MG Towing is a full service tow truck company serving the Orange County area in California.

In addition to have a simple and clean layout, the site owners did an exceptional job taking advantage of the main header area of their website.

The website header area defines the top section of the website that usually contains the site title, logo and other images and/or text. This area is frequently uniform throughout all available site pages.

The header of your website is crucial to the setting the tone for your website as according to most usability studies, top of your website is the area that gets viewed the most by website visitors. A good website header should be used as a branding tool and should tell your visitors what your site is about.  Website headers are a great place to present key information such as:

1. Logo
2. Tagline
3. Important contact information
4. Available marketing channels

Take a look at how MG Towing is utilizing to present their contact information to ensure that customers in need can quickly locate their contact information without a lot of effort.

Additional Website Header Tips:

1. Don’t be afraid to be creative.
2. It’s a good rule of thumb to incorporate your website header design into the overall look and feel of your site design.
3. Don’t leave your website header for granted.
4. Strike the right balance between providing key information and white space. Remember your website header area is not intended to be used for spam.

Take a look at your website header today. Does it provide the needed information?

While being a small business does have its unique set of benefits and charms, there are some things you can do to make your business appear bigger and take on the competition.

1. Up-to-Date Website – First and foremost you want to create a professional-looking website for your small business. It doesn’t need to be overly fancy, but it does need to look like you know what you are doing. Once your website has been created, it is important to keep it up-to-date with recent material to display that you (your business) are still around and thriving. If you have a blog, ensure that you are posting on regular basis and are providing interesting content that your potential clients want to read. If you are posting a portfolio of your work, make sure to post updates as new items become available.
2. Name Sets The Tone – Once your website has been created and you are updating it on regular basis, the next item to tackle is to make sure that you own your own domain name (website address). While having a free site address works perfectly fine for a hobby website or a family album, if you are serious about your small business you need to have a name that is your own. Learn more about purchasing a domain name.
3. Professional Email Addresses – A sure fire giveaway that a small business is very small is the email address that the company uses to communicate with existing and potential clients. Create different email addresses for various departments of your small business. For example, human resources, legal, sales and customer support should have their own email address. Even if there is just one person managing these emails, this will give the impression that there are multiple departments involved with your small business website.
4. Business Memorabilia – Creating a larger image starts with a strong brand.  Make sure to have professionally printed business cards, t-shirts and other memorabilia to convey the strength and longevity of your brand. Visit these previous blog posts for more information on branding.
5. Proper Language = Quality – Proper grammar and spelling go a long way when it comes to creating a big image for your small business. Additionally, it may sound overly simple, but when writing about your small business, use “we” instead of “I.” This gives the impression that your small business is run by a team of people. Even if there are just two of you running the show, the customers don’t need to know that.
6. Social Media Presence – It is important that your small business has a social media presence to ensure that customers can contact you via various marketing channels. Additionally, when utilizing these marketing channels ensure you are posting on regular basis and are providing timely communication responses.
7. Incorporating – Increase your credibility by incorporating your small business website. When customers see “Inc.” or “LLC” after your business name they will likely think that you are a big entity that can be trusted to provide great service. The cost of incorporating your small business varies by state, but on average it will set you back about $200.

You don’t have to feel like a small fish in a large pond with your small business website. Employing some or all of the above will go a long way toward growing your image. Think big!

The good news is that you can utilize this information to your advantage in order to help improve your website’s usability and readability. Regardless of the purpose of your website, placing important content in the spots that get scanned the most can help to boost your conversion rates.

How most visitors scan your website:

1. Majority of website visitors scan instead of reading every word.
2. The Scanning process is very fast, no more than a few seconds.
3. Predominantly, scanning is conducted in an F-Shape; top left corner across to the right and then top to bottom along the left side of your page:

The above illustrations or heatmaps, from useit.com, show in red the areas that are viewed the most, yellow demonstrates areas that are viewed less often, and blue shows areas that are viewed the least.

