Website Design - Does Your Website Have People Skills

The other day I was at the markets in Brisbane, and as I am prone to do I was observing the different traffic that each of these stalls were generating. there is a large correlation between what makes a successful offline business and what makes a successful online business. I observed that the stalls that were generating alot of customer traffic had a number of key elements in common even though they were selling very different products. The key elements were interactivity, motion, connectedness, and fun. How can you use these elements together in your website to engage and retain your visitors?

Alot of the very successful websites of today involve a large degree of interactivity. Facebook, LinkIn, Twitter and other sites involve alot of user interactivity both with the website itself, and with the other visitors to the website. Does your website allow your visitors to interact with you and with other visitors. At the markets I observed that stalls that were static had less traffic than stalls that allowed visitors to touch and feel the product and interact with it. Blogs and forums allow your users to interact with your website. Can you use these within your existing site to help you attract and retain visitors?

Motion is a great way to catch peoples' attention. Sound is another great way to attract attention. Can you use these vehicles in your website to make your website stand out from the crowd. Video and Flash are a great way to do this. The caution with these elements is not to overdo them as too much motion can create confusion.

Connectedness is a vital element for helping your business succeed. People like to belong to things and they like to feel part of a community of like minded individuals. hence the success of websites like LinkedIn and Ecademy. Tony Robbins says that connection is one of the basic 6 human needs. How can you connect better with your customers through your website? How can you allow your customers to connect with each other through your website? The important factor in terms of this connection is that the connection should not be for your benefit, but rather for the benefit of your visitors. To paraphrase Zig Ziglar, if you give them what they want, they will give you what you want.

The final piece of the puzzle is fun. It may be as simple as sharing a funny quote or funny story. post a funny picture. BNrighten peoples' day and they will keep coming back to your website. This does not mean that you have to devote an entire section of your website to being funny. It means that if your website is a positive and uplifting place to be then you will attract more, and retain your visitors.

I noticed that alot of the stalls at the markets did not have many visitors. Maybe your website does not have alot of traffic. Incorporating the elements of interactivity, fun, motion and connection will bring more traffic to your website and help you to retain this traffic and make them come back more often to your website. One of the stall owners that I saw the other night was sitting in the back of her stall reading a magazine and completely unaware of what was going on around her. Another stall owner was leaning over the counter of his stall and glaring at the people going past. Learn their lessons and do not let your website be the one with no traffic.

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