A good navigation menu helps your visitors navigate through your website efficiently - in as few mouse-clicks as possible.

You can think of a website navigation menu like "Table of Contents" of a book.

And greater number of web pages on your website, more important role of a website navigation menu.

Another important benefit of a navigation menu is it optimizes internal linking structure of your website and allows navigation menu links to rank better in search engines, since all web pages will be pointing to it.

(For example, if your website has 1000 web pages, each navigation menu link will have 1000 web pages pointing to it. This will result in navigation menu links ranking higher than other web pages)

Here's how you can use this knowledge to improve search-engine rankings of selected web pages - Simply include selected web pages as links in navigation menu and you'll automatically have rest of web pages pointing to them.

And finally, here's one method you can use to easily create a website navigation menu - Using Server Side Includes (SSI).

What are Server Side Includes? ------------------------------ Server Side Includes (SSI) are simply instructions (also known as "directives") that are included in a HTML document to execute a specific command e.g. inserting content of an HTML file.

The SSI directives are "processed" at Server side, before it reaches requesting browser (hence name Server Side Includes).

As a result, "processed" SSI directives merge seamlessly with HTML file.

Here's an example of SSI in action at a website (i.e. left navigation menu): http://www.BizSuccessOnline.com.

Notice left navigation menu is made up of static HTML links.

This is to allow search-engine spiders to crawl through website to discover other web pages (via navigation menu links).

An alternative solution to get your web pages spidered by search-engines is to use a sitemap.

Many small business owners have web sites but few are making as much money from their sites as they'd like to be. If you aren't getting web traffic you'd like, or if you're getting lots of traffic but no buyers, problem is most likely design and copy you are using on your site. The seven web page building guidelines below will help you convert prospects to clients with your web site.

1. List The Actions You Want Visitors To Take. Do you want them to sign up for your newsletter, read your marketing message, read your copy or just contact you? Before you design or edit your page, make a list of which actions you want people to take and in what order when they visit your site.

2. Identify The Decisions Visitors Need To Make Prior To each Action. Before you design or redesign your homepage or edit your copy, clarify decision making sequence that you want visitors to move through. Most marketing materials, web sites included, rush to sell prospects on solution without laying groundwork.

Help prospects clarify problems they want solved and value in having them solved. Once you've done this, you've created context for selling your solution.