Web Design Discussion

What if you want to make one link in a CSS menu a different color from the rest of the links?

Most CSS menus contain one color for the background, another color for the link text and another for the hover effect. My client wanted one of the links to stand out from all the others so visitors’ eyes would get drawn to it and take action.

See the live multi-color navigation menu at: http://www.unitcoins.us

Here’s how the multi-colored menu was created:

1. Here’s the original html for the left menu (”request a quote” link only)

White text on a blue background with a red hover color


<div id="leftnav">
<ul id=”navlist”>
<li id=”active”><a href=”http://www.unitcoins.us/” id=”current”>Home</a></li>
<li><a href=”http://www.unitcoins.us/quote.shtml”>Request a Quote</a></li>
<li><a class=”request” href=”http://www.unitcoins.us/quote.shtml”>Request a Quote</a></li>
</ul>
</div>


2. Here’s the original css for the left menu


#leftnav {
width: 170px;
position: relative;
margin-left: 5px;
margin-top: 20px;
float: left;
margin-right: 5px;
margin-bottom: 5px;
}
#leftnav ul
{
margin-left: 0;
padding-left: 0;
list-style-type: none;
font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
}

#leftnav a:hover
{
background-color: #990000;
color: #fff;
}


3. Here’s the html for the multi-colored navigation menu

Blue text on a white background with a red hover color.
A class called “request” was added.


<div id="leftnav">
<ul id=”navlist”>
<li id=”active”><a href=”http://www.unitcoins.us/” id=”current”>Home</a></li>
<li><a class=”request” href=”http://www.unitcoins.us/quote.shtml”>Request a Quote</a></li>
</ul>
</div>


4. Here’s the CSS for the multi-colored navigation menu


#leftnav {
width: 200px;
position: relative;
margin-left: 5px;
margin-top: 20px;
float: left;
margin-right: 5px;
margin-bottom: 5px;
}
#leftnav ul
{
margin-left: 0;
padding-left: 0;
list-style-type: none;
font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
}

#leftnav a:hover, #leftnav a.request:hover
{
background-color: #CC3300;
color: #fff;
}
#leftnav a.request
{
color: #12366A;
background-color: #FFF;
}


Resource
Pacfic Wings Multi color Menu

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The success of an AdWords campaign primarily depends on the keywords you are targeting. If you use general keywords you may get lots of impressions but very few clicks. If you get lots of clicks you may not receive any conversions. Your keywords must be tightly woven into your ads and landing pages.

7 tips to find laser targeted keywords

1. Find keywords that get lots of searches

A keyword that gets 1000 searches a month means 33 searches per day. Out of those 33 searches many will click on the web sites in the organic listings (listed on the left side of the page) plus you may have competing ads listed above or below yours that also include some of those searches. Therefore only use keywords in your AdWords campaign that receive lots of searches per month.

2. Use the exact match option

When using the Google AdWords tool for researching your keywords, use the exact match option. If you use the broad match option it will generate a higher number of searches(clicks) because the searches are not specific. For example if your keyword is “red shoes” you also receive clicks for “long red shoes”, red shoes for dancing” etc.

By using the exact match option the Google tool will only return monthly searches for that exact phrase. The numbers may not be as high as broad match but they will be more targeted.

3. Include misspelled words

Many people don’t enter the correct spelling of your keyword when searching the Net. You can capitalize on this by incorporating them in your campaign. For example “pitbull” may also be spelled “pit bull”, “pitt bull.” If you enter those terms in the search engines you’ll still find many listings. Make sure you check how many searches the misspellings your keyword receives. If it gets a good number of searches include it in your campaign.

4. Include negative keywords

If you just use broad match keywords in your campaigns, try to include negative keywords to weed out irrelevant searches that will only cost you clicks. For example by including the negative keyword “free” you eliminate people searching on free products.

5. Write laser targeted ads

Google rewards you for ads that are very specific therefore try to include the main keyword in the first line of your ad and if possible the other lines also. Tell your visitor exactly what to expect when they click on your ad ie type of ebook or product, etc. Your landing page should expand upon what was promised in the ad.

