Important Tips for a fast loading web site

Introduction

It is important to have a reasonably fast loading web site so that viewers are not made to wait for a long time and to accommodate users on slow internet connections. Search engine algorithms also do take into consideration your load time.

Follow these tips while designing and developing your site:

*Optimize your HTML code: Make sure that your site doesn't have any unwanted tags and that it is optimized.

*Effective Table designing: Design using nested tables instead of using cell merges and splits. Use separate tables where ever possible. Not designing for 100% height is better as if you use just one outer table, the web page is displayed only after the table is loaded fully. If many outer tables are present [you can have different tables for the header, content, footer, etc.] the page displays the content of each table as soon as its elements are loaded.

*Maximize content area: This not only reduces load time, it enhances the readability of your site.
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Minimize use of graphics, Flash, scripts: These are the major contributors to the size of your web page, so try minimizing them. Try using background colors and fills instead of heavy images.

*Optimize all heavy files: As much as possible optimize heavy graphics, Flash files and scripts. In editors like fireworks and flash you can see the various options in the preview panel to reduce the sizes. See how popular web sites like google and yahoo have pages that are very small in size and thus load in seconds.

*Stick to simple designs: Most fast loading sites have very simple designs. Take the hint! Complicated designs will slow down your pages.

*Spread out your content: In case you find yourself having very long pages of content, break them down into separate sections and thus bring down the sizes of the individual pages.

*Use Text Links instead of graphic buttons: basically try to make use of HTML as much as possible. Use CSS Styles for text links to make them as attractive as buttons. Read our CSS Styles tutorial

*Use Server Side Include (SSI) files where ever possible. SSI files once called from the web server reside in its cache so on subsequent requests they load faster.

* Using Layers instead of tables is a new concept for better load time. We will be bringing out an article on it soon.

Check your Load time

Do remember to check your Load time regularly. Use free site tools available on the internet

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Web Traffic Generation Tips

Here are 40 simple actions you can take to get started.

1. Your website design is the first impression. Make sure it is

professional and relevant to the subject matter.

2. Navigation must be intuitive. If visitors can't find what they are

looking for easily, they will question your competence in providing

what they want.

3. Make the website personal by giving it its own tone and voice.

People buy people.

4. Follow the HEART rule of creating o­nline content. (Reminder: HEART

stands for Honest, Exclusive, Accurate, Relevant and Timely.)

5. Use language that is appropriate to the audience. It will build empathy.

6. Regularly add new content to your site. It shows that the business

is alive and kicking.

7. Review all links. Doubts will quickly form in your visitors' minds

if links don't work or, worse still, take them to error pages.

8. Good grammar and spelling matter. Errors give the impression of

sloppiness and carelessness.

9. Don't make outrageous and unbelievable claims, like "Read this blog

and you'll be a millionaire by the end of the week." People are used

to scams, get-rich-quick schemes and rip-offs.

10. Publish REAL testimonials and third-party endorsements. Try to

always use real names and link to websites where possible. Some sites

show images of letters sent by happy customers. 

11. Publish case studies about customers you have helped, who use your

product, etc.

12. Don't put down, curse or insult competitors. It's unprofessional.

It is better to offer an objective comparison of competitive services

or products.

13. Focus o­n building your long-term reputation, not o­n making quick sales.

14. Write articles for humans, not search engines.

15. Make your 'About Us' page personal and comprehensive. It plays an

important part in making visitors feel comfortable that real people

are behind the site.

16. Publish your photo or the photos of the key people involved with

the site. Again, this reinforces the fact that there are real people

behind the screenshots.

17. Clearly identify who is behind the site. Nothing creates more

suspicion than a site that tries to hide the identity of its

publishers.

18. o­n the 'Contact Us' page, provide an email form, telephone

number, fax and address of the company. 

19. Provide a telephone number that people can call and talk to a person.

20. Provide Web addresses linked to the website domain, not addresses

from free webmail services such as Hotmail and Gmail.

21. Think carefully about reciprocal links. If your site is about

organic food and you have links to Party Poker, people are going to

question your integrity.

22. Think carefully about the adverts you display o­n your site.

Ensure that they are relevant to your subject and audience.

23. Write and publish your privacy policy. Be clear about what you

will and will not do with any personal data you collect. State that

you adhere to all data protection laws. Make it easy to read and don't

use legal gobbledygook.

24. Write and publish a security policy. State what measures you take

to ensure that all transactions are secure as well as how well you

handle customers data.

25. Ensure that you have a security and privacy policy which is linked

from the footer o­n every page. Make the link more prominent o­n all

the order pages.

26. Clearly publish your guarantee. I would recommend making it a 100%

money-back guarantee if possible.

27. Clearly state your refund and returns policy.

28. If you use PayPal, put the PayPal logo o­n your site. If you have

a merchant services account with a major bank like Citibank or HSBC,

put its logo o­n your site.

29. Use Google search o­n your site for two reasons. First, it is a

great search solution which will help your visitors find what they are

looking for. Second, having the Google name o­n your site instills

trust.

30 If there are well-known industry associations for your subject,

join up and put their logos o­n your site.

31. Have a forum o­n your site and respond quickly to questions. Have

the attitude that you are happy to help others without receiving

immediate reward. As the old saying goes, 'Givers always gain.'

32. Allow people to comment o­n articles. Interactivity and an

exchange of views build community and a sense of involvement.

33. If people provide constructive criticism or comments in the forum,

don't delete them, but respond with your point of view.

34. Use the words 'secure website' whenever you try to get any

information from visitors, including newsletter sign-ups, forum input

and payment.

35. o­n every page, state, "We take your privacy and security very

seriously." Link the statement to the security and privacy policy.

36. If you are selling a subscription, offer a low-cost, entry-level

option. This could be a o­ne-day taster, 'a week before billing

starts' or a monthly trial.

37. o­nly ask for information from customers that you really need. For

example, for an email newsletter sign-up, the o­nly information you

REALLY need is an email address, so that is all you should ask for.

38. If you have pricing o­n your website, make it transparent. I

recently went to buy a book which was advertised for $10. When I

checked out, they added tax, post and packaging, and the final bill

was $19.50. I didn't buy it as I felt they had deliberately tried to

mislead me.

39. Start a small newsletter of your company/services & circulate it

among your clients/employees. Also, publish it o­n your website

regularly.

40. Allow people to "unsubscribe" from your mailing list. This may

sound very obvious, but I have found that many websites still don't

follow it.

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