"How to give your small business web site a corporate look"

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The Web is an amazing thing! You can be a 15-year old girland make everyone believe you are a big-time ...
whojust can't wait to get home from work after a busy day ... and lunches, and r The Web is an amazing thing! You can be a 15-year old girland make everyone believe you are a big-time executive whojust can't wait to get home from work after a busy day ofmeetings and lunches, and relax by your big-screen TV with anexpensive Siberian cat in you lap.I am not exactly sure why you would want to do that, but it'scertainly possible :-) In the example below, however, youmight find that sometimes boosting your online image isimportant to you AND your wallet.Have you ever said to yourself, "I am just a person, not acompany - why would anyone trust me enough to buy from me?"You ARE a company! If you provide a service or sell a productthat others are willing to pay for, then you are a one-personcompany.Just because you work out of your home office, doesn't meanyou are less professional.
Still many people today will nottake you seriously if they see you talk from the "firstface" ("I" instead of "we", "mine" instead of "ours").There is a remedy for this problem. You can reate a professional,more corporate look on your web site using the skillful techniques I will share with you here.1.
Create a high quality logo on your web site. If you don'tconsider yourself a good graphic designer, hire a professional.The owner of gotlogos.com can give you an excellent quality foronly $25.00.
There is no good reason not to have it done.2. Professional web site look.
If you can't come up with gooddesign ideas for your web site, consider using high qualityweb templates. This will immediately boost your credibilityby at least 50%, so do this as soon as you can.
Just go tohttp://www.freewebtemplates.com for a huge collection oftemplates and pick one out.3. If you don't have your own domain name, get one ASAP! It isnot even a question - you absolutely need one to be considered"in the game", so to say.
I don't think I have ever shoppedon a site that has an address like www.geocities.com/1234/~megor similar.4. Once you have your own domain, you can use a "real" businesse-mail address.
For example, my domain name is HelpingFoot.com.This means that instead of [email protected] I can [email protected]. Ask your hosting company how you canset your e-mail address up to match your domain name.5.
Have you ever heard of a catch-all e-mail account? I have oneand I absolutely love it! You can send me an e-mail to [email protected]: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] and whateverelse you can think of... and I will receive it in my mailbox.You can use this feature to create different "departments" inyour business: service, sales, support, owner, etc.
and whenyou get an e-mail you will know exactly who the sender was tryingto reach. This will also create an impression of a biggercompany.6.
Add a toll free phone number and a physical mailing address,if possible. An 1-800 number always makes an impression on meas I can pick up the phone and ask a question of a real person.7.
Consider using a multiple-column site design instead of one or two columns. Take a look at big corporate web siteslike MSN.com, CNN.com, cars.com - they are all constructedwith at least 3-4 columns.
I like to call it a "magazine"layout, because the columns are also illustrated with smallclipart or photographs and creates a really fancy commercialappearance.8. Make your web site consistent.
Choose a design and use iton every page, along with your logo. Don't make every pageon your site look different like so many personal web sitesdo.
It's distracting and confusing, and your visitors mightnot even realize they are still on your site.9. Create a "Partners" section on your web site.
List youraffiliates, ad exchange partners, joint venture partners,or those people who published your articles. The word"partners" itself sounds so big and important that itwill immediately boost your credibility in the eyes of your visitors.
Just make sure to list the names professionally:instead of Joe Smith say "Founder of the very first sitefor seniors awareness, Joe Smith".10. Make sure your web site is filled withuseful content.
Put up a "Frequently Asked Questions" page,gather relevant articles with free reprint rights, as well as your own writings. Post your newsletter archives,tips, business history and owner's information.
Most bigcorporate web sites have a wealth of helpful information.11. Add a "Translate To Another Language" link to yourweb site.
Simply go to AltaVista.com, click on "Translate",choose the language, and type in your web site address. You will see your web site in a different language placedin a frame.
Right-click on your web page and choose"Properties". Highlight the URL and link to it from yourmain web site.
For example, if you click onhttp://world.altavista.com/urltrurl?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.helpingfoot.com&lp=en_de&tt=url&urltext=&doit=doneyou will see my HelpingFoot.com translatedinto German. Too bad they didn't have a Russian translation - I am just dying to find out how to say "Helping Foot" in my native language :-) Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com .