What if I told you that you could double or potentially triple the income you get from existing site without adding any additional traffic? Sounds too good to be true right?
Well there is a way and it is not some new “trick of the week” strategy it’s simple Marketing 101.
It’s called cleaning house.
Technology is a wonderful thing as it allows us to work more efficiently and to turn out higher quality websites. But it can also be addictive. Techies and non-techies in particular are susceptible to going overboard with easy to add technical features on their websites simply because they can.
Unfortunately adding bells and whistles indiscriminately can detract from an affiliate marketers reason to be and that’s to sell product. Websites loaded down with fancy options often times dilute or make fuzzy the marketing message. When this happens you reduce the effectiveness of the page’s ability to convert prospects.
WordPress. Love it like you would love a third or fourth cousin.
Don’t get me wrong, I think WordPress is probably the best thing since individually wrapped sliced cheese. In fact when I first started using this amazing content management system I couldn’t get over how easy it was to create a professional looking website in such a short period of time.
And then as WordPress gained popularity there were more and more widgets and plug-ins offering tremendous features and functionality and of course I wanted it all. It is after all an amazing platform that allows a non-techie like me to add features like sidebars, archive lists, social media buttons, videos, and tag clouds simply by dragging and dropping.
But therein lies the trouble. It’s so easy to add the latest functionality why wouldn’t you? The problem is it is extremely easy to overload the site with all these neat functions which don’t really support your base mission of selling products. Worse than that, they can actually detract from converting prospects.
So WordPress is a great CMS but don’t feel obligated to add every new feature that comes out.
Refine your use of technology
As an affiliate marketer your livelihood depends on converting visitors to customers. If you’re promoting smart phones, costume jewelry, financial services software or even something off-the-wall like routers for woodworking the last thing you can afford to do is dilute your marketing message by adding so many distractions in the form of features that your visitors become confused or motivated to take actions that you don’t want them to do.
If your pages loaded down with a ton of WordPress extras, you may be defeating your own purpose. Let me tell you about an experience I had regarding my WordPress widget addiction.
Less is more
One day some time ago I decided to count the number of different things that a visitor could do on one of the pages on one of my websites. I was amazed. They could do way more than I thought they could do, to include leaving the site and that certainly isn’t good.
Not only was I providing my visitors with too many distractions, but I was cluttering up the site with photographs and graphics that really didn’t lend to converting visitors to customers. In short my site was cluttered it was time to do some spring cleaning.
I went through each feature and evaluated how it helped or hurt my overall mission of selling a product. If it was merely a distraction then I removed it from the page. When I was done with the cleaning I had an attractive page that appeared crisp and easy-to-read and more importantly my message was coming across loud and clear.
5 ideas to de-clutter your website and strengthen your message
If you think your website might be a tad on the cluttered side then take a look at these five ideas to clean it up. If you can get your webpage to clearly state your marketing message you’ll be surprised at the number of increase sales that you will experience even with the same amount traffic.
1. Have a plan for every page.
Every patient you have published on your website should have a purpose and you certainly should know just what it is. If you’re not certain why the page exists then you can’t provide an effective call to action. Plan each page we create it and have a specific “page mission” in mind.
2. Guide your prospects to the next step.
You have to take your visitors by the hand and guide them through the process. The best way to do this is to provide content in such a way that it compels the reader to do what you suggest. Your call to action should seem like the logical next step.
3. Keep your page design crisp and simple.
Sometimes the best way to get a message across is to use the minimalist approach. A simple white background with black text and an understated header can be a perfect canvas to paint your marketing message on.
4. Don’t forget to call to action.
Providing a call to action seems like an obvious step but it is sometimes overlooked and often times not very powerful. If your content is compelling then don’t be shy about telling the visitor exactly what to do in your call to action. Don’t be afraid to try different variations. Testing different calls to action will lead you to your most effective phrase.
5. Do keep some social media on the site.
I know I said I trimmed back much of the social media that I have my website page but it’s important to retain some of it. Social media sites and systems are important source of referred traffic and you simply can’t ignore it altogether just use it in moderation.
One more idea to keep in mind
People read left right in the first place are going to look when he arrived your website is the top left corner. Take a moment and think about what you have in that location right now. Ideally it should be most important piece of content that you have on the site. If what you have on this piece of real estate does not support the purpose of the page then you need to change it out.
