There's only one chance to make a first impression.

I recall years ago trying to persuade a client that my small town newspaper was the best medium for his advertising. I told him 'let us be your shop window', pointing out how he could reach far more people in one issue than he could hope to by himself.

First impressions are of paramount importance and I took great care when creating the client's ad, the first he had ever done in a publication. The ad was designed to attract customers to his store, where the front window display had an important role. It had to look appealing enough so that passers by would want to step inside and learn more about what they saw.

A website is the modern version of the shop window and the need for a good first impression remains as important today as it was even a century ago. If you've decided to have a website created by professionals, then why wouldn't you then engage the services of a professional to put the words on the site too? Poor copy on your home page could make all the difference between success and failure. This is where the copywriter comes in.

Today your website is usually the medium through which people first learn about you. Consequently, the home page has to be interesting and have all the pertinent information about your company. Yet it also needs to be concise and to the point. It has to hold the customer's attention, yet not overwhelm them with too much detail.

Your home page copy must get to the point as quickly as possible. You have very little time to capture someone's attention and sell your idea. Most people scan a web page and don't read large blocks of text, However, headings and highlighted areas are read, albeit quickly. Your home page has to present a simple concept, solve a problem and offer a solution in seconds. These are the areas where a copywriter can help you.

So why not just put your printed brochure on the web? After all, it has all the information anyone could possible want to know about your organization, right? Unfortunately, print copy contains phrases such as "service that is second to none," or "cutting edge technology". When you're looking for something on the web however, you type in exactly the sort of product or service you're looking for, not sales and advertising jargon.

Keywords and key phrases, without cliches, have to be carefully incorporated into web copy. Your web pages will then be ranked high in search engine and directory queries. Potential customers will also appreciate being able to locate what they are looking for quickly and easily, which translates into good customer service.

We are pleased to announce the addition of Jason Wynn to the Globi team.

With over eight years of support experience, along with seven years spent in programming, Jason heads up Globi's technical support division.

In addition to keeping our servers and desktops running smoothly, Jason takes the opportunity to showcase his unique programming skills. Moonlighting as a developer with the rest of the team, Jason's specialized talents make an invaluable contribution to the variety of services Globi is able to offer our clients.

Last month we looked at publishing a quality newsletter that your subscribers will want to receive. Yet how do you build a quality list of subscribers?

1) Offer value Your newsletter has to contain information that people want to read. The newsletter needs to deliver valuable information, not simply attempt to make a sale.

2) Offer an incentive If you offer a freebie such as an e-book or a report for signing up, you will experience much higher sign-up rates. If you also give excellent value in your newsletter, then your subscribers will remain with you much longer.

3) Use pop-ups Everyone hates them, yet statistics reveal that subscription rates are much higher with pop-ups offering the newsletter and incentive.

4) Cross promote Find other newsletters and e-zines with a similar target audience. You can swap ads with them to promote each others' newsletters along with the free incentive offer.

'I don't really need the Internet. I'm just a small business and all my customers are local.'

While this may have had a grain of truth a decade ago, it certainly isn't the case today. People are turning to the Internet to find the information they need, rather than picking up the yellow pages or reading newspapers and magazines. Consumers even visit company websites to simply obtain telephone numbers, rather than using a printed directory these days.

Consider your own on line activity, whether at home or at the office. Whether looking for an industrial product, checking out summer camps for the kids, researching technical data or shopping for a vacation, more and more people around the globe reach for the mouse before they reach for the phone.

Large global sites may appear to dominate a market. However, if a customer types "widgets" in a search engine, for example, the global company has to compete with the whole world to be near the top of the search results. The local company however, with the right approach and a well-designed website, has a considerable advantage. Searchers looking for widgets in their area now type in "Springfield widgets" or "Widgets in Springfield". You can rest assured that it's much easier to emerge close to the top of the search results for "Springfield widgets" than it is for just the generic "widgets".

The Internet is a global phenomenon, but its importance in the local sphere shouldn't be overlooked either. Even in your own backyard, if you're not on the web, you might as well be invisible.

Not all monitors are created equal.

Some web designers use large monitors to develop sites for their clients. This can often result in parts of the finished site not being visible. The viewer is required to scroll to view all the information on the site, which may include highly pertinent information at the foot of the page. As we all know, there is only a tiny window of opportunity to make a first impression on the web. With a click of the mouse the viewer can lose patience with your site and be gone, never to return.

"I didn't realize that the previous structure of my website was such a detriment to the way people were trying to find my services on the web. Globi immediately identified my challenges and now I can't believe the number of enquiries I get through my website! Where I use to be lucky if I got one enquiry a year, I now get about 4 or 5 in a month."

- Joanne Ruston, Speedpro Signs

Have a question or comment? Email us: feedback@globi.ca
We're always happy to hear from you!

Globi Web Solutions wishes to extend to our Readers …

3 hours of Website Content Review and Copy Writing at the very low intro offer of $99!

Or… extend this great offer to a friend and get an hour Website Consultation for yourself FREE!

Hey - share the Wealth!

People you care about could be benefiting from the wealth of information on new and solutions on the Web. So help them by forwarding this issue of Globi Web Solutions Newsletter!

Privacy

As our subscribers, we respect your privacy and will never make our mailing list publicly accessible.

Until next month, we remain your humble messenger to the internet.

Globi Web Solutions
1023 - 12th Ave SW
Calgary, Alberta, T2R 0J5
Phone: (403) 229-3800
E-mail: admin@globi.ca
Web Site: http://www.globi.ca

Copyright © 2010 Globi Web Solutions. All Rights Reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in whole or in part without the inclusion of Globi Web Solutions' Reprint Permission below.

Reprint Permission

Although this material is subject to copyright, please feel free to reprint this publication, in whole or in part, in your company publication, in training, presentations, or wherever you feel this would be of benefit. This also holds true for members of the media. All we ask (actually, we insist) is that you use the following credit line:

Reprinted with permission from Globi Web Solutions, a leading Website Design and Development Company based in Calgary. For further resources and information, go to globi.ca. Copyright © 2010 Globi Web Solutions.