Annette Riley Web Design

Net Talk

April 2005

 

This month's features:

·  You Only Have Ten Seconds To Grab Your Online Audience

·  A Typical Day on the Internet

·  Spam Lite

·  Link of the Month



A Typical Day on the Internet

basket weaveThe Internet has woven itself into American life.

In the last 10 years, the Internet has reached into just about every realm of modern life. It has changed the way we work, communicate, get our news, shop, learn, etc. The Web has become the "new normal."

On a typical day, approximately 70 million people log on to use e-mail, check the news and weather, look up information, participate in auctions, book travel reservations, research their genealogy - to name just a few activities. That is a 37 percent increase from the 51 million Americans who were online on an average day in 2000.

The composition of the online population has also changed. At first, the Internet's user population was dominated by young, white males with high incomes and a high level of education. Later, in 1999 and 2000, the population went mainstream; more women came online and now make up the majority of Internet users. More minority families also use the Internet, as well as, more people with modest levels of income and education.

Those who don't go online now constitute an ever- shrinking minority.

These are just some of the many reasons for you to establish your presence on the Internet. I would be happy to show you how a Web site could benefit your business!



Spam Lite

spamE-mail users around the world hate spam!

In a recent study:

  • Nearly 50% of people questioned said they found the chore of sifting through junk e-mails more stressful than sitting in a traffic jam.
  • People in the US, Argentina and Britain said spam is more stressful than going to the dentist.
  • Australians really hate spam and replied that receiving spam was more stressful than sitting in a traffic jam, visiting the dentist and Christmas shopping.

French, Germans, Italians, Spanish and Brazilians, however, said that dealing with spam wasn't quite as stressful as going out on a first date.

Unfortunately, the survey also found that one-third of US e-mail users respond to spam messages and 20% admitted to buying products from spam e-mail! This, of course, only perpetuates the problem.



Link of the Month

A sense of humor is an overlooked weapon in the war on spam.

Here is one person who makes spam a subject of weird performance art. In this Quick Time movie, he reads the infamous Nigerian Scam Letter out loud. I've received this letter, haven't you?! It is good for a laugh when spam gets you down.

Sorry, this link may not work well if you use a dial-up Internet service.

Go here and click on the link that says VIEW THE FILM.

You Only Have Ten Seconds To Grab Your Online Audience

hand prints

It takes only ten seconds or less for most first- time visitors to your Web site to decide if it's worth their attention.

What do they want to know in those few seconds? What is the site about? Does it have any value? Will it solve my problem? What do I have to do to find the information I need or make a purchase?

People who use the Internet are usually impatient. Do you really want them to sit through a flash intro without a "skip intro" link, read instructions on how to best view the site or distract them with dancing bunnies? I don't think so. The back button on the computer is like the channel button on the television remote control. Something else is only a quick click away.

As a Web designer, it is my job to make sure those 10 seconds deliver something of value to the viewer.

The first page is the most important in any web site. It is necessary to have a page that doesn't waste time. It needs to load quickly, get directly to the point and be clear about what the viewer needs to do next.

Remember, people go to your web site because of what they can get from it. Ten seconds is all you have to convince them that you have what they need. Make your ten seconds count!

 

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