.

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Hurray! Designed my first web page

Success, at last

It's not so difficult afterall to learn the HTML codes to write the web pages. It's just time consuming. Though it was a guided assignment, I felt very proud of myself when I saw my HTML codes being translated to web pages, with heading, images, linking to other web pages, and the works.


At least now when I modify the template for this blog, I do it with some understanding of what the codes mean.

I just saw this reference for HTML tutorial . Worth taking a look.

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Website design - Basic tools

Online course on website design

I have signed up for a FRE.E online course on building your first web page. The instructor gave assurance that designing web pages (i.e writing in HTML) is really, really, really easy to learn. So here goes!

First things first, you need the following basic tools to design a web page :
1. Text Editor
2. Browser

Text Editors
A Text editor is a tool that allows you to edit text.

Some text editors come preloaded with Windows and Macintosh systems : Notepad (for Windows) and SimpleText (for Macintosh) systems. So no reason not to get started!

You can also download for fre.e other powerful text editors such as
EditPadLite (for windows) and BBEdit Lite (for Macintosh)

Or alternatively, go to TUCOWS to find a list of text editors that suit your needs.


Browsers

You need to install on your PC/Macintosh a variety of common web browsers which are used to logon to the internet. As a serious online publisher you would want to preview the webpages that you designed before you post it to the world to see. This is because different browsers might interpret your HTML differently, and might show the pages differently.

The common browsers (next-to-most-recent version) that needs to be installed are :
1. Internet explorer
2. Netscape
3. Firefox
4. Opera
5. Amaya

Once you have the basic tools, you are ready to start the first web page.

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Website Design - 6 common mistakes

Six Common Mistakes In Website Design That Kill Your Online Business


What are some of the things to avoid in your website?


1. A slow loading website.

There is nothing more irritating than a website that takes forever to load. Granted that most internet users these days have high speed connections, a great percentage are still hooked up to the World Wide Web via slower 56K access. This percentage should not be taken for granted. In building a website, try to stay away from the humongous graphic files. You don't need high number of pixels, fancy movies or flash animation, catchy music. You need a website that will deliver the information it promises at an instantaneous rate, and for this reason, you have to choose functionality over design.

2. A navigation system that is very difficult to understand.

Make it easy for visitors to explore your website. If your menu bar is too complicated, you’ll just end up driving away a lot of your visitors. You don’t want your visitors to get stuck in just one page. Your pages must be interlinked in a logical way, and this connection should be easily navigable through an intuitive interface that even a 7 year old will be able to understand. Again, this is a matter of functionality over design. Place your navigation links either at the top of the page right below the header, or at either side of the page in a separate column. This is where your visitors’ eyes will wander once they want to discover the other pages in your website.

3. Low quality content.

Content is king on the internet. People log online to find information they need, and information is conveyed through your content. If your content is poorly written, who will have the patience to read the same? If your content is not unique, why will people choose your website over others? There are two requisites for good quality content: excellent presentation and originality. Minus either of this, your entire website will be in jeopardy.

4. Poor choice of keywords to focus on.

Keywords drive traffic to your website. Keywords are the terms that people search for when they’re looking for information. If you targeted the right keywords, quality visitors will come aplenty. If you targeted the wrong keywords, visitors will be scarce. So make sure you discover the right keywords even before you start building your website.

5. Cookie cutter websites.

If your website lacks originality - shares the same layout and boasting of the same content as others, your visitors will question its credibility. Make your website unique. Search engines penalize duplicate content, and your website will have a lower position in the search engine results.

6. A website that lacks focus.

Focus is key in designing a website. Topics in the website should be related. Why would visitors who are interested with dogs be interested with astronomy? There’s no connection between the two subjects.


New keyword : WII FM : What's In It - For Me. Every visitor switches on to this radio station when they land on your page, so give them a reason to stay longer.

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