Most entrepreneurs are constantly upgradingand changing web site content and design.But how accurate and professional is the content as a whole? A great way to find out is to apply for a site award..No Kidding! You'll be amazed at the informationyou may not have. This includes a broad range of items consistent with site design.I started my home business eight months ago andfinally tried for an award about two months ago.I was rejected of course and the reason was lackof contact information and a lottery link, plus anaffiliate program not consistent with their idea ofa professional, quality web site.I did not reapply for this particular award again.I continued to upgrade and change my site contentand design until a couple days ago when I noticed an award of excellence on a web site and decidedto try again. This time,I was rejected again, but fora new reason,in addition to no contact information or hours of operation,I had NO PRIVACY POLICY!This time I took things a little more seriously.I wentto their qualifications site and read them.I do not know how I went this long without a policy.The contact information was in my newsletter for eight months and yet I failed to put it on my web sitebecause I was skeptical about viewers seeing mypersonal information!I immediately went to my site and added the requiredinformation and then reapplied...My site now carries a banner for the Award of Excellence for aPennsylvania business!Now if indeed I have held your interest to this point,hold on for some very important information that will give you the prestige and your visitors will feel confident at your site.Take this list the next time you update or do any changes to your site.1] Be sure your contact information is on your mainweb page.[Company name, your name, address,telephone and /or fax, and e-mail address.2] Add your hours of operation.If you are a home-basedbusiness, set the hours to the time you are available.I set mine from 9am-3pm.EST. [Include the time difference.]3] Compose a Privacy Policy.I will share mine as a sample to view.http://www.homebizandmore.homestead.com/privacy.htmlInclude your sincere promise to protect your potentialcustomers from SPAM. Keep their information confidential!4] Always proofread and edit your content for commonerrors: spelling, punctuation, capitalization, sentencestructure, etc. 5] Check to be sure all links work.Links sometimes needupgrading or a mistake may be made when they are entered.6] Background and font design are as important as thecontent itself. Be sure the background is compatiblewith the font color. Never use fluorescent or brilliant fontcolor, or background.These shades of color often blind the eyes and makereading difficult.7] Although banners are becoming the "IN" thing on theInternet, they have their down side.Load time of a pageis considerably slower if the page has many banners.Visitors will leave the site if load time is slow..thus losingpotential customers.Sites are often rejected for having a"Banner Farm." Instead, try writing an interesting paragraphor two about the link and then link to the site.More often,than not,a short description will prompt the visitor to click. Overload of graphics, and clip art are also related.8] A vital part of any web site are the meta tags, title description and key words. the search engines will neverfind your site, unless you put in these key words. Take a look at each page and identify these words. You will needmany of them, take your time to assemble the list of up to 150 words, or related words that are used most often.9] Be careful of the content on the site, such a lottery games, adult content only, if you wish to apply for an award.It might come to getting rid of this type of content.10] Free hosting can often be a downfall as well. You shouldhave your own domain available at minimal cost if you arewell established. I am still using free hosting, but willupgrade in the near future.This list of ten qualities is by no means all that some ask forwhen you apply for an award. Some of the tips are not required, but are necessary for a quality web site.
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