6. Use multiple research tools

Instead of just using the Google AdWords keyword research tool (which) everyone else uses), use other research tools such as WordTracker, Keyword Discovery and Search It. You’ll discover keywords that others are not using. These undiscovered keywords will cost less per click and have less advertisers (competing ads).

7. Focus on keywords with a high click through rate (CTR).

After running your campaign for several days you’ll notice the keywords that receive the most clicks and impressions. Remove or pause the keywords that receive a few or no clicks and concentrate on the high performers. You may even create a new ad group that just focuses on one high performing keyword. It will improve your CTR and quality score.

By finding and implementing these laser targeted keywords, you have a greater potential to create profitable AdWords campaigns.

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Google AdWords is a highly effective tool to drive traffic to your web site or to test a product’s profit potential. You can market your product to the world or even target specific countries, states or cities. If you set up campaigns without first learning about the tool you’ll make many costly mistakes and conclude Google AdWords doesn’t work for you.

Top 7 Google AdWords Mistakes to Avoid

1. Setting a high daily budget

It’s easy to blow your whole budget in one day or even a few hours if you receive hundreds of clicks but make no sales. If you reduce you daily budget you’ll only spend that amount per day and collect valuable data over a longer period. The data will provide the necessary information to help make informed decisions how to tweak your campaign.

2. Targeting the wrong keywords

Google rewards you for relevancy because they want to provide the most relevant information for searches. Use the Google AdWords tool to find keywords closely related to your product then use them in your ad and landing page.

3. Only using broad match

Broad match may get you tons of clicks however you’ll waste lots of money on clicks that don’t relate to your ad. For example if your keyword is “shoes” you’ll receive clicks for “long red shoes”, “free ladies shoes that shine in the dark”…get the picture? You can start with broad match to see what keywords receive the most clicks then switch to exact match to get more targeted clicks.

4. Using too many keywords in one ad group

If you place 100s of keywords in one ad group the popular ones will receive the most clicks very quickly while the less popular ones may receive few or no clicks. If you not collecting results over a long period you won’t know what keywords get the most clicks within a week or month period. Start with approximately 10 keywords per ad group then remove those that don’t receive clicks. This will give you a highly targeted campaign that’s focused on the most active keywords.

5. Not split testing your ads

Google allows you to rotate 2 or more ads evenly so you can see which one performs the best. If you only create one ad you won’t know if it is the best one. Testing 2 ads against each other helps improve click through rates and generate more conversions.

6. Displaying your ads on the content network

The content network is where your ads get displayed on other sites besides Google and it’s partners. These could be adsense sites that may not contain information related to your ad or have competing products that distract the visitor. This means you can easily spend lots of money without seeing a return on investment. They are also hard to track. Start your AdWords campaign by turning off the content network and just focus on Google and/or it’s search partners.

7. Not tracking your keywords

If you don’t track your keywords you won’t know which ones generated sales. Use keyword tracking software like Adtrackz to track multiple campaigns at the same time.

Avoid these 7 top Google AdWords mistakes and you’ll be on your way to creating profitable campaigns.

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The beauty of marketing affiliate products is that you don’t have to create your own product or web site and the commissions are automatically credited to you by clickbank or another affiliate network. All you need to do is drive traffic to your affiliate web site with Google AdWords.

10 steps for marketing affiliate products with Google AdWords:

1. Do keyword research

Use the Google AdWords tool to research keywords related to the topic you want to promote. Ideally find keywords with a high number of searches but have few ads listed in the right hand column of the search engine results’ pages. If there are a lot of ads you’ll have a high cost per click.

2. Select a product

Once you’ve selected your keywords go to clickbank or commission junction (the 2 leading affiliate networks) to find a product that matches your keyword. If you can’t find a product there, Google “keyword+affiliate program” to find alternative affiliate networks.

3. Create a winning ad

You only have 4 short lines to get the visitor to take action by clicking on the link to your sales page. Try to include the main keyword in the first line (it gets bolded by Google) so it stands out in your ad. The second line should include the main benefit of your product. The 3rd line is where you want the visitor to take action. Use action words such as “instant download”, “money back guarantee” or even mention the price. Use the 4th line for the display url. It must be exactly the same as the product URL but the link will contain your product affiliate ID.