If you take a closer look at these screenshots you will see a letter F forming that demonstrates the shape of the scanning process:

A blog from Envato created this handy screenshot to explain the pattern in which visitors scan your website:

What you might also notice from the heatmap images above is that the size of the F scanning depends on the type of content presented on your page. Images, links and other elements on your page can impact the length of the scan and its shape.

How to use scanning patterns to your advantage:

1. Make important information stand out – Most readers will not read every single word on your website. It is your job as the website creator to help visitors identify key areas you want them to focus on. This can be accomplished with the right use of typography. Using bullet points, headings and subheadings will help visitors to quickly identify key elements on your website.
2. Put essential information first – Site visitors are more likely to scan the first paragraph (or two) of your website page. Put the most important information into those areas to ensure it gets viewed.
3. Use short paragraphs or lists – Large blocks of content require additional concentration and tend to be skipped over completely. Using shorter paragraphs or lists to communicate with your visitors will further help to convey your intended message and improve usability.
4. Images are imperative – Studies have demonstrated over and over again that images get higher levels of attention. Thus utilizing relevant imagery for the content of your website can also help to improve its readability and contributes to the overall aesthetics of your website design. How to use graphics to enhance your website.

Take a look at your website today and see if there are any tweaks you can make to take advantage of how online visitors scan websites and boost your conversion rates.

This week we will be showcasing R&N Electric, Inc., a family-owned and operated contracting company serving clients in Sparks, Nevada.

In addition to having an easy to navigate website with clean layout that takes advantage of correctly utilized typography, R&N also execute the following two key points well:

1. Solid Testimonials Page – Potential customers want to see if you run a reputable business/organization. Thus, make good use of your glowing reviews and show your potential clients that you are indeed honest, reliable and an expert in your field. When organizing testimonials put your best foot forward and use testimonials that can help to simplify the buying process for potential clients. Make sure that you do not outwardly ask for testimonials, it is better to ask for feedback from your customers which can lead to more genuine responses.
2. Synced Social Media Presence – Online world is expanding rapidly. Today in addition to having an updated website it is important to keep an active social presence. Make sure to link your social media accounts with your small business website. R&N Electric, for example, put a link to their Facebook page in the navigation menu. Don’t forget, you can even embed your website on Facebook! With Pagemodo you can gain fresh website exposure to an audience that have yet to see your website by easily publishing your website to your Facebook page. Find out how to start here.

We hope you these tips can help to enhance your website and lead to better quality leads, and we would like to thank R&N for having such a wonderful website.

Happy Site Building!

We are all familiar with taglines, especially the most notable and iconic ones. 7-Up is “the uncola”. Nike wants you to “just do it” Chevy trucks are “like a rock.” General Electric says “we bring good things to life.” Taco Bell wants us to “think outside the bun.” Just because you own a small business website and not a large corporation, does not mean that you cannot benefit from the use of a tagline.

A tagline can give the name of your small business website an extra meaning and possibly pique the interest of potential customers. Coming up with the ideal tagline takes creativity, brain power and patience. You don’t want to rush out and use the first thing that pops into your head. The use of a tagline that isn’t well thought out could backfire and become a turn off for customers.

Here are a few points to consider when creating a tagline for your own website, be it a small business, nonprofit or an organization.

1. Be clear in your message. A confusing tagline serves little purpose other than leaving people scratching their heads. For example, if your small business website is called the Child Professor and sells educational toys, a poor tagline may read “this game’s for you.” You want your tagline to clearly reflect what your small business is about. With this example, a much better tagline would be “learning through play.”
2. Do not be overly clever. There is a difference between being catchy and being clever. Catchy taglines will stick in the mind of customers, while being clever is a slippery slope, as it may go too far and lead to confusion. Using the above example, an overly clever tagline may sound something like “brain power in a box.” The message is trying to convey that the games sold by this small business will make children smart, but it just doesn’t properly reflect the nature of the business.
3. Do not make over-the-top statements. A tagline should not make promises that cannot be kept. In the educational toy store example, a tagline like “create your own Einstein” borderlines on falsehood. Sure, there may be that one special child who plays with these toys and grows up to be a genius, but the rest of the children are merely learning new skills through play and will go through life with average IQ levels.
4. Do not pigeon hole your small business with a narrow tagline. Businesses are constantly evolving, and it would be unfortunate to be married to a tagline that focuses on a specific element of your small business. Ponder the possibilities of how you might want to expand your small business in the future before devising your tagline. Using our example, if they began the small business just selling board games and created a tagline of “board games for the brain,” it would not be very relevant when expanding the scope of their business to sell the myriad of other educational toys out there.
5. Create many taglines and test them. Try to come up with a number of taglines for your small business and run them past employees, friends and family. The tagline that may be your favorite might not resonate with your focus group. Think about what the customers would want, and go with the one that is most popular.

