Congratulations! Your website / blog / store is finally live! Now you just have to make sure your website displays properly for users of all popular browsers.

Although Internet Explorer & FireFox together control more than 90% of the browser marketshare, there are significant differences in page rendering between different versions of each browser.

A website that displays properly on Internet Explorer 6.0 might not show up at all for users of Internet Explorer 5.0. This is true particularly if your website uses the CSS to control page rendering.

The solution? BrowserShots.org



A free tool that automatically checks your website on 20 popular browsers, generating screenshots of how your site comes up for users of any of these browsers.

This is a MUST-HAVE tool to add to your arsenal. Test every critical page of your website to ensure it renders properly. Never be fooled to believe that if your site shows up fine on your local versions of Internet Explorer and FireFox, it will also work properly for everyone else.

Although it is hard to imagine in today's world, once upon a time, Google was just another virtually unknown internet company. However, as we all know, Google is now THE dominant player in the online industry. Even though we often forget that Google has not always been the massive powerhouse that it is today, we can learn quite a bit by looking at some of the key factors that have allowed Google to expand at such a phenomenal pace:



::Vision
Even though directories were the dominant form of internet navigation when Google came onto the internet scene and there was no clear-cut way to monetize a search engine, Larry and Sergey realized that search would be an integral part of the internet and were not afraid to set out to make the world's best search engine.

::Building a Great Product
At the end of the day, Google is where they are because they have always been dedicated to building the best product out there. Google's product is so powerful that they have actually helped out two of their competitors over the course of their history: Google has provided advertising technology to Ask.com and search technology to Yahoo.

::Focus and Simplicity
Unlike Yahoo and MSN (which have always placed as much emphasis on being a portal as being a search engine), Google is still completely focused on being a search engine. If you compare the three home pages, you will see that Google's is substantially simpler and more plain than the other two, which in turn makes it easier for people to use. Although Google has expanded with many other products, they have never lost sight of the fact that before anything else, they are a search engine.

::The Viral Factor
Whether you call it word of mouth marketing or viral marketing, Google is evidence that when you build a great product, word about it will spread naturally. Even though Ask and Yahoo shell out huge amounts of money to spread the word about their web sites, Google has been able to reach incredibly high levels of growth simply by word of mouth marketing.

You've spent a great deal of time and money generating top notch content, creating an attractive layout for your web site, gaining links and increasing the amount of traffic your web site receives. Unfortunately, you've come to the point where you realize that there is still one thing holding you back: your domain name. Whether it is because you don't have a .COM domain or your domain name is simply too hard to remember, deciding to switch domains is something that almost all of us will have to deal with sooner or later. In a perfect world, no one would ever need to switch their domain name, but since the world we live in is anything but perfect, here are some tips for making the transition as smooth as possible:



Use a 301 Redirect: This is an absolute necessity! A 301 redirect will take visitors to your old domain name, along with the search engine spiders, to your new domain. If you are not familiar with how to implement a 301 redirect, a quick search of Google will give you all the information you need.

Notify Google: Speaking of Google, chances are they are your biggest source of traffic. In order to speed up the process of regaining your previous rankings, it is important to notify Google when you are ready to make your domain name switch. The most effective way to do this is by registering the new domain name within Google's Webmaster Central and uploading a new XML sitemap for the new domain.

Update Valuable Backlinks: You should take some time and evaluate the top backlinks to your original web site. Once you have a list of the ones that are sending the most traffic and helping your SERPs the most, you should contact the owner of each web site and politely ask them if they could update their link to your new web site.

Issue a Press Release: A press release can be used to tell the world and the search engine spiders that your web site has a new home. Issuing a press release is also an essential step in beginning the process of branding your latest domain.

Don't Switch at All: No, that wasn't a typo. Before you run out and setup a new domain, you need to think long and hard about whether the long-term benefits will outweigh the short-term consequences (which are inevitable). Depending on the popularity and size of your web site, it can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to six months or more before your web site regains eighty to ninety percent of its previous traffic. Since a drop in traffic is going to mean a drop in revenue, you need to make sure that you are ready to handle this temporary (but not necessarily short) decline in web site revenue.

Obviously, the overall goal of establishing an online presence is setting yourself apart and above all of your competitors. As you can tell by the number of posts in this section of the forums, this is not necessarily an easy task. There are many different methods and ways to start the process of creating your online presence. However, one commonly overlooked aspect of this process is the role that people's memories play in how the connect to your web site's message. As addressed by Professor Daniel Schacter of Harvard University in his book The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers, let's look at the seven characteristics of memory that your company should be aware of when it is trying to establish itself online through advertising and content:



Absent-mindedness
When people don't pay attention to something, there brain does not create any memories of that information. Due to the fact that people are presented with a huge volume of information on a daily basis (especially in the context of the internet), this event occurs quite frequently. Therefore, it is important that you make your core message very prominent and easy to absorb. Incorporating media such as audio, images or video into your web site can help you overcome this barrier.

