That’s right, according to the Internet Advertising Bureau 70% of the UK population will be regularly accessing the internet by 2012.

“So what” you say? Well if your not online your missing a great opportunity. With petrol prices and public transport costs on the rise your customers are turning to the internet to pre-shop.

They are looking online, assessing their purchase options BEFORE they leave the house. They are deciding who to do business with before they get into the car or pick up the phone. If your not online you don’t get to influence their decisions and you don’t get that new customer.

But its not enough to just be online. You need a website that is visually appealing and professionally done. You need compelling content and you need solid SEO and online marketing.

Its time to stop treating your website as an afterthought and start treating it as a critical part of your marketing efforts.

Here are some inexpensive things you can do to take your online presence to the next level.

• Add client testimonials to your website: People prefer to buy from someone
  when they know other people have had good experiences with that merchant already.

• Add a blog to your website: If you don’t know what a blog is you had better find out. It is probably the single most powerful thing you can do to boost your rank in the search engines and drive more traffic to your website. Do a quick search on google for the term “blog”. Blogs have nominal costs to set up and no costs to maintain. They are a great way to communicate with new and old customers alike and put a human face on your business.

• Have your website redesigned: If your site is more than 2 years old, give it a facelift. The internet is a fast moving target. Changes in technology can make a 2 year old site feel decades old. A new design is not just about looks, its about improved customer experience, accessibility and professionalism.

• Start advertising online: Pay per click is a great way to advertise when its done right. You have complete control over daily, weekly and monthly ad spend budgets and you only pay when someone actually visits your website. Compare that to your current advertising: can you say for sure how many people saw your ads last month? If not its very possible you are wasting your ad budget on ineffective ad channels.

Contact us today to see how we can help you take your website to the next level and start driving new potential clients to your website.

Colours are at first glance such simple things. We all have our favourites and each colour makes each of us feel in different ways. Most of us are aware that science has shown us colours have the power to affect our emotions. But what most of us may not be aware of is that the effect any given colour has can change depending on the culture of the person viewing it.

When you are having a web design built for you and are asked the question “What colours do you have in mind?” your first instinct will probably be to list of the colours you find attractive. But in this case your first instinct may not be the right one. You need to carefully consider your target audience. Depending on their cultural background a given colour may have the exact opposite effect than you wanted to create.

Not convinced? Consider just three colours red, yellow and green:

The colour red:

   To the Chinese red can represent: Good luck and celebration
   In India red can represent: Purity
   In South Africa: red is a colour of mourning
   In Russia: red represents Communism
   In many Eastern cultures red is worn by brides
   In western cultures red symbolises excitement, danger, love, and passion

The colour yellow

     To the Chinese yellow indicates nourishment
     In Egypt yellow is a colour associated with mourning
     In India yellow is closely associated with business and merchants
     In Japan yellow is a colour of courage
     While in the West yellow symbolises cowardice and danger but also hope.

The colour green

     In China: Green is associated with unfaithful spouses and exorcism
     In India: Green is closely associated with Islam
     In the West green is a colour of spring, rebirth and new birth

So who is your target audience? Pick the colours that appeal to them
and your website will be more likely to reach your intended audience.

You can find some other excellent resources on understanding the symbolism of colour by following the links below:

About.com-Colour Symbolism

ColorMatters.com- Colour and Culture Matters