Creating a tagline is not necessarily a quick process. The perfect tagline is a valuable marketing tool, so take your time and be open to suggestions. Think it through, and you will no doubt come up with a winner for your small business.

The site owners do a great job of using font types and sizes to highlight important content while creating a visual sequence for their visitors. We also love seeing such a strong ‘Call-To-Action’ message on the homepage, great job in engaging your visitors.

Tips on how to improve your website using typography:

Typography is defined as “the art and technique of arranging type in order to make language visible”. In the website design world, this translates into how to properly utilize spacing, font types and sizes in order to create the best visual impact. Correctly selected fonts and spacing will not only improve the look and feel of your website, but will also increase its readability.

1. Font Type – When starting to create your website (or editing an existent one) it is important to consider the style of font you are using. A couple of items to remember when selecting a font: does the font style reflect the tone and intention of your website? Is it easy to read for your intended audience? Does it add or retract away from what you are trying to convey? Learn more about text formatting.
2. Font Size – Size of your font also plays into how your website is perceived. General rule of thumb is to use larger fonts to emphasize key elements such as titles, headings and calls-to-actions. The main body of the website should stay consistently in one size, ensuring the font size is smaller than your key elements but not too small that website visitors are straining to read presented information.
3. Length of Text Lines – Sometimes referred to as measure, helps to define the width of columns of information presented on your website. For example if you are creating a column of text that is too narrow, visually it makes your copy (text) seem longer and could potentially overwhelm any website visitors from attempting to read presented information. If the column is too long, then you potentially face the problem of requiring website visitors to scroll. The key is to find the right balance between the two.  Some experts believe that the sweet spot of measure is about 65 characters.
4. Alignment – Ensuring the text (and other elements) on your website align properly creates a strong foundation for readability and accessibility of your website. You can achieve proper alignment by thinking about utilizing columns, paragraphs, rows and sidebars. The key to alignment is to keep consistency and not to introduce too many variations.
5. Color – Color of your text plays a key role in settings the mood as well as attractiveness of your website. Think about the feelings that are associated with various colors and emotions can impact your message. Usability: Basic Color Scheming.
6. White Space – White space is the space left between various elements on your website (it does not necessarily describe the color of that space). Using blank or white space can add emphasis to your content as well as make your website more visually appealing. Keep in mind that empty space does not need to primarily be white; as long as the color is consistent with your layout. Learn more about the value of a clutter-free website.

Thank you for reading this week’s Example Site Wednesday post, if you feel like your website has what it takes to be next, please leave a comment on this post!

See You Next Wednesday  !

Did we mention that it is 100% free?

To add your website as a new tab on your Facebook Page using Pagemodo you will need to utilize the iFrame tab option. This option almost magically allows you to pull your website information and display it right on Facebook. Best part, once you have connected your website using this option, it will automatically update every time you publish/update your website!

Benefits of adding your website to Facebook Fan Pages:

1. Gain new website exposure by showcasing it to fans  that haven’t seen it before
2. Create a more professional look and feel for your Fan Page
3. Increase website interactions via:
   1. Web store purchases
   2. Appointment Setting
   3. Forms
   4. Much more!

Just think, anything that potential visitors can do on your website, now Facebook fans will be able to do right on your Fan Page.

