What They See Is What They Want (And Most Likely What They'll GET!)

Written by Tatiana Velitchkov


Continued from page 1

Carefully choose which colors you'll use, and you'll somehow dictaterepparttar emotions people will have about your product / site.

2. NAVIGATE WITH NATURAL MAPS ----------------------------- One reason whyrepparttar 121312 Windows operating system became popular was that it used icons of common objects to help users remember what each program was meant to do -- a garbage bin for deleted items, a folder for important files, a printer for printing output.

For many people, these "natural maps" made it easier for them to use and understand computers -- pavingrepparttar 121313 way forrepparttar 121314 highly computerized society we live in now.

Take a look at your website, your navigation bars, or even your downloadable products. How else can you improve them with easy-to-use "natural maps," and make them more visually attractive to your clients?

3. LOOK AT THE WHOLE PICTURE ---------------------------- In creating visual impact, you have to decide on two things:

- What do you wantrepparttar 121315 viewer to focus on? - And what elements should be removed so nothing distracts fromrepparttar 121316 point of focus?

Although it might seem cost-efficient to giverepparttar 121317 viewer as many attention-getting graphics & text as possible, it actually defeatsrepparttar 121318 purpose of sending him one clear message he'll act on.

So first decide onrepparttar 121319 message, make it memorable, then put it under a spotlight.

And if you feel you have something else to say, just save it forrepparttar 121320 next page, where you can showcase it under a spotlight of its own.

4. COMMAND ATTENTION -------------------- Have you ever wondered what usually captures most people's attention?

It's OTHER PEOPLE -- which is why photographs of people doing different things have remained a staple among print & virtual ads.

Use this to your advantage by adding people pictures to your site & your products; load them withrepparttar 121321 proper emotion, and your buyers will get emotional about you (and your company) as well.

5. BE CONSISTENT ---------------- A woman who always dresses in sexy but subtle clothes consistently givesrepparttar 121322 impression that she's hard-to-get but worth it. Onrepparttar 121323 other hand, a woman who keeps wearing loud skin tight outfits givesrepparttar 121324 impression that she's easy.

Inrepparttar 121325 same way, it isn't enough for you (and your site, and your products) to be frequently noticed by potential clients inrepparttar 121326 most strategic places onrepparttar 121327 web.

Equally important isrepparttar 121328 impression clients will ultimately have about you -- and whether or not it'srepparttar 121329 same impression you really want to make.

So before going high-profile, determine which profile you really want your clients to SEE.

Because marketing & purchasing -- like all other aspects ofrepparttar 121330 human condition -- is all about emotion, and appeal, and desirability.

And how attractive you can make yourself out to be.



Tatiana is the publisher of: www.TheFortunesEzine.com, the FortunesEzineWeekly at www.TakeYourFortune.com, and owner of the traffic-solution slam advertising sites www.Guaranteed-Hits.com and www.Guaranteed-Hits.net


Being Heard in the Age of E-mail

Written by William Arruda


Continued from page 1

As with any communication, what you say upfront can dramatically impactrepparttar effectiveness of your e-mail. Spending a few minutes to summarize a situation before launching into a recommendation or asking recipients to share their opinions helps you build your credibility and makerepparttar 121311 most ofrepparttar 121312 medium as a way to communicate and build consensus. It may seem obvious, but by simply creating a section in your e-mail that says 'Background' can help save your readers effort thereby aiding your cause in getting everybody "onrepparttar 121313 same page."

6. Get torepparttar 121314 point.

Get torepparttar 121315 point inrepparttar 121316 first few sentences. Have you ever noticed how effective newspapers are at conveying key information in a small amount of space? You can achieverepparttar 121317 same results by putting key information up front in catchy wording. Tell themrepparttar 121318 "who," "what," "when," "why," and "how." The result: you quickly inform your readers about key information and give themrepparttar 121319 queues to easily determine if it's worth their while to read on. They'll appreciate it.

7. Be brief.

If you've got a lot of information to share; consider writing an executive summary and attach a longer document torepparttar 121320 mail or post it somewhere and include a link. Don't expect people to read through a 10 page e-mail to findrepparttar 121321 pertinent content. The time that people can devote to e-mail is precious, so tell them what they really need to know up front and provide access to further detail should they have need or interest.

8. Be clear.

We need to be extra clear in composing e-mails. Communication is made up of a lot more than just words. When we communicate in person, we use words, facial gestures, body language, and tone together to deliver a complete communication. Withrepparttar 121322 invention ofrepparttar 121323 telephone, we lostrepparttar 121324 physical component of communication and with e-mail we have added another layer of abstraction - and we are left with justrepparttar 121325 words. Don't get me wrong, words are very powerful things! In fact, your choice ofrepparttar 121326 words themselves and how you arrange them in prose becomes allrepparttar 121327 more important when they're not accompanied by those other elements that we experience in face-to-face communication. This makes it critical that we choose our words carefully to ensure that there is only one meaning that can be discerned from each sentence. If you're authoring an e-mail that is particularly important you may want to consider writing it in word processing software such as Microsoft Word. The added benefit of built in dictionary, thesaurus and grammar checker can give yourepparttar 121328 piece of mind that your form is top notch so you can focus onrepparttar 121329 e-mail's content.

And when composing a multiple paragraph e-mail consider including headlines above each paragraph to provide greater clarity and guiderepparttar 121330 reader through your thought process. For example,repparttar 121331 headlines for a mail dealing with a departmental challenge might be: 'Background, The Issue, Potential Solutions, My Recommendation, What I Need From You."

9. Use power tools.

Another way to ensure that your communication is clear and accurate isrepparttar 121332 appropriate use of text styles and fonts. But be careful not to create an e-mail that combines too many font types and colors; there's a fine line between using formatting options to aid your reader in negotiating content and creating a document that's more suitable forrepparttar 121333 wall of your daughter's kindergarten classroom. And remember that if you're sending your mail outsiderepparttar 121334 company,repparttar 121335 recipient may not be able to see your creative use of text options. Simple uppercase and punctuation may be your best tools in this case.

10. Make your expectation clear.

Tellrepparttar 121336 recipient(s) what you want them to do next and when it needs to be done. And give themrepparttar 121337 info they need to do to do it. Phone numbers, fax, e-mail addresses, snail mail addresses should all be part of your e-mail template. And make your e-mail template reflect your personal Brand. In addition to your writing style, you can use a consistent on-brand template to further communicate your personal brand attributes.



For nearly 20 years, William Arruda has been working with some of the world's most valuable Brands, including KPMG, Lotus, IBM, and Primark Corporation. Combining his brand experience with his passion for people, William founded Reach (www.reachcc.com), the world's first brand management company for organizations and individuals. You can reach him at williamarruda@reachcc.com.


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