One of the problems is that people tend want to skip right to search engine optimization forgetting that users matter. Many people want to rush into the marketing without realizing that the website itself is part of the marketing process. This is a shame.

The selling process--from initial interest to the very last checkout page--must be able to grab shopper's attention and proceed to drive them through to the finalization of the sale. But even after the sell, you must deal with customer service issues in order to keep the sale finalized. Good customer service will bring your purchasers back for another and another and another. Here are fourteen general usability guidelines that will enhance your shoppers overall experience on your site.

In fact, while I'm sure there are just as many things that can derail a visitor on a website, there is no need to implement more than a few.  We have found that any one of the four things listed below will do the trick!

Creating a website that conveys trust can be tricky. There are rarely any answers that are always "right" for every visitor. There are, however, several factors that have universal appeal to the weary shopper.

(cue tongue in cheek here…) Here we are, nearly twelve months later and I can hardly believe that yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have become a "name". Ok, so maybe I'm not Jennifer Laycock. Or Rand Fishkin. Or Jill Whalen. Or Aaron Wall. Or Andy Beal. Or Brian Clark. Or... OK, you get the point. I have not become that much of a household name, but still I bet many of you hadn't heard of me 12 months ago!

So here, for your reading pleasure, is a historical record of one of the greatest, all time, 12-month-long link baiting campaigns:

None of these things lead directly to conversions but they do lead to higher company awareness and the good old fashioned fuzzy-feelings we get when we know that that we are valued as a customer. Most times we are probably not even be aware of these things on a conscious level. But the effect shows as we have a tendency to patron these companies more frequently than the other alternatives.

In fact, while I'm sure there are just as many things that can derail a visitor on a website, there is no need to implement more than a few.We have found that any one of the four things listed below will do the trick!

Small sites typically don't need a site map so long as all pages are linked in the main navigation. Once you get into main and sub-navigation menu's then site maps are helpful in allowing search engines and visitors to quickly find anything they are looking for within just a couple of clicks. A single site map can be used for both purposes or multiple site maps can be created. Here we'll address creating site maps for spiders and humans separately.

To do that you have to first know who your audience is, know what they seek and then also know their purpose for being on your site. Knowing all this then lets you work toward meeting the needs of your target audience. But it also means taking things a step further and building a relationship with them. The ability to build a relationship with your visitors can be crucial to driving them through the persuasion process. Relationship building starts the moment the visitor hits the website.