Why Sitemaps are important?

• A sitemap is navigational tool that lists every accessible page in the site according to the site hierarchy. 
• There are two basic kinds of sitemaps: One that is designed to be read by humans, and the other designed for visiting robots, crawlers and spiders.
• Site should have both kinds of sitemaps, and they should be updated whenever new content or products are added to store.

HTML Sitemaps (for Humans)

The HTML sitemap is like a table of contents. It can be formatted any number of ways.

XML Sitemaps (for Spiders)

• XML sitemaps are designed to extend a helping hand to visiting robots, crawlers and spiders. The sitemap tells search engines how often web pages are updated, the last time each was modified, and the relative priority of each page. 
• The sitemap file (sitemap.xml) is placed at the root (or topmost) directory of site where it can be easily found whenever site is crawled. XML sitemaps are one of the most effective ways to ensure that  site is listed in the major search engines.
• Its companion file robots.txt, contains additional instructions for the visiting robot.

Sitemap Generators

• Although sitemaps can be created manually, it's a whole lot easier to use a program that automates the process. There's a wide range of software available, much of it for free.
• Here's a comprehensive list of sitemap software

1. Google's own Sitemaps Generator.
2. XML-Sitemaps.com is an online service that will generate a sitemap up to 500 pages at no charge and few minutes. When the code is complete, copy and paste it to Notepad, save the file as sitemap.xml, and FTP it up to server. Then make sure to let Google know that updated sitemap and that site is ready to be crawled.
3. PowerMapper  generates a wide range of visual sitemaps -- in addition to the standard text-based HTML and XML.As it scans the site, it captures meta data and generates a thumbnail of each page, and then uses the information to create a map.

A visual sitemap is a great planning tool for anyone who designs or manages a website.

Each map is fully hyperlinked,  drill down and jump to a specific page.

How to use Spoon Browser Sandbox

Spoon Browser Sandbox is a free, cloud-based service that run popular browsers directly from the Web without installing them on  PC. Spoon offers an impressive selection of the most current -- and not so current -- versions of Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Opera. At this time, Spoon Browser Sandbox can be run on most any Windows-based computer. However unfortunately, it is not yet available for the Mac. However, Spoon can be run on the Mac in Windows emulation mode.

Here's How:

1.       Go to: http://spoon.net/browsers

2.       Click the Load button on the image of the browser you want to test. Spoon opens a new window running a virtualized version of the browser you have chosen.

3.       Type the url of the site you want to test into the address bar, and press Enter. This is not an emulator, but a fully-functioning browser, explore every page and process in the site. Because Spoon open multiple windows running different browsers, it can be easy to lose track of which one using at the moment. If not sure, always go to the Help menu and click About.

Tips:

1.       When testing a site, take a screenshot of each page for reference. Paste each screenshot as a separate layer into a Photoshop file, and save a different file for each browser tested.

2.       To capture the screen on a PC: Alt + Print Screen

3.       To capture the screen on Mac OSX: Command Key + Shift + 3

Top 10 Tips to a Great Web Page

Make  Site Valuable to Readers

There aren't any magic pills to create a great Web page that everyone will visit again and again, but if follow these ten tips site will be more popular and easier for people to read.

• Know your audience, and keep them in mind when you write

If  Web pages are frequented by people with slower modems then designing a page that looks best over a faster internet connections  is not a successful strategy.

• Keep your pages short

If  minimize the scrolling, chances are, readers will get message. A good screen size is 640 pixels wide by 480 tall.

• Use tables of contents

Only  10% of users will scroll beyond the first screen of text. If that first screen has a table of contents viewers will click on the links to the explanatory text.

• Keep images small

Large images annoy people. If it takes too long to download, many people will never see it, as they will have browsed somewhere.

• Use Web colors

The browser-safe color palette will ensure that most people will see page and images in the colors intended.

• Avoid lots of text

People don't read the Web, they skim it.

• Check your spelling

Use a spell checker, either in your editor or on-line.

• Keep links current

Check links often to make sure they are still valid. Using a link checker speeds up pages with many links.

• Annotate your links

If a page is good enough to link to, then it's good enough to explain why you like it.

• Put contact information on your pages

The Web is interactive and dynamic, and it should welcome comments on pages. Also, if there is a broken link or other problem, readers can know, easily.

Some E-Commerce Ideas

1. Give a personal touch to build customer loyalty by adding unexpected little surprises to each order. Examples include free samples, a candy bar or simply a hand-written "thank you" card etc.
2. Set up or buy a content site that ranks well in Google for relevant keywords and use it to market your products and drive traffic to your E-Commerce site.
3. Transform transactions into relationships by collecting and using customer information to follow-up with customers and turn them into repeat buyers. Implement email marketing and compelling promotions based on the customer information you have collected.

To know more info, please contact prevaj@prevajconsultants.com or visit http://www.prevajconsultants.com

Ways to Improve Your Online Store:

1. Upgrade Your Product Descriptions, Using Three Sentences Or Less
2. Use Video for Product Demonstrations, Merchandising.
3. Use Adobe Flash, Flex, and jQuery Plug-ins to Merchandise and Cross-Promote Specials.
4. Implement Product Reviews and Ratings.
5. Add a Cross-Selling, Suggestions Tool.
6. Get a Single-Page Checkout.

