- Prime Real Estate
No, I am not going to talk about choice houses in Beverly Hills, or anywhere else, but instead want to discuss, the most important real estate on your site. Also, it is worth mentioning,, that basically you have to get a special mind set here, that simply because your site is an online enterprise, IT IS STILL A BUSINESS.
Now while ‘location‘ itself online, is not important, you still have to take into account that your site, is simply an electronic version of a store, and that it has some special locations, that can make or break, your online venture.
One is the main ‘index‘ page.
Until you get some good rankings, and some heavy duty crawling by the search engines, the most important page you have is the INDEX page. This is the very FIRST PAGE that your customer’s come to. You can think of it, as the front door in a regular store, restaurant, or whatever.
First Impressions Matter.
If you clutter up your index page with a warning, that it is an adult site, and have a ton of outgoing links to other sites, well, it doesn’t leave a good impression. In fact, it won’t make you stand out, or become memorable, which is really what you want to do.
The reason is simple. If people REMEMBER your site, it means they’ll come back, that they will tell others about it. That translates into traffic, which you need if you want to make any sales. Less traffic, less sales, LESS MONEY IN YOUR POCKET.
SHOULD YOU HAVE A WARNING? ABSOLUTELY YES.
However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the entire page has to be consumed by verbiage, that talks about the law, about being of legal age to view the material, and all that other legal mumble jumbo. It simply means you need to advise, clearly, that your site is intended for discerning adults.
Ideally, you would use a graphic display, so that the SE don’t use the text, to list you. I mean who wants to be listed in the SERPS as ‘warning‘? Using a good graphic, that conveys the important part, that this is an X Rated Adult Site, should be sufficient to satisfy your obligations, legally (subject to proper legal advice, from an attorney).
Using EXPLICIT photographs on the index page, is well, counter productive. You should use teaser photos, to get the customer inside. In addition, if someone who objects to nudity, or sexually explicit material, stumbles onto the site, you avoid shocking them into a heart attack.
ENTER & EXIT LINKS
Huge mistake many make, is to have tons of banners at the bottom, leading to other sites, or friends. GIGANTIC ERROR. You should have, at most, two links on your index page. One is the larger ENTER LINK, with a smaller EXIT LINK.
Placement of the ENTER LINK should be above the ‘fold’ which simply means, to have the link visible in the first screen view. It should not be hidden or require the surfer to scroll the page they see, to find it.
In addition, like any store front, you need to attract attention. It is that ‘hook’ that will make them come inside, explore your little online store. If you can’t get them to enter, you won’t be able to sell them anything. Think about it, because how many businesses do you go to, that have the front door locked? Or make you go around to the back, to get in?
Placing your ‘enter’ link below the fold, is doing just that. You are hiding the way inside.
Many stores have displays, to show what they sell. Online, use of graphics can do that for you, but it is the ‘text‘ that gets you listed in the SERPS. It is TEXT that will bring you traffic, as well as convince people to come inside and shop.
Take restaurants, for example. They usually have a menu plastered to the wall, and yeah, some even have some big color pictures of their food, like at K Mart or Wal Mart, or even McDonalds, yet they also list the product, with a description. AND IT IS THAT COMBINATION THAT YOU NEED ON YOUR INDEX PAGE.
The text and graphics are partners. Together they convey a message, about what you are making available to them. Sure have a picture of a nice juicy hamburger, but what if you also sell salads, fish burgers, and sandwhiches? TEXT can help convey that you have a whole lot more, in shorter space, at less cost in page load.
to be continued…
DISCLAIMER : Always consult with a qualified attorney, when it comes to finding out what is required under the law. Accepting advise from those online, is not smart, nor is it a good defence before a Judge.
Keep in mind, the Internet is INTERNATIONAL. You need to follow the laws, for where you are a citizen of, and where you live.
Mar 09th by Malcontent