4. Create a second ad

The purpose of creating the second ad is to do split testing. Google will display two ads evenly to your visitors. The ad that receives the most clicks will be your winning ad. By continually writing a better ad than the current one you’ll improve your click through rate and conversions (sales).

When setting up your campaign make sure you check the box “rotate ads evenly” so your ads are equally displayed.

5. Target geographic regions

Enter your main keyword in Google Trends to see which countries to target when creating your campaign. It will show you the countries where the most searches occur for that keyword.

Google rewards you for relevancy.

Tip
Use notepad to quickly copy and paste your keywords, ads, display URL, affiliate URL, and geographic regions. This allows you to quickly transfer the information to your AdWords account.

6. Set a daily budget

Start with a relatively small daily budget (ie $5.00/day) so you collect data over an extended period and don’t spend everything in one day.

7. Set maximum cost per click(CPC)

This is how much you want to spend for each click. If you want to be in the first ad position the CPC will be higher than positions 2-8. Unless you want to dominate the first ad position aim for positions 3-4. You will pay less and avoid a lot of the tire kickers.

8. Track your keywords

Without tracking software you won’t know which keywords produced the sales. Use Adtrackz to see which keywords are generating the most sales.

9. Tweak your campaign

The key to higher conversions is to monitor your ads and keywords. Create a new ad to outperform the current one and eliminate or pause keywords that are not receiving many clicks.

10. Duplicate successful campaigns

Once you’ve found the right combination of keywords, ads, and landing pages that convert, try to duplicate it for future affiliate products. Several profitable campaigns will generate a nice ongoing income.

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search engine optimization packages

Google AdWords has the best system for getting fast and clear feedback from your ads. You can create 2 ads to rotate evenly so they are viewed equally by your visitors. The data you gather helps determine the potential profitability of your campaign.

Top 10 benefits of split testing Google Ads

1. Fast feedback

You can set up a new Google AdWords campaign and start receiving impressions and clicks to your ads almost immediately. It will depend on the popularity of your product and how well your ad was written. By split testing 2 ads you’ll soon discover the winner.

2. Improve Click Through Rate (CTR)

The purpose of split testing is to always write a better ad then test it against the best one you have. By repeating this process you constantly improve your click through rate.

3. Save time

If you just ran one ad you wouldn’t know if it was a good one. Split testing your ads saves time because you quickly discover if your campaign will be profitable.

4. Reduce Cost Per Click (CPC)

Google rewards you for improving your ads. If the ad tightly matches your keyword and landing page you’ll get a higher CTR, more conversions and a better quality score.

5. Improve writing skills

By constantly rewriting your ads to find the one that receives the most clicks and conversions you improve your writing skills. Over time you’ll find it easier to write winning ads.

6. Helps you to think like your customer

One of the keys to writing an effective ad is to get inside the mind of your customer. Ask questions like “what pain is he feeling”, or “what frustration is he experiencing” then address that emotion in your ad.

7. Improve conversions

Conversions improve by writing better ads. With split testing you quickly discover which ad is performing the best. You then write another one to try to outperform the previous one.

8. View the effect of small changes

Here are some small changes which can greatly affect the CTR of your ad:

Capitalization
Include keywords
Order of lines
Use of synonyms
Use different display URLS
Punctuation

9. Develop a winning ad

The winning ad receives the highest CTR and conversions. Use your winning ad as a model for creating ads for other profitable campaigns.

10. Improve results over time

Sometimes you need to write many ads to find one that receives a high CTR. Study the ads of your competitors that have been running for a long time. Their ads are obviously doing well otherwise they would be wasting a lot of money. By constantly improving ad quality you’ll outperform competing ads.

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Cascading Style Sheets Level 3 or CSS3 is the next stage CSS. It offers greater design flexibility, faster completion time and easier maintenance. The problem is internet browsers like internet explorer (which most people use) won’t be able to see the new features..yet. This means you’ll need to create extra CSS (ie 2 style sheets) which takes a whole lot more work to implement. Also CSS3 features have not been released so your style sheet will not validate making it difficult to find any errors.