These de-cluttering strategies can be used by any type of website from children’s car seats to men’s fashion to router table reviews or even simple information products like e-books. And it doesn’t matter what format you use the reviews or daily deals de-cluttering will help any site strengthen their message and increase their sales.
BIO
James Martell discovered the lucrative world of affiliate marketing in 1999. He is a self-taught Internet entrepreneur and a leading expert in affiliate marketing, outsourcing and SEO. James is the host of the “Affiliate Buzz”, the first and longest running affiliate marketing podcast. James is the host of the “Affiliate Marketers SUPER BootCamp”, a continually updated affiliate marketing training series well known for turning affiliate newbies into success stories. James resides in White Rock BC, a seaside suburb of Vancouver on the West Coast of Canada with Arlene and their four children.
EasyAzon Plugin
This is a very helpful article. I particularly paid attention to “less is more” and the “call to action”. I’ve found myself trying to add just as much stuff to my site or page as I possibly could out of desperation. I’m taking a deep breath now….
Jenny Hillenburg recently posted..Preparing for Thirty-One Wait List – Ladies in Waiting
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Jenny, I am glad you found the article helpful. I find it’s very easy to fall back into the trap of continually adding to the site. It really can kill conversion rates.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz 206 – How Many Backlinks Do You Need To Earn a 5-Figure Income
I don’t think I’m alone when I say that novice marketers (myself included) are usually led to believe that the more features a website can offer our readers the better our site will fare in the long run. I have fallen into this to the point where I added every little function I thought was “neat” and included ads of everything I felt the reader needed.
To my surprise, bounce rate was incredibly high and conversion rates were virtually non existent!
I am glad that you posted this article. I think many marketers will be able to benefit from the tips presented.
Richard Brown recently posted..Creating Your Household Budget Spreadsheet
Some great points – for some reason when people create website, they plan it but when it comes to creating a website using WordPress – this is completely ignored.
localwebhub recently posted..Why Social Media Should Be A Part Of Marketing Strategy
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
It’s so true that many don’t plan their WordPress based websites — more than likely because it is so easy to just add features. I fall into the trap quite often.
James Martell recently posted..Google SEO Tip 128 – Will Google Give A Higher Rank to A Website Which Runs AdSense
Twitter: ditesco
says:
Thumbs up! Really good and simple Marketing 101 advice. I am putting this down my to do list, and it will get done by this weekend. Really need to eliminate all those bells and whistles that don’t provide any value. Thanks, it is always good to be remembered about this..
DiTesco recently posted..The Best Sites For Guest Posting Opportunities
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi DiTesco, thanks for the thumbs up and good luck with doing a little Spring cleaning.
James Martell recently posted..Google SEO Tip 131 – Do URL Shorteners Pass Anchor Text
Twitter: techcrates
says:
Truly awesome article…Strongly agree with all the 5 points (esp the #3 one) to de-clutter our site
Salman recently posted..Turn Off Monitor- Save Power
Hey James,
That is so true about how great wordpress is and how easy it is to go hog wild with all of the plugins. Especially now that google takes your site load time into account, it is more important than ever to really only have essential plugins going on your site at any given time. We just went through a major site redesign last week and in fact are still working out some bugs. During the process, which took several months, we really stripped out a lot of the stuff that we had learned was not really getting used on the old version of the site.
Sometimes you just have to put something up and then track it to see if anyone is actually using it. If not, then take it down.
Jon recently posted..Credit Counseling North Carolina
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Jon, great point when you said “we really stripped out a lot of the stuff that we had learned was not really getting used on the old version of the site”. I am sure many website owners would be absolutely stunned with the number of “things” they added to the clutter of site are not being used much or at all.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz 206 – How Many Backlinks Do You Need To Earn a 5-Figure Income
Twitter: cmygoodies
says:
I completely agree, but how do you really know what is being used and what is not. Especially as far as extra navigation like recent posts, category links, tag clouds, archives etc.. that clutter the sidebar. I guess if you think you need one just pick one and get rid of the rest.
Chris recently posted..Solar Tiki Torches- Solar Patio Lighting with Pizazz
Twitter: srpatterson
says:
Great stuff James. I have 200 posts on some blogs and have been working through the older ones to improve the layout, remove old ads, and improve the SEO quality. Its a lot of work. I am hoping there’s a payoff.