Bias
Bias refers to the process where new experiences are filtered through past experiences and pre-existing belief systems. Although there is no way to deal with every single person's bias, a little creativity can help deal with a large percentage of bias. For example, one common technique used by advertisers is using nostalgic icons or images from the past to create a positive context for something new.

Blocking
Most of us experience blocking on a somewhat regular basis. You recognize someone and can talk about their different characteristics, but are unable to remember their name. To avoid this as a company, you should use context, emotion and the senses to connect with your audience.

Misattribution
This event occurs when information is remembered but attributed to an incorrect source. By establishing credibility and giving your web site a real personality, you can make sure that visitors remember that your web site is where they learned specific information from.

Persistence
When a situation is extremely intense on an emotional level (especially when negative), it will be remembered longer than a situation that is emotionally neutral. Your company can utilize this trait by showing your audience the negative consequences of not using your product or service. Additionally, you can also approach this attribute from a positive angle (like Disney does).

Suggestibility
Suggestibility occurs when information learned from an outside source is mistaken as a personal experience. By using techniques in your ads or content that trigger vivid mental images or touch on emotional soft spots, your company may be able to attach itself to an experience in your audience's memory bank.

Transience
Transience means that over time, memory degrades and turns more into general recollections instead of vivid, specific memories. Therefore, it is important that you always push your core message before discussing additional features and benefits. For example, Volvo has used many different campaigns over the years, their core message has always been that they make the safest cars on the road (which is what they are regarded as by the majority of consumers).

In order to completely understand what the web site statistics you receive mean, it is important to know the definitions of common terms for web site statistics. Here are five definitions that can help you expand your understanding of web site statistics:

Hits: Of all the terms related to web site statistics, the one that creates the most confusion is hits. Contrary to a common misconception, a hit is not necessarily a visitor. In reality, a hit is any form of HTTP request made to your server. Because images and other files create hits in addition to web pages, a single visitor that visits many of your image dense web pages can actually generate hundreds of hits on their own.

Unique Visitors: When inexperienced internet marketers or webmasters talk about "hits" to their web site, they are usually actually talking about unique visitors. When you are trying to determine how much traffic your web site receives, unique visitors are what you should be paying attention to. As Wikipedia explains, a unique visitor is "is a statistic describing a unit of traffic to a Web site, counting each visitor only once in the time frame of the report."

Bounce Rate: The bounce rate can be used to determine whether the majority of your visitors are sticking around or leaving immediately. Although bounce rates up to fifty percent are probably nothing to worry about, if you notice that your bounce rate is much higher, chances are you are sending potential customers away due to a slow-loading web site.



Average Time & Page Views Per Visit: While the definition of these terms are pretty straight forward, the importance of these numbers are often overlooked. For example, if you are using your web site to sell a product and your visitors are spending more time on pages other than your presell page, it's time to figure out how to send them where you want them to be (alternatively, if people are immediately leaving your presell page, it's time to work on your copy).

Entry Page Statistics: Entry page statistics give you the ability to find out where people are entering your site at. You may be surprised to find that fifty percent or more of your web site traffic comes through pages other than your homepage. If there is a specific page that receives a lot of entry traffic, you may want to modify it so that the people visiting it get sent to where you want them to go.

Before you start building your online presence, you need to truly understand what your company is all about. This may seem obvious to some, but it is not common for a company to overlook this important step. By asking yourself the four questions below, you will be able to actually define the purpose of your company:



Who is your audience?
You can have the best product and message in the world, but if you don't know who you're trying to sell it to, your internet marketing efforts are going to be much less successful. Defining your target audience can help ensure that your advertising budget doesn't go to waste. By figuring out whether your company is aimed at thirty year old men or teenage girls, you will be able to tailor your online message to speak directly to your demographic.

Are you perceived as unique?
Notice that I said to ask yourself if you are perceived as unique, not if you are actually unique. Virtually every company has at least one other competitor that offers the same product or service as them. However, this does not mean that your potential customers have to perceive you as the same. BMW and Volvo both sell cars, but it's not mistake that the majority of affluent individuals will choose a BMW over a Volvo any day of the week.

Are you ready to tell the world about yourself?
Once you have answered the questions above, it's time to take the plunge and make yourself known. The most successful companies are the ones that aren't afraid to be bold and take risks. Being strong and making yourself stand above the rest is what this question is all about. Knowing that you are truly ready to push the envelope and establish your presence is vital to success.


Can you persevere through criticism?
Tying into the question above, once you take the plunge and start doing something that pushes the envelope, you are going to be the target of criticism. Doing something original inevitably causes jealousy and other emotions, which then leads to criticism.
Whether you are targeted by your competition, the media or other people, make sure that your backbone is ready to handle the criticism that will come sooner or later.

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