How to get started:

1. Got to Pagemodo: http://www.pagemodo.com and create an account for free.
2. Click on the “New Tab” option from your dashboard and select “Simple Themes”.
3. Select “Custom iFrame” tab option and go to the “Edit Content” step.
4. Now all you have to do is insert your URL (website address) into the form presented on the page. PLEASE NOTE: When entering your website URL don’t forget to add “http://” portion of the address.
5. Save and Done!

It really is that simple.

Check out the following tips to help you create memorable business card, understand how to properly present your card, and a few basic international etiquette tips to help you avoid a few known faux pas.

Ready to start creating your own business card? Check out business card offers from Vistaprint.

Click on the image to view larger.

Ready to start creating your own business card? Check out business card offers from Vistaprint.

Let’s break-down some of the key elements the site owner executes well:

Clear Mission Statement

A good mission statement consists of a clear and concise description of the objectives for the organization. These objectives help to uniquely sets it apart from other nonprofits and makes a strong plead for the organizations’ needs.

Clear Description of Roles and Responsibilities

1. Who runs the website? A clear “About Us” page is a key element for any website, especially a nonprofit. This page is essential in telling the story of your organization; give potential donors an in-depth look into who you are and why you started your organization. Don’t forget to put any credentials and associations your organization has. Detailed list of key elements that should be included on the “About Us” page.
2. How can someone donate? Make it as easy as possible to provide clear and concise steps necessary to submit donations. Ensure that your contact information is included on the website to give donors a way to ask any questions or address any concerns they may have.
3. How will donations be used? It is important to provide detailed information on how each dollar raised will be utilized and how it will contribute to the cause of your charity.
4. How can potential volunteers or members become involved? To help spread your cause, don’t forget to include information on ways visitors can get involved in addition to making donations to your cause. Remember just because someone might not be able to donate today, doesn’t mean they aren’t passionate about helping.

Up-to-date Information and Educational Materials

Make sure to include informative articles and blog posts to showcase your expertise on the subject matter of your website. Such information will not only help your nonprofit website be viewed as a credible source, but will also help to grow your online presence by contributing to your search engine ranking.

Click here to view additional tips on how to improve your nonprofit website.

Until Next time,

Happy Site Building!

Email – Relationship Building Tool

Use email as a means of forging a relationship with customers by communicating with them and keeping the line open for feedback.

1. Promotions/Specials – Let your customers know when your small business website is having a new sale or promotion by sending out an email announcement. Customers will likely feel valued that you are notifying them and keeping them in the loop of new deals that may interest them.
2. Newsletters – Informing customers of your specials is not the only form of email marking for your small business website. You can also regularly touch base with your customers by sending out newsletters, whether they are weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. These newsletters can contain information about changes to your small business website, industry news, a reiteration of sales and/or anything you want to share with your customers.
3. Surveys – You can also utilize emails to send out surveys seeking direct feedback from customers to discover what they like/dislike and want to see on your small business website.

Email – Key Structural Elements

As for the emails themselves, there are certain elements that should be included in each of them.

1. Subject Line – The subject line of the email should be catchy and clearly stated because you want the customers to be intrigued enough to open the email.
2. Introduction – Once it has been opened, the first line of text should be an attention grabber so they will be drawn in and continue reading.
3. CTA – Each email should have a call to action (CTA), which will get the customers to “do something” – fill out a form, make a phone call, click a link to your small business website, etc.
4. Social – Lastly, each email should include links to your social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Google+) so your customers can become followers, thus expanding your methods of reaching out to your customers.

A major thing to keep in mind when embarking on email marketing is that you do not want it to come off as being spam. Nobody likes spam, and if you are sending out unsolicited messages, your small business has a tendency of being viewed in a negative light. Additionally, if you are sending emails for your business, you should familiarize yourself with the local laws and regulations when it comes to contacting customers via email. Any email campaign should target those who have directly requested information from you and/or expressed interest in future news while making a previous purchase.

In addition to the email blast tool available to Webs users within the Members App, there are a number of affordable email marketing services out there that can effortlessly guide you through the process of creating an email marketing campaign for your small business website. Poke around and see which one best suits your needs. Good luck!