Steve recently posted..The Highest Rated Food Processors From Braun
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
I am sure the efforts you’re putting to “improve the layout, remove old ads, and improve the SEO quality” will pay you dividends. Good look with the upgrades.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz 205 – Affiliate Summit Meetups – In Your Home Town
Twitter: findingthehumor
says:
Great advice. I’ve been doing this with a couple of my clients’ sites as well as my own. People get distracted easily. Sometimes it helps to step back and view the site as a reader.
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Melinda, the saying in my world is “affiliates are easily distracted by shiny objects”. I think this is a truism for so many of us. Thanks for your comments.
James Martell recently posted..Repeat Visits Conversions 5 Great Strategies To Keep Your Audience Coming Back
Twitter: SuperBlogga
says:
Cleaning up our sites can mean deleting or taking out things that we might not know what to do with – otherwise. Like you mentioned in the article about (social media), most blog owners have now added the infamous LIKE button and or social media buttons to Twitter, Digg, Stumble Upon etc.
My theory is that if (the button in question) doesn’t send a reader away from your site, then keep it. If it sends them away, get rid of it.
Missy recently posted..50 Fun Facts About Problogger
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Missy, great advice “if (the button in question) doesn’t send a reader away from your site, then keep it. If it sends them away, get rid of it”. Very well said.
James Martell recently posted..Google SEO Tip 132 – Why are Some of Google’s Products Not Available Outside the US
Twitter: blogmobilepro
says:
Though I’m yet an amateur to internet marketing, I’ve always been an advocate for simplicity.. This gives me more confidence to even make things simpler.
Thanks for sharing this.
blogmobilepro recently posted..Having a Hectic day How to Use your mobile phone to keep up your blog after a long day
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
You should do well. Good luck in your efforts.
really nice i feel that this is the first time to read about amazon earnings i was always doing an auto-blog and install wprobot and install amazon campaign but i earned almost nothing thanks a lot about this information
subzero525 recently posted..تحميل البالتوك العربي الاصدار العاشر 2011 تنزيل البالتك العربي مجانا
Very nice reminder James. Every once in awhile I come across a site that is laid out perfectly for sales and it is always simple and clean. You are completely right about wordpress sites becoming over cluttered – it is far too easy to add things that detract from the main purpose. I’ll really have to take a closer look at my sites now.
Chris recently posted..Men’s Invicta Russian Diver Collection
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Chris, you said it “it is far too easy to add things that detract from the main purpose”. If everyone who creates a page were to ask themselves — “…what on this page could distract the visitor from taking the ONE action I would like them to take.”
I don’t think they would like their answer.
James Martell recently posted..Google SEO Tip 131 – Do URL Shorteners Pass Anchor Text
Twitter: tospider
says:
WordPress has made so many small entrepreneur looking to make money.Less is more but some search engines like bing does not like less content
Nipon recently posted..How To Make Money from Blogging
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Nipon, I am not at all recommending to reduce the amount of content on the page, but rather to remove everything that’s distracting the visitor from consuming the content and taking the desired action.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz 206 – How Many Backlinks Do You Need To Earn a 5-Figure Income
Twitter: TheProfitShare
says:
It is definitely a great idea to keep the site minimalistic and not give the user an abundance of options.
The more options the reader had, the less likely they are to take the action you desire them to take.
Also, great advice about including a compelling call to action to increase benefit from the visit and if possible, move your visitor along your conversion funnel.
Wayne Lambert recently posted..Best Internet Marketing Tools
Twitter: easyPblog
says:
Hi James
Know what you mean about WordPress and adding every plugin you can find – been there and done it. LOL
Five great ideas we should all be using, not sure which I should do first.
Think I’ll start with your extra piece of advice…
“People read left right in the first place are going to look when he arrived your website is the top left corner. Take a moment and think about what you have in that location right now.”
That’s where I’ll start.
I’m interested to see what your site looks like James.
I’ll head over and take a look.
Keith Davis recently posted..The Coolest Voice on the Internet
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Keith, yes that is usually a great place to start. Thanks for the positive comments.
Twitter: rohitbatra14
says:
thanks for some really good tips James.. I will surely try to improve my site designs based on your some tips.. really each page has many options for visitors even we dont know that we have given them this much options..
Rohit Batra recently posted..How to Make SHSH Blobs of iPod Touch 4G Manually
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Rohit, I am glad you enjoyed the tips!