Features of CSS3

* Selectors
* Multi-Column Layout
* Text Effects and Layout
* Paged Media and Generated Content
* First-Letter and First-Line Pseudo-Classes
* Ruby

Here are 5 techniques to immediately implement in your future web designs:

5 CSS3 techniques

Read these 2 articles to look at some of the advantages of CSS3

Take your design to the next level

CSS3 advantages

So should you use CSS3 in your future designs?

If you are a professional web designer you can implement the features to show other designers what’s possible. For regular computer users I would hold off incorporating CSS3 features until the main browsers correctly render your designs otherwise they will look horrific.

Resource
Everything you need to know about CSS3

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Have you ever got a high click through rate (CTR) using Google AdWords but received no conversions?

It’s easy to spend a lot of money on pay per click advertising especially if your landing page doesn’t convert. Ideally you want your landing page to convert well so you’ll make a profit.

7 Essential Elements for Creating a Profitable Landing Page

1. Have one goal

Your landing page is a sales page what must be focused on one goal…to sell the product or service you are marketing. Don’t waver off topic in your content. You want to keep the visitor on the page and have them click the payment button.

2. Create an attention grabbing headline

This is the first thing a person sees so make sure it captures the reader’s attention. You achieve this by asking a question or making a direct statement. The headline should be a nice graphic at the top of the page that stands out from the rest of the content.

3. Well written copy

Use sub headlines, short paragraphs, bulleted points and create plenty of white space so it’s easy for your visitors to read. Most people just scan the page so their eyes will be attracted to the most prominent features. Your copy helps presell your visitor before they order.

4. Use relevant images

Create graphics or use images that enhance or compliment your content. Don’t use too many graphics as this will cause your page to load slowly and drive impatient visitors away.

5. Include related bonuses

Good bonuses provide the tipping point for people to purchase your product because they receive extra value. The bonuses should relate or compliment your main product. It could be a free download, report, cheat sheet or tutorial on how to use your product.

6. Offer a money-back guarantee

This reassures your customer you stand behind your product. It removes the fear it may not be what they wanted. If your product promises exactly what you specified in your ad you won’t get any or few refunds.

7. Create a call to action

This gets your customer to take action after reading the content on your landing page. Include a prominent order button in several locations on the sales page to make it easy for them to purchase. Use a color that stands out from other colors on the page.

Tip
Create an upsell offer during the the purchasing process.(think McDonalds..”do you want fries with that?”) By introducing a similar or complimentary product you increase your profit margin.

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If you want to increase sales you need to improve the click through rate (CTR) of your Google Ads. A low CTR means a small number of people are clicking on your ad. This will lower your quality score and increase your cost per click (CPC).

What is CTR?

This refers to the number of people clicking on your ad. For example if your ad receives 100 impressions (number of times the ad is displayed) and 1 person clicks on your ad you will have a 1% CTR.

How to improve the Click Through Rate of Google AdWords

1. Write targeted ad copy

You only have a few lines to market your ad so make your ad specific to your product so the visitor knows exactly what to expect. Avoid generalities. For example if you are selling “curved red widgets” then say “curved red widgets” instead of “red widgets”

2. Promise what’s on your landing page

Don’t write an ad that promises something different to what’s mentioned on your landing page. Google may not show your ads and give you a poor quality score. Use the description at the top of your landing page (usually the title and subtitle) to write your ad.

3. Create separate ad groups for your keywords

Curved red widgets should be placed in a separate ad group to curved red widgets Australia. Look at your list of keywords to see if any of them should be taken out to form their own ad group.

4. Include your main keyword in the ad

Keywords placed in your ad get bolded. This helps it to stand out from competing ads will improve your CTR. Include the keyword in your headline, second line and display URL.

5. Select the correct keywords for your ad

Use the Google Keyword Research Tool to find the best keywords to include in your ad. This tool shows
you how many people are searching on that term each month and the average cost per click you pay to use this keyword.

6. Use geographic targeting

Use the Google Trends Tool to find specific countries and/or states where people are searching on that keyword. The more targeted your ad the better it will perform.

7. Split test your ads

Google allows you to rotate 2 ads evenly. This means each ad will receive a similar number of impressions. The first ad is your control ad. Write the second differently to test various parameters ie headlines, keywords in the copy, capitalizing the first letter of each word, using www in the display URL, etc. After running these 2 ads for a day or 2 delete the second one and write another. Always try to improve your CTR by testing your ads.

