When you tell one of your friends a new and interesting story, you stand in front of them, look them in the eye and say, “You will love this …” You have their full attention, because you are speaking directly to them. and they are about to give you information that you will enjoy. Your website must behave similarly towards your visitors, if you want them to promote your status from ‘an occasional and unique visitor’ to ‘your active and returning customer’.

In the opening paragraph above, the words “you” and “your” were used 10 times, because they make the message personal and important to you; the reader.

The word “YOU” is one of the most powerful words you can use to attract the attention of your website visitors and convey your message to them in a friendly and easy-to-understand way.

Another emotional word that not only attracts immediate attention, but can also quickly arouse the interest and desire of specific visitors, is the word “NEW”. This is because we are conditioned to expect that a new product or service is considerably better than the old version and is therefore worth purchasing. Many of us also like to be the first to have something new, because it gives us the opportunity to show it off to fan friends.

The word “FREE” has been used successfully in marketing for over a hundred years and despite the abuse and overuse it has experienced on the Internet, it is probably the most important word you can use on your website. This is because not only have we become used to downloading free content, but we also expect it and are often disappointed when none is offered.

You need to offer something of value to your visitors as a free download, if you want to not only keep their interest in your website content, but also take a positive action like signing up for your newsletter or making a purchase.

The word BECAUSE has been used five times in the previous paragraphs and is another strong word that you can use with great success on your website. It gives the visitor the reason to make a purchase or to subscribe to a mailing list; and you can justify your previous statement. For example, you can say: “This new product will increase your sales, because …”. Your visitors want to know WHY you are special, unique, better or different from others and use the word because you can give them the answers they are looking for.

Your visitors will want to know exactly how they will benefit from something before taking any action; even for a free download, they’ll want some good “why” reasons before clicking on the “call to action” link. You can even provide a simple but excellent title list of “Your Benefits,” because this will quickly summarize why you need to take action.

If you prefer not to use the word “benefit”, you must provide full details of the benefits your visitors will enjoy before they accept your offer.

It may well be the first visit to your website for most visitors, and one of the biggest hurdles you must overcome is establishing some form of credibility. TESTIMONIES can go a long way in giving your visitors some confidence that your product or service can deliver the benefits it promises. Written testimonials are great, but on today’s high-speed internet, many visitors expect and enjoy audio and video testimonials from their customers.

The second element that you can provide to your visitors that will reinforce your credibility is your GUARANTEE. These come in many different forms, but a simple, easy to understand, ‘money back’ guarantee if you are not satisfied is often the best. In addition to providing a written guarantee, please provide all the details of exactly what they have to do to request a refund. Use simple language that they can easily read and understand.

The word NOW is a powerful call to action. When making a ‘call to action’ always end it with the word ‘now’ as it can substantially increase your results.

Two other words that you should use on your website are BUY and REGISTER, and you should use them many times, because it is a proven fact that the more opportunities you provide for your visitors to act, the higher your response rate will be.

Don’t be afraid to use the words, BUY NOW or REGISTER NOW on your website, because if you’ve given them reason enough to act, your visitors will want to own your product, service, or newsletter subscription right away. Once you’ve made them want it, let them have every opportunity to have it!

Don’t be afraid of exposing yourself to the dangers of taking an order!

Once your visitor has taken positive action in response to your offer, make sure the next page that opens is one that says THANK YOU! This is the same page that you can determine if your new customer becomes a ‘repeat customer’ with repeat orders.

You can do a lot to make sure they come back with a great thank you page and maybe a little unexpected gift as a positive token of your appreciation. A surprise gift is the best gift of all and it is one that they will remember. Your customer buys an e-book or software program from you and on your ‘thank you’ page you provide a link to an additional free download.

The first thing this client is going to do is tell all his friends about his website … and that action is viral marketing. Plus, the unexpected gift is one of the best ways to be active with viral marketing, especially if you tell them they can pass a copy to their friends!

© Copyright 2007. Brian Hunt. All rights reserved.