My Hosting Tips

Archive for February 11th, 2010

A Few Web Design Tips

Don’t bother with splash pages.
A splash page is normally a pointless page people put on their websites as an introduction. The page normally contains some sort of image on with a big click here to enter sign or sometimes people don’t say anything and just hope you will click on the picture to enter their site. Splash pages are fairly pointless and it is just creating more work for your visitor as they have to click the mouse button an extra time just to see the content of your site. By removing the splash page the visitor can get to see the best parts of your site straight away without having to wait for a pointless page to load.

Keep your navigation simple.
To put it simply if your navigation is too complicated and people don’t understand how to get around your site this is a huge web design fault. If a visitor doesn’t know how to navigate around your site they will get frustrated and end up leaving. Keep your navigation simple and try to avoid using scripts or complicated flash based menus not all browsers support scripts so some of your visitors might be missing out on important.

Keep your paragraphs reasonable readable lengths.
Although having lots of relative and informative content on your website is good it is a bad idea to have the blocks of text to big. Not everyone likes reading and to much can deter a visitor. If you keep your paragraphs in reasonable lengths it is much easier for a visitor to read and absorb.

Use CSS for style.
Make sure your text is readable by using a standard font which is compatible with other systems. While some fonts may look good on your computer other people might not have that font installed. It is good web design practice to use CSS when building you site. CSS or Cascading Style Sheets are a perfect way to set and adjust your websites font and size settings. The great thing about using CSS is that you can change the look of your whole site simply by editing the one file.

Test how your site looks in other web browsers
When you are building your site and still in the web design stage it is important to check how it looks on other browsers just because it looks fine in internet explorer doesn’t mean it looks good on Firefox or Opera. A lot of people use alternative browsers and if the website looks like a complete mess then you will loose that visitor for good. You can check your websites web design to ensure it complies with the web standards at the w3.org website. Validating the page will help to ensure it is cross browser compatible.

About the writer:  Located in the North west of England check out barrow info directory. web designers furness.

How To Podcast – Show Format

After recording over 200 podcasts for the Recognized Expert Marketing Show I’ve learned a thing or two about creating a successful show. And by successful I mean a show that has a loyal following of dedicated listeners.

After years of trail and error here’s what we learned about producing a show that people want to subscribe to.

Make Your Podcast Thematic
If you want to host a successful podcast or Internet radio show your show must be thematic. In our case the Recognized Expert Marketing Show focuses on marketing. Our listeners know that they can count on hearing a program that’s going to teach them how to market themselves better.

We are not trying to target people who are interested in fiction or cooking or travel. The show is about marketing and the people who listen to the show are there to learn about marketing. Don’t try to be all things to all people. It doesn’t work.

Invite A Quality Guest
There are pros and cons to having a guest on your show. For example a well known guest will attract listeners. They will add credibility to your show and give you someone to banter with.

The best reason for having a quality guest on your show is the information and experiences they provide that you can’t offer. A popular and quality guest can be a godsend for any podcast.

The downside to having a guest on your show is the unknown. Unless you’ve heard them on another show you really don’t know what to expect when the microphone goes live.

In order to ease my concerns I contact every guest on the telephone before I schedule them on my podcast. You can get a pretty good idea as to how a guest is going to act from a simple telephone call but not always.

So should you have guests on your podcast? The answer is “It depends.” You’re the most qualified person to make that decision.

With the basics out of the way let’s look at what the format of a thematic show with guest looks like.

Provide A Musical Introduction
Music is a great way to get your audience in the mood for your show. It’s also a way to create continuity for your show. The trick with music is to keep it short and make sure it represents the mood you want to create for your podcast.

Introduce Yourself and the Show
Don’t leave new listeners wondering. Tell them straight away who you are and what the show is about.

Drive Listeners To Your Website
I didn’t do this for the first 100 shows and it proved to be an expensive mistake. When we started the Recognized Expert Marketing Show it was only available on our website. Today it is syndicated on over 80 websites including iTunes.

The good news is 90 of our listeners don’t listen to the Recognized Expert Marketing Show on our website. The bad news is 90 of our listeners don’t listen to the Recognized Expert Marketing Show on our website. Here’s why that’s bad news.

Since our listeners are not listening to my podcast on our website we can’t encourage them to signup on our list click on our ads or purchase our products. That’s a problem you want to avoid from the start.

Give your listeners a reason to come to your website and offer them a bonus for going. We offer ebooks reports articles and other great marketing tips that are only available on our website. This is the single most important thing you must do on your podcast.

Introduce Your Topic
Project your excitement about the show and tell your listeners what they can expect from your show. Make a big promise and keep it.

Introduce Your Guest
Once your listeners have been persuaded to listen to your show introduce your guest. You want to make a big deal over your guest for the benefit of your audience and your guest. You really can’t go too far.

Get to the Content Quickly
The fastest way to build a loyal following is to provide great content right out of the gate. Follow through on the promise you made at the beginning of the show and have them reaching for a pencil and paper.

Take A Break
I schedule a break halfway through my show. This gives me an opportunity to reintroduce my guest and remind my listeners to go to my website.

Recap The Show
Give your listeners a synopsis of what they learned and remind them why they listen to your show. Encourage them to tell their friends about your show and visit your website for more information. Do these things and you will quickly have your own successful podcast.

About the writer:  Bob Sommers is an Internet marketing expert and host of the Recognized Expert Marketing show on Maui. Learn how to podcast from the host of this very successful show.