If you apply these tips you’ll improve your current click through rate and make more sales.

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Your Google Ad is the first thing visitors read when searching for something for a product to purchase. It has to catch their attention and persuade them to click through to your landing page. You only have a few short lines to convey your message so your ad needs to be benefit and action oriented.

Steps for writing a highly effective ad

1. Create an attractive headline

This is what visitors read first so you need to capture their attention. It should be benefit-laden and include your main keyword. Take a look at some of the competing ads by Googling your keyword. Competing ads will be displayed on the right side of the search engine results pages. Try to make your ad stand out from the others by writing it differently ie asking a question.

Example

101 Promotion Strategies
Attract 1000s Visitors to Web Site
Immediate Download - Ebook $27.00
iSitebuild.com/WebsitePromotion/

2. Provide a solution
The second line should tell them what they receive that will satisfy their needs. Select the most significant feature of your product then write a short sentence on it.

Example

Attract 1000s Visitors to Web Site

3. Call to action

Provide a strong call to action in the third line. You want them to take action right away. You may even include the price to stop tire kickers since they just click on your ad to take a look but not purchase thus wasting your money.

Example

Immediate Download - Ebook $27.00

4. Use capitals

Capitalize the first letter of each word for each line of your ad It’s proven this results in more people clicking on your ad.

5. Split test your ads

Sometimes one small change can improve your ad’s performance ie changing the headline, capitalizing a word or several words. Use one ad as your control ad then test another ad against it. Google rotates your ads evenly so you’ll quickly see which one receives the highest click through rate (CTR).

Your sales will increase by continually improving your ad.

*********************
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search engine optimization services

Would you like to get a double listing for your web site in the Google search results pages?

Google usually only lists one page in it’s top 10 listings however there is a way to get a second indented listing using the tactics listed below.

What are Google indented listings?

This is when a second listing is placed beneath the first one in indented form. You can therefore receive a double listing for the same web site. Most site owners are unware of this strategy so you can move ahead of your competition.

Here’s what Google says:

“When Google finds multiple results from the same website, the most relevant result is listed first, with other relevant pages from that site indented below it.”

Benefits of double listings in Google

Pushes competitors listings down

If your web page is listed in the top 10 results and you get a double listing it will push all the results
down. If a competitor is listed number 10 on the page he will be moved to the second page and no longer appear in the top 10.

Attract more visitors to your web site

If you have 2 listings on the first page of Google you will own 20% of the listings instead of 10%. This means you have doubled your chances of people clicking on the links to your web pages.

Generate more traffic

Most visitors only view the resuts of their searches on the first page of Google. Capturing double listings will drive more traffic to your web site.

How to achieve double listings for your keywords

1. Your web page must have a top 10 ranking for your keyword

Your web page must already be listed in the top 10 results (first page) of Google. If you aren’t there yet work on getting more links to that page.

2. Create another web page with alternative content

This web page should be created on the same web site and link to the page that has the top 10 listing. Optimize your second page for the same keyword as page your first page however create different content for it.

3. Link your second page to the first page

Both pages need to be linked to each other to achieve a double listing.

4. Link your first page to the second page in the anchor text

Use the keyword phrase in your anchor text on the first page to link to the second page. Try to use the anchor text within your content instead of your navigation bar.

5. Get inbound links to the second page

Get links from other sites to point to your second page. If possible use the keyword phrase in the anchor text of these links. This type of link carries more weight than just using a URL.

Tip
Search for all the pages on your web site that already have a top 10 listing in Google then follow the steps outlined above to get a double listing. You’ll receive more clicks, traffic and sales.

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• Jul 3 : CSS Menu - How to Create a Multi-color Navigation Menu
• Jul 1 : Google AdWords Tips - How to Find Laser Targeted Keywords To Increase Conversions
• Jun 27 : Google AdWords Mistakes to Avoid - Top 7
• Jun 24 : Google AdWords - How to Market Affiliate Products
• Jun 20 : Google Adwords - Top 10 Benefits of Split Testing Google Ads