5 Easy Ways to Build Trust in Your Website Visitors

1. Your website design is the first impression. Make sure it is professional and relevant to your business.
2. Navigation must be clear and handy. If visitors can't find what they are looking for easily, they might simply go away.
3. Use language that is appropriate to the audience.
4. Regularly add new content to your site to show that the business is alive and kicking.
5. Good grammar and spelling is important. Errors give the impression of sloppiness and carelessness.

To know more info, please contact prevaj@prevajconsultants.com or visit http://www.prevajconsultants.com

How to make an E-Commerce website successful?

There are several aspects that make an E-Commerce website achieve its goal , that is increase Sales

1. Design your website with your customer in mind. Make it simple. There is beauty in simplicity. 
2. Follow up all your customer calls and emails in a very timely manner. Respond to the customer within 24 hours.
3. It is important to provide informative or entertaining material that ideal customers would read and share, and come back to read more.
4. Have a question and answer section for each product that you sell on your website. This will not only cut down the need to individually handle the same question over and over but also gives an opportunity to build customer confidence. 
5. Implementing a live chat feature on an E-Commerce site can help increase sales and also build trust. 
6. Some customers can be difficult to handle, especially if they complain on the Internet before approaching the merchant. If you are at fault, go out of your way to correct the mistake. If you are the victim of an unjust or insulting complaint, state your case politely, clearly, and honestly.
7. Free shipping is becoming the standard in E-Commerce. Find a way to offer free shipping. Your conversion rates will be higher, and it is a more direct way to pass savings on to your customers.
8. Flash sales is a great way for merchants to promote overstocked products or products that are not selling so well. 
9. Online stores should have a search option; it will have a positive impact on conversion rates. Providing a search option will make it much easier for potential customers to simply type what they are looking for via a search.

To know more info, please contact prevaj@prevajconsultants.com or visit http://www.prevajconsultants.com

Why is it important to start selling your products and services online?

It is a fact that E-Commerce continues to improve dramatically and that  most of all new small businesses have an online presence.  Further, there is a huge rise of online users. Most of the users enjoy shopping online. Online spending has increased to a greater extent , thanks to the various secure online merchant services.

If you have an online business presence, you gain access to a marketplace with millions of potential customers.  The bigger picture is that you can have a potential customer base that is global in scale. You have the capability of tapping a revenue stream that is unavailable in conventional stores. Some of the largest stores develop an online presence mainly because it is a cost effective way to manage a global customer base. It allows these large stores to fill in the gaps where their retail presence is not available.These larger stores are finding their online stores to function as a hi-tech catalog. 

Thus ,it is an effective way to sell your products and services online and hence manage your business in a competitive and global environment profitably. 

To know more info, please contact prevaj@prevajconsultants.com or visit http://www.prevajconsultants.com

One of the most common mistakes on web pages is simply not saying it!

One of the most common mistakes on web pages is simply not saying it!

 

What is this page for? What can you do here? Why am I looking at this? Whatever it is, just say it!

 

When you click on a link for "Contact us", you expect a contact page.

 

When you click on a link to "Buy now", you expect to buy from the next page.

 

When you click on a link that promises to explain something, you expect to know immediately that you'll get the explanation on the page.

 

Web pages that attempt to play with their visitors' attention by being clever, coy, or cryptic FAIL. You cannot beat good honest up-front transparency.

 

Try this test on your own web pages. Without scrolling, can you immediately see the point of the page? Is it shining out? Is there one thing that first draws your eye, which explains in simple language what the page is that you're on?

 

If these things don't happen, you will not be able to help your visitors answer the only important question there is in web design...

 

... "Am I in the right place?"

 

Everything hinges on this simple question.

Will Good SEO Guarantee a Successful Website?

Does good SEO guarantee a successful website? The answer is NO.

Good search engine optimization helps with website traffic and search engine ranking, but will not keep users on a website or convince them to buy.

There are several things about a website that you should take into consideration in addition to SEO. Remember the goal of a website is to get the user to contact you or purchase your product.

First make good use of the Landing Page. The Landing Page is what a user sees when landing on the website without scrolling up or down. Most users want to find the information that they came to the website looking for in the landing page.

User friendliness is another essential part to keeping users on a website.

The longer a user is on the website the better chance of making them a customer. There are a lot of things to consider making a user friendly website.

The navigation on the website should be easy to find and understand. If a user gets lost they will simply leave.

The content needs to be relevant, brief, and to the point. 

SEO is a very important element of a website. SEO will direct traffic to the website however to be truly successful make sure the website is up to the challenge after the SEO has done its job.

For more information please feel free to contact:
Prevaj Consultants
http://www.prevajconsultants.com
prevaj@prevajconsultants.com
Plot No.11, 39/I
North Parade Rd, St.Thomas Mount
Chennai 600016. India
+91-8144760745
+91-9445567545
+91-44-22345557