Awesome tips James. I will go and grab a pair of gloves and a feather duster and begin the spring cleaning process.
Thanks for sharing.
Matthew
prochef360blog recently posted..Getting Discouraged in Pursuing the Culinary Profession
Twitter: paulas2
says:
I am currently doing some spring cleaning on my blog right now. I have removed 3 plugins and 2 widgets so far, and I have already noticed that my blog is loading faster.
What is really funny is that the reason why I started this spring cleaning is.
So that I could use the Comment Luv plugin. That I am now testing out.
paulas recently posted..Paul Profitt Affiliate Marketing Blog – Do You Really Need A Domain Name
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
I am sure you’ll have great luck with the Comment Luv plugin. It’s worth doing a little spring cleaning to find room for it. It’s a great plugin.
This is a great article. I absolutely believe in the “keeping it clean and crisp” strategy. As a consumer, I would definitely want to see a website that walks me hand in hand to purchase a product, rather that getting me overwhelmed and scare me away. I also agree with point 3, where an understating header must be used. Headers with big claims and exclamation marks don’t seem believable and most of the time can be a turn-off. Thank you for sharing.
Zarina Hussain recently posted..Are We Losing Our Ability to Communicate
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Zanna, agreed, the huge headers with exaggerated claims INSTANTLY cause me to push me to the back button. It’s become a natural reaction.
James
Sometimes I think people like to clutter their website up with all kinds of marketing ads in hopes that someone will take an interest in one of them. More is not always better, especially when it clutters a website. Maybe find a smaller group of products or services to market that will hopefully have a higher success rate. People do add all kind of bells and whistles which are not even used that much. Keep it clean and simple if possible. Lots of websites could probably use at least a little cleaning.
Ray recently posted..WordPress vs Tumblr
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Ray, I believe you’re right that “people like to clutter their website up with all kinds of marketing ads in hopes that someone will take an interest in one of them”. It’s a bad approach. The top performing pages eliminate most (if not all) distractions. They understand that if someone finds their page by doing a specific keyword search — everything on that page should help the visitor to make a buying decision. The best way to do this is to eliminate all distractions.
I have been guilty of this myself and removed some of the clutter last year, but after reading this I should do another assessment. It is so true that when I build a website, a great deal of thought and planning goes into it, but with this blog in particular I tend to often use it as a testing ground to try out new plug-ins (latest shiny thing) before adding to other sites and them forget to remove them if ineffective. Thanks for the helpful reminder.
June recently posted..Tips On How To Avoid Design Web Mistakes
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi June, so true. It is so easy to add plugins. I recently did some Spring cleaning on one of my sites. I pruned it down to 19 plugins from 33. The site is so much easier on the eyes.
Twitter: Burnworld
says:
I agree, the most exciting thing since wordpress was the plugins. I literally spent hours searching for new plugins, trying them out disabling most, and leaving many active that really didn’t add too much value. Finding the right balance for whatever site you are working on is the key. There are a few that all sites must have like Akismet and SEO Ultimate, but finding that right fit of plugins is an art.
BurnWorld recently posted..Blu-Ray to DVD Free Software Contest
I was actually thinking my sites looked rather naked and was going to add more – distractions as I now discover.
Thanks for saving me all that extra work and possibly losing business!
karen recently posted..More About Writing Articles as a Home Business
Twitter: pererikolsen
says:
Great post James. I know I have to get a better strategy for my none-blog pages. And following your idea about the upper left corner, I am considering changing my theme (need advice there).
A personal reflection about plugins; many times the ones used inside wp are more useful than the ones that are visible for the reader. Thinking about SEO, sitemap, analytics and not to forget backup plugins.
Per-Erik Olsen recently posted..Why LinkedIn is essential for your Online Networking Success
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hey Per-Erik, I am really starting to look at the Thesis theme. I don’t use it personally (yet) but I do guest write on a couple of sites that use it. I like it. It’s very clean.
Twitter: CPASiteSolution
says:
Awesome article. When a person clutters their site with a bunch of marketing materials, I think it’s mostly because they believe they’ll get a better search result or rating. Like you mentioned, it’s unprofessional and I know from personal experience I hate looking at those types of sites, the ones that have too many things on them and I have no idea what’s going on.
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
I agree that a cluttered site looks unprofessional. It also screams rookie.
Twitter: therocketrider
says:
I tend to agree on minimizing the amount of plugins, the trouble is I’m unsure of which ones are “must haves” & which my site could live without.
Currently I’m down to plugins that enhance SEO details, and site loading speed. It’d be nice to see a list of the “definitive guide to must have plugins” somewhere.
Hmmm, I sense a new article topic coming up!
~Bruce
Bruce recently posted..Hints & Tips For Home Smoking
Twitter: wordpresswb
says:
Great post as usual James!
Back in the old days we all stuck all the new goodies on our pages to make our websites look fancy…OMG have I come along way from there. I actually ran into one yesterday that had an animated Australian flag waving around with about a hundred pictures on the same page…All built with HTML. I am so grateful that we have WordPress now!
I have totally cleared my websites out and focused on in-linking and the main purpose of the page. If the purpose is Adsense then that’s all there is, along with the internal linking or links to other pages. Thats for content sites…For my sales pages there are no options but to buy or sign up.
Mitz Pantic recently posted..Elegant Themes Versus Thesis for WordPress
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Mitz, thanks!
I love what you said here “If the purpose is Adsense then that’s all there is, along with the internal linking or links to other pages.” I so agree. If you are using AdSense on the page that’s all that should be there, other than the internal links.
You’re right on with your “sales pages there are no options but to buy or sign up”.
Keep up the good work!
Twitter: FSYAonline
says:
Great information! I made changes as I was reading through. Did lots of decluttering and it looks much better already. I always enjoy your posts, keep em coming!
Financial Success For Young Adults recently posted..9 Tips for Successful Investing
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Thanks, I am glad to hear you enjoyed the article. It’s always fun to do a little decluttering.
It is really correct because I’m getting income with any big traffic…..
Arun recently posted..How NFC Technology is Going to Change the Smartphone World
Loved the “5 ideas to de-clutter your website and strengthen your message”. I like lists they help me stay focused. The less is more section was nice as well.
Twitter: sureshpeterss
says:
yes, making the site clean and simple and calling for action it will really works . The people feel happy to come there again and again .
sureshpeters recently posted..How To Increase Your Torrent Download Speed With CheatEngine
Thank you for this post, I agree with all you said but not sure how this can work for a website like mine (funny videos on Youtube that update daily), as my income comes from ads and not affiliate revenue or sales. Would be nice if you could post some insights for ad based websites too. Thanks.
Jeremy H. recently posted..Tribe Meets White Man
Hello James,
Man you hit the nail on the head. Some sites I visit are so busy I get dizzy. I learned years ago from my MLM mentor, less is better.
He said the more options you give a person, the more confused they become.
Also, I have to give props to Diane Corriette over at Jack Humphrey’s blog success. She does blog reviews and whiles I was briefly in Blog Success I watched videos of Diane doing blog reviews.
She didn’t pull any punches, if you had stuff on your blog that didn’t make sense, she’d let you know, so as to improve your blog.
I have visited some blogs that take several mintues to load, and with some blogs I get a message saying this site is running a script that is slowing down your computer. I have actaully had my computer lock up on some blogs.
If it takes to long to load, I will leave the site and not come back.
Come on, just how many buttons and links does a person need in their menus bar on their blog anyway?
I agree, less is better.
Cheers.
willie recently posted..A Truly Inspirational Lesson On Life.
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hey Willie, the top you shared “He said the more options you give a person, the more confused they become.” is a good one.
It have a friend and associate whose has a number of great one liners. My favorite of his is a “a confused mind says “NO”. It’s so true.
I would think a cluttered mind who say something quite similar.
James
Hello James,
I have to agree, less is better. Some blogs are slow to load and have locked my computer.
If I visit a blog and it tkaes to long to load, I leav eit and don’t come back.
Also, I have visted many blogs to have way to many links in the menu bar. As my mentor used to say, if you give people to many options, they get confused.
You give some great points in having and givng a call to action.
I tried commenting before and my comments did not show.
willie recently posted..A Truly Inspirational Lesson On Life.
Twitter: Shareholdersuk
says:
I have recently followed some of this advice and seen an increase in pageviews. I used to run 2 sidebars for a long time but decided to strip down to just one right hand side one. Less noise on the pages, the content is clearer and comes first and more interaction, not less.
Jon recently posted..Habitat Goes Into Administration
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Jon,
I am a HUGE fan of having only one side bar situated to the left. I have tested this many times over the years and every time the side bar to the left wins hands down.
My wife’s site below is a good example. She has a column to the right that is not too cluttered.
http://epilepsymoms.com/media-type/video/healthy-start-kids-video.html
I agree that “Less noise on the pages, the content is clearer and comes first and more interaction, not less.”
James
Also prefere to use WP CMS for me web sites. I think it is the best platform for thw beginner webmaster
Radial recently posted..Radial Arm Saw Safety Tips
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
I so agree.
Wow, this is a great reminder of how less is more and something I don’t always follow. I have a few affiliate marketing web sites that have done fairly well and coincidentally the ones with the most revenue are the most simple, ugly ones. Go figure!
sandra1 recently posted..Puestos De Trabajo Para Adolescentes
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
The same for me. The sites (and more specifically “pages”) I keep clean and focused out do the others by far. It’s always good to do a little Spring cleaning.
Twitter: ninjasagaalpha
says:
I learn something new from here. Thanks!
allen recently posted..Ninja Saga Special Tensai Jounin Exam Cheats and Tips
Thanks . Getting the max £ possible from what you got already is crucial !
Twitter: webmaisterpro
says:
To be honest very radical points that I believe not many Internet marketer have considered when trying to double traffic and make money of it. Probably that’s why 99% of them fail in attempts to generate traffic.
Kaloyan Banev recently posted..Tvket Ketv waaaaaaaaaa
Hello James,
You nailed it friend,your experiences are so loud and clear,i really appreciate your thoughts and tips,they all are so valuable and a gold like for me.specially that one a “Less is more” and what you have discussed about some does and don’ts for the left corner of a site page.Now i am looking forward for some more valuable tips to come out from your treasure bag.
I am so so so thankful to you for all your guidance.
THANK YOU and GOD BLESS
manish2010 recently posted..Outdoor Kitchen Equipment
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
You’re welcome. Your feedback is much appreciated.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz #208 – Adventure Travel with Your Laptop – 31 Countries in 20 Months!
You are so right! I see too many wordpress blogs that have stuff all over the place. Very few people have a cogent idea about what they want their visitors to do. Fancy (and bulky) flash items are ubiquitous – even in corporate sites.
I have noticed that giving less options and more clarity on navigation helps both the user as well as the website owner.
amandagordon recently posted..Benefits Of Steam Vacuum Cleaner
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
Hi Amanda, it’s so true. In fact some of the worst offenders are the corporate sites. The sports site come in a close second. And I agree “less options and more clarity” helps for sure.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz #207 – How To Select High Converting (and Paying) Affiliate Programs
Hi, James. I learned a lot from your articles. so far I do not pay attention to measures to improve the ability of blogs to provide income. I would like to further explore the science of internet marketing
thanks
hilman
hilman recently posted..Ilustrasi Usaha Budidaya Sirsak
Twitter: equitiesgroup
says:
Great article that all those using WordPress CMS should read! I really like wp also, just wished they had a better shopping cart platform.
equities recently posted..How to Begin Online Stock Trading
Twitter: BrianParker76
says:
Hi James,
Personally, I fit into the category of blogger/marketer who couldn’t resist the temptation to install every latest plugins and features on my wordpress blog, in order to make it more appealing to my visitors.
Your article is a real eye-opener for me, to remind myself what’s the real mission behind my blog. This makes me rethink about those features that I’ve added and re-evaluate whether they’re doing any good to my site, instead of just “distracting my customers” from the ONE thing or mission that I would want them to do.
This really reminds me of the truism of “how less is more” and “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” as Leonardo da Vinci would agree to.
Cheers,
Brian
bestcars101.com
Twitter: JamesMartell
says:
I so relate. It’s so easy, not too mention fun and interesting to explore the plugins. I love the Leonardo da Vinci quote.
James Martell recently posted..Affiliate Buzz #208 – Adventure Travel with Your Laptop – 31 Countries in 20 Months!
Twitter: seldonplumbing
says:
I think that targeted marketing and traffic is key. You can make money on a website that has only 25 visitors a day if each of those visitors is looking for your specific product or service.
seldon recently posted..Idaho Falls Plumbers
Twitter: arjunchauhan24
says:
Woah!
Thanks a lot for that help..
That was awesome..
Arjun Singh recently posted..How To Increase Subscribers Of Your Blog
Twitter: CPASiteSolution
says:
As someone who works closely with web designers, I completely agree with the very first point in the article: ” Technology is a wonderful thing… But it can also be addictive.”
I’m a big fan of the saying “less is more,” and I think that often applies with websites. Just because you can do it, doesn’t mean you should do it! Slideshows, videos, etc… all have their place but you don’t have to have them on your site. Especially if they don’t serve a specific purpose.
Brian recently posted..6 Basic Tips- Optimizing Websites for Accountants
It’s funny how the more advanced your websites get the more important it is to keep your eye on the basics. These are super important tips. Many of your visitors won’t be ready to leap right into your sales funnel, so you need to keep it available so when your prospect is ready he won’t have far to jump. If you don’t keep these principles in mind you could put your prospect in the awkward position of having to search for your conversion page.
Most won’t bother.
Twitter: twitter.com/pczonenow
says:
James,
We just want to say thanks. It will certainly be nice to have income doubled without more traffics, guess its house cleaning time.
Charleston recently posted..Office 2010 SP1 Official Download from Microsoft Available Now
I think i definitely need to take note of point 5, i haven’t got around to adding any social media links or tools on my page yet. will be at the top of my priorities for tomorrow! Great Post, Thanks a lot!
lee recently posted..Trading Leverage Simplified
Twitter: nitinagarwal198
says:
I have 3 blogs and I am full time in blogging, make good money but the problem is that the traffic is neutral, its not increasing and thats why income is also not going up.
Thanks for these tips, I think they might work for me as well.
Wow, what alot of comments! Well, way down here at the bottom, I also have to compliment you on your article James. More great reminders. I’m sure it’s been said, but some of the plugins can also cause your pages to load slowly, which visitors don’t like. But the other thing I’ve found is that certain plugins don’t play nicely in the same sandbox (so to speak) together. So if you have too many installed, it’s sometimes hard to know where to start your trouble-shooting when your site (or wordpress admin) isn’t working right.
Thanks again James.
Jacquie recently posted..Acne Face Wash and Other Tips for Treating the Skin Problem
Hi James, I think nowadays the trend is really steep on social media. Everyone is just talking about it and it seems like businesses will have to look at this area for sure. I myself will be bucking up in social media and hopefully I can see some results with them.
Thanks…
janWint recently posted..The Lovers
The problem I’ve been running into is trying to find a nice, clean, crisp theme with no sidebars. I figure if I don’t have any sidebars, then I’ve shut down any chance of going else where on my site, beyond the home page, where I’ve got links to my other articles, or to click what I want clicked on my site.
Shawn recently posted..Best Recliners Review: ACME Sage Microfiber Recliners -Man Cave
Twitter: zammax
says:
interesting.. we usually think how to increase traffic but never think how to optimize the current trafic.. thanks.
zamahsari recently posted..T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide Preview: The Best T-Mobile Slide-Out Qwerty Phone?
Twitter: veryveryblessed
says:
I could not agree more. I have been doing housecleaning often too. Almost like weeding and pruning
Betty recently posted..How to Care For Your Asthmatic Toddler
Twitter: richescorner
says:
I find that I’m much like the type that gets intrigued by all the bells and whistles of wordpress. More and more I find that it’s about finding the balance between keeping my site uncluttered and at the same time being able to take advantage of the technology that wordpress provides. It’s hard to hold back the temptation of adding every shiny new widget to one’s site.
Richard recently posted..Network Marketing: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
Twitter: peacefulrunner
says:
Great article and a well needed reminder. I haven’t cluttered my site, but I do need to put more emphasis on number 2 and number 4–guiding the reader to the next step and the call to action. I need to put more effort into that. Thanks for the reminder.
jackielinehan recently posted..Mindful Running
It sounds simple but the article is right, Less is more. I often find sites that may be great to look at but there is no real Idea of what the page is for. If you are selling a product or service you need to have an easy call to action on each page like call me or buy now. I am in the Real Estate business in Fredericksburg Texas and I try to use the tips above in my site but it is always good to see an article such as this just to remind you to go back to your site and see if you are doing it right or getting side tracked, thanks for the reminder
A call to action is definitely something that is required for serious results. To often websites and ads don’t contain a simple phrase that tells viewers what to do.
John recently posted..The Water Softener System Basics
What a good method, I’ll try the way. Thanks for your sharing!