Website Myths

Many people think that if you build a website, people will see it immediately and the money will roll in. This is not the case. At least, not initially. Like all advertising, it takes repeated exposure to your audience. Additionally, just building the site is not enough. Now it must be cross-advertised by placing it in all other advertising used, on business cards, listed in search engines, and linked to other sites. The site must also be regularly updated. Just as you may not see business increase until you’ve advertised in the newspaper for a few months to a year, it may take a while before business increases due to a website. The same principle applies to social networks.

Absolutely not. Frequently, whether they look great or not, those can be the worst sites.

• Flash is not search engine friendly.
• Flash animations are often just annoying to the web surfer and they’ll leave to avoid that annoying thing.
• Flash sites can take too long to load (and your customers will click Back and forget about you).
• Not everyone has Flash installed on their computer (or knows how to install it).
• It is not accessible to blind surfers using screen readers.
• Many Flash sites have audio and most surfers dislike audio on websites.
• Many web surfers now block Flash due to its use to spread viruses and malware, and also because many are used for ads.
• It does not show up on many mobile phones, including iPhones.

And sure, we can make multiple versions of a website. However, scripts properly detecting browsers and redirecting the user have a chance to not detect a browser correctly. Additionally, it’ll cost you more for us to make duplicate versions of your website. Flash can be a great thing, but you want someone who knows the appropriate times to use it.

Nope. More and more often, shoppers refuse to do business with an organization without a website. They want to learn about your organization, what you have to offer, find maps to your location, etc. Today, for any businesses or non-profit to be taken seriously, they need a website. There was a time when it was optional. That is not the case anymore.

While this is frequently a good start, the information must be formatted for the web, and preferably expanded upon. The more quality information you give customers, the more likely you’ll get a sale. Also, this improves your chances in search engines.

False. Too much information is overwhelming and confusing to your visitor. Also, web surfers don’t like to scroll down a page. This information should be broken up into categories and placed on a page suited to that category. The home page should be a brief introduction to the business: a summary and/or page of brief news. Sometimes long pages are unavoidable, but it’s best to keep them short when you can.

False. Many websites don’t sell anything online, yet the site draws new customers to the business or organization. Additionally, page views and hits are also not always an accurate reflection of a site’s success.

Maybe. Maybe yes. Maybe no. Maybe for a while. There’s only room for 1 person to be #1. Many businesses promise to put everyone at the top of the search engines. But how can everyone be #1? If they tell 10 plumbers that they’ll all be top ranked, they may be near the top, but all 10 can’t be in first place.

Be realistic in your website expectations. If you’re just starting out, your competition is already ahead of you in the search engines and they’ve also thrown a lot more money at getting there. Don’t expect to get there easily or cheaply. Be suspicious of anyone claiming you can.

Not anymore. Google does have a free listing and some of the other big ones do too. Some may provide a free listing to have your name come up in the search box, but you may have to pay extra to be listed in their directory. You may want to set aside some funds for search engine placement and advertising

Absolutely not. Your website should be similar in content and style. Consistency in marketing is important for your branding efforts.

Most individuals hate spam. With a passion. Why send email to potential customers that you are guaranteed to lose using this method? Also, spam is prohibited by most ISPs and web hosts. If you are caught using it, you will have to find another host. GeekArtist Web Solutions will terminate any account count spamming.