Sunday, July 13, 2008

Creating Graphics for Your Online Business is Important

By Theo McLanahan

If you do business online, you know how important it is to have a website. Your website is your "store front"; it welcomes new customers from around the world. The graphics you choose play a major role in your website's success or failure.

Above all else, well made, high quality graphics will give your website a great professional touch. Conversely, the entire website will be affected negatively by low quality graphics or images that are poorly arranged, blurry, or otherwise unappealing aesthetically. Right or wrong, visitors to your site will judge your entire business based on the appearance your graphics present. If they consider yours to be amateur, they probably won't be real excited to do business with you.

Graphics are most effective when they express your brand's concept to the public while helping customers to quickly and easily recognize your product. Consider one famous example, the Nike "swoosh." This internationally known symbol appears on the company's website amongst other images of shoes and athletes that conjure up sports related thoughts.

When you visit the Nike site, you know you are in the right place, as the images coincide with Nike's message of "just do it." On the other hand, if you went to the Nike site and saw photos of ice cream, cakes, and cookies, you would wonder if you were in the right place. You might not even take the time to read the words on the website, as you might just click away and try finding the correct website.

This idea applies in equal measure to you and your company's web page. Visitors that are confused by the images they find will not stick around. You are also less likely to be linked from other sites and any affiliate programs you use will certainly be less successful.

By offering an affiliate program, you are asking other people to partner with you and sell your products or services. If the looks of the graphics you choose for your affiliate program do not convey an image that people want to endorse, you will have a hard time recruiting affiliates. If they are going to take the time and effort to promote your product, they deserve to have quality tools to do so. One of the tools they need is quality graphics.

Likewise, when you ask someone to partner with you on a link exchange, they are going to expect a quality graphic. They will be displaying this graphic, with a link to your page, on their website. If you send them an unprofessional-looking graphic, it is going to bring the look of their site down. They will more than likely decline your offer.

Graphics and images are clearly a very important part of any online business. Graphic designers can be hired to help you if you are not familiar with the use of graphics software. Although this presents an extra cost, it will prevent you from losing money because customers would find your product to be of an inferior quality. Paying for the help of a real professional is worth the extra money you'